'No proposal from govt on ceasefire in J

Uri (North Kashmir), Oct 7: Army Chief General J J Singh said Government alone could announce a ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir.

''We have not receive any proposal from government for a ceasefire in the state during the holy month of Ramzan,'' General Singh told reporters after inaugurating a model village Churunda reconstructed by the army.

Churunda village, barely a few hundred meters from the Line of Control (LoC), had suffered maximum damage in the devastating earthquake of October 8 last year.

About 31 people were killed, 12 seriously wounded and 62 livestock perished in the killer quake. Nearly 100 per cent houses and existing infrastructure were destroyed in the temblor.

It was the task of government, Mr Singh said when asked why a ceasefire was not declared during the ongoing holy month of Ramazan.

There were media reports that the Centre will announce a ceasefire during the holy Islamic month after a number of mainstream political parties, including Communist Party of India (M) urged the Union government to declare a unilateral ceasefire.

The front ranking militant outfit Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) had also announced that any ceasefire offer from the Centre during the month of Ramzan would be discussed by the United Jehand Counil (UJC), an alliance of different militant outfit operating in the Jammu and Kashmir.

A spokesman of the outfit had told local media before the start of the fasting month that any decision taken by the constituents of the UJC headed by Syed Salahuuddin, would be binding on all, including the HM.

He had further said that the HM had already made it clear that no ceasefire proposal from the Government would be considered untill their demands including accepting Kashmir as a dispute by India, return of security forces to pre 1989 positions, an end to all Human Rights violations and release of all prisoners conditionally, were considered.

UNI

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