Expressing the hope that his appeal for a dialogue on Kashmir will be reciprocated, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday said the Centre wants "peaceful resolution of both the internal and external dimensions of the Kashmir problem".

He said New Delhi’s demand that Islamabad put terror groups under “effective control” was “not a precondition” for resumption of Indo-Pak talks but a “practical” way forward, especially because “we are a democracy and if day in and day out terrorist attacks continue to take precious lives of our citizens, we cannot create a mahaul (atmosphere) for meaningful negotiations”.

At a press conference in Srinagar, Singh said: “We feel it is in our interest, it is in the interest of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and it is in the interest of the people of Pakistan that relations between our two countries should be what ought to be between two neighbours.”

“I made an appeal for dialogue yesterday and I hope it will be reciprocated in the spirit in which it was made. We have to carry all stakeholders with us to achieve permanent and peaceful reconciliation in J&K.”

‘DESTINIES INTERLINKED’

“India and Pakistan’s destinies are interlinked. If negotiations to deal with all outstanding issues are to make any headway, it is essential that terrorist elements should be brought under control,” he said.

The PDP, the main opposition party in J&K, welcomed Singh’s announcement on talks with Pakistan without pre- conditions. “This alone could help reach a resolution of the Kashmir problem,” said PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, calling for a national consensus to back up Singh’s initiative for peace. “There must be support for this initiative like the endorsement of (Atal Bihari) Vajpayee’s initiative in 2003.”

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