Thursday, June 2 2005 07:36 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Islamabad: A day after his engagements with top Pakistani leadership, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president L K Advani yesterday (Jun 1, 2005) met Opposition leaders including the hardline Jamat Ulema Islami (JUI) leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman and asserted that peace should not be held hostage for resolution of the Kashmir issue.

Leaders of all parties shared a unanimous desire that the two countries should shed their earlier hostilities, remove tensions and sort out their problems, said Advani, after a 30-minute meeting with Rehman, who was also the leader of Opposition in Pakistan's National Assembly.

"While it may take time to resolve problems which have persisted for several decades, peace shall not be held hostage for the resolution of any problem," he said.

On Tuesday (May 31, 2005) after meeting with Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, Advani had said he agreed with the latter's view that progress on all fronts in India-Pak ties should be in tandem with progress on resolving the Kashmir issue.

Advani's meeting with Rehman assumes significance, as he is also General Secretary of the hardline Islamic alliance, Muthahida Majlis Amal (MMA). Rehman visited New Delhi in 2003 well before the two countries kicked off the peace process and met among others, the then Prime Minister A B Vajpayee and the leaders of Sangh Parivar.

The BJP chief said while discussion on specific issues were the responsibility of those in the Government, his party and Opposition National Democratic Alliance (NDA) wanted to ensure that this process is not impeded.