NEW DELHI, JULY 2: India has discounted media reports from Islamabad about offers of de-escalating the Kargil crisis, saying there is no evidence to suggest that Pakistan was withdrawing its forces from the pockets of intrusion along the Line of Control (LoC) in Kargil.Responding to reports in the Pakistani media of Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif coming up with a peace offer, the External Affairs Ministry spokesman said India would only be willing to talks of any nature once the intrusions into the Indian side of the LoC had been evicted.
India has also categorically ruled out any possibility of ``widening of the conflict'' along other fronts and reiterated its resolve not to cross the LoC.
Reports published in the Pakistani daily, News, said that following intense international pressure and Pakistan's growing isolation in the global community, Sharif was intending to make some overtures to his Indian counterpart to resolve the crisis.
But the ground reality belied the statements fromIslamabad, MEA officials here said.
Pakistan was making ``desperate attempts to replenish supplies to the infiltrators'' even as the Indian Army had launched a concerted battle to push them back into Pakistan.
The MEA spokesman denied that India had received any peace proposals from Islamabad, but added that India would respond once it received any such proposal.
But on the one issue of resumption of the dialogue, India is inflexible. The Lahore process would be resumed only after Pakistan takes immediate steps to withdraw the armed intruders from the Indian side of the LoC. The MEA spokesman said the Pakistani intrusion ``amounting to aggression had been planned well in advance''.
India had a greater vision of ``living harmoniously'' with all its neighbours including Pakistan. This was why despite suffering high casualties, it continues to respect the LoC.
Copyright © 1999 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.