Thursday, June 23 2005 22:02 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Lakhimpur: BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) president L K Advani, who during his recent trip to Pakistan talked about the irreversibility of the Indo-Pak peace process today (Jun 23, 2005) said ties with Islamabad could not be normal till terror infrastructure was intact there.

Addressing a rally to commemorate Jana Sangh founder Syamaprasad Mukherjee's death anniversary, he also blamed first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru for the prevailing situation in Jammu and Kashmir by according a special status to the State and stopping the Army in 1948 from taking back Kashmir by throwing out Pakistani invaders.

"We are not against peace and normal relations with Pakistan and its good to have peace but it can not be brought until terrorist infrastructure is alive," Advani said in his first public meeting after his controversial tour of Pakistan that nearly cost him his post.

"There would be no compromise on militancy as far as BJP is concerned and no peace can be achieved until militancy is alive in Jammu and Kashmir," he said.

Blaming Nehru for committing "two major blunders", Advani said giving the state a special status with separate Constitution was the first mistake.

The second mistake was stopping the Army from its forward march to take back Kashmir and throw out Pakistani elements from the State during 1947 guerrilla war by Pakistan to annex Kashmir which the then Maharaja acceded to India with the active support of the National Conference leader Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah.

"Had the Army not been stopped and a special not given to Kashmir, the Kashmir issue would never have existed," he said.

The BJP chief said during that during his visit to Pakistan he told President Pervez Musharraf that peace cannot be achieved until terror infrastructure was intact in Pakistan.

"I told him that the terror infrastructure and launching pads are still intact and this is confirmed by foreign and intelligence reports," he said.

Advani said he also told Musharraf that terrorism was like the mythological demon 'Bhasmasura', those creating and supporting it also face destruction.

Without referring to anyone, he said there were people who created and supported terrorism in Punjab and Tamil Nadu and they paid the price. "And what happened to them you people all know it."

"During the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) regime, we had two-point policy on militancy and Pakistan -- no compromise on militancy and initiation of peace process with Pakistan," he said.

Advani said that people have accepted that Independence has brought with it unfortunate division of India into two countries.

He said the seeds of the division of the country were sown by the erstwhile British rulers, who went to all the princely States and told them they have granted independence and they were masters of their own fate.