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I am not disappointed, says Farooq

Onkar Singh in New Delhi

Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah said he was not at all disappointed with the outcome of the Agra summit since he had never been excited about the talks in the first place.

He said the media had created so much hype about the summit that the expectations of General Pervez Musharraf also became high and he thought he would get whatever he wanted, with India meekly signing on the dotted line.

"This is a 54-year-old problem," Dr Abdullah pointed out, "and it cannot be expected to be solved overnight. The fact that the two leaders have agreed to meet again is a positive development."

Asked why he had kept quiet for almost a month and a half before the summit, Dr Abdullah remarked, "Hum aaj bhi khamosh hain."

Asked if the level of violence in the valley would go up, now that the summit had failed, the chief minister retorted, "When had it stopped?"

He, however, was confident that one day Pakistan would have to admit to the world that what was going on in Jammu & Kashmir was terrorism and not a fight for freedom.

"The Government of India cannot negotiate Kashmir with Pakistan as Jammu & Kashmir is an integral part of India," he asserted.

Indo-Pak Summit 2001: The Complete Coverage

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