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Polls on time, Kargil or no Kargil: Advani

Shireen in Hyderabad

Home Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani today reiterated that the Lok Sabha elections will take place as scheduled in September despite the war-like situation in Jammu and Kashmir.

Addressing a media conference in Hyderabad before returning to Delhi, Advani said that Chief Election Commissioner M S Gill too has made it clear that there was no proposal to change the poll schedule. Responding to a query, Advani said: "Yes, even if the military operations in Kargil go on, elections will be held.''

Dwelling at length on the present conflict in Kargil, the home minister ruled out a full-scale war between India and Pakistan. "I don't think after their bitter experience, they (Pakistanis) will do it (escalate the conflict). However, we have to be prepared for all eventualities," he said.

"The Indian Army has the capacity to deal with this aggression. We are trying to see that it does not escalate by treating it as a limited war. The restraint on the part of Indian security forces has made the whole world aware of the true facts behind the Kargil conflict. Some countries may have different views on the Jammu and Kashmir tangle, but all are saying that Pakistan has violated the Line of Control,'' Advani pointed out.

He felt that no deadline could be fixed for flushing out the intruders. "To talk about time-frames is unrealistic, considering the proxy war by Pakistan and the terrain there (in Kargil). It is only a matter of time before they (infiltrators) are thrown out," he said.

Advani said that the main provocation for Pakistan to send the infiltrators into Kargil was to unsettle the process of normalisation embarked upon by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government. ''There has been a turnaround in the situation in Jammu and Kashmir. Terrorist activity has been contained and normal tourist movement has been revived.''

He denied that India was caught off-guard by Pakistan's intrusion into Kargil. "There is no question of dropping our guard," he said.

The Kargil Crisis

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