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'Congress not consulted on ceasefire extension'

In its latest anti-government missive, the Congress on Wednesday expressed regret that Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had not taken the party into confidence before taking the decision to extend the ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir up to February 26.

"I don't know about other parties but we are unhappy that despite being the main opposition party, Prime Minister Vajpayee did not take us into confidence before deciding on the extension," Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee told reporters.

He said, "This government has now become known for taking crucial decisions without taking opposition parties into confidence."

The Congress concern on the issue was expressed following a meeting of the party's panel on J&K, which is headed by Mukherjee.

On Tuesday, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi had said that she was not for extension of the ceasefire.

Mukherjee informed that a party delegation led by senior leader and former Union finance minister Dr Manmohan Singh would meet Prime Minister Vajpayee to assess the government's view how the ceasefire would be beneficial in the face of mounting violence in J&K.

"We have been hearing that the country's image has gone up in the international community. On the other hand, militants have been targeting security force personnel. How can you say the ceasefire is beneficial as the Bharatiya Janata Party claims?" Mukherjee asked.

He doubted the government's claims about the nation's image in international forums. "The stance of the European countries as well as that of the United States of America on J&K leaves plenty of room for doubt and the National Democratic Alliance leadership should do some soul-searching before making tall claims about the ceasefire," he said.

Mukherjee's party colleague Ghulam Nabi Azad pointed out that even among senior ministers in the Vajpayee government, there were differences of opinion on the issue.

"When the ministers themselves are apprehensive about the political fallout of the ceasefire, how can the prime minister say that his so-called peace initiatives are the solution to the J&K problem? Vajpayeeji ought to have consulted the Opposition, notably the Congress, before going ahead with such a crucial decision," Azad said.

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Government initiated ceasefire in J&K

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