Kashmir polls must be free, fair: Powell

And just hours later in Islamabad, he begged to differ with his host — who insisted that there was absolutely no infiltration — and pointed out that while it may have gone down, it had not ended. ‘‘It seems clear from the information I have that infiltration is continuing and every effort is to be made to convince President Musharraf to implement his commitment to permanently end infiltration,’’ he said.

Indicating the tightrope walk he was undertaking, he told New Delhi that in return for peaceful polls, India would be expected to begin a process of dialogue with Pakistan, in which all outstanding issues, including Kashmir, would be discussed.

‘‘If we have enough observers there, you can see what is taking place, whether people are able to campaign and watch the process of debate among candidates…That will seem to add a level of credibility to the elections…(It) will (also) benefit the Indian government,’’ Powell said.

Then, he added: ‘‘If we don’t have that, then the international community will not judge them in the proper way…’’

The bluntness of Powell’s remarks today — — although he delivered them in his inimitable, engaging manner — seems to have made New Delhi sit up and listen hard. MEA spokesperson Nirupama Rao rejected Powell’s suggestions on the conduct of the elections, certainly his proposal that ‘‘international observers’’ be allowed in, saying that India did not need lessons in this regard.

Interestingly, however, the government has for a while been quietly turning its Kashmir policy on its head. And although officials intermittently make dismissive, public noises about the ‘‘internationalisation’’ of Kashmir, the fact is that New Delhi has been doing more in tandem with the western community on this issue than alone.

Just like the US, the Government has been keen that the Hurriyat also participate in the elections. To a direct question today on whether the Hurriyat should also participate, Powell said, ‘‘All sections of the Kashmiri people who play by the rules should participate…Moderate elements should be encouraged.’’

In a sense, Powell’s message on Kashmir today was similar to what New Delhi has been putting out: Pakistan should stop destabilising the polls, and that a violence-free poll would encourage the beginning of a dialogue process between India and Pakistan. The holding of successful elections would be the ‘‘first step’’ in the dialogue, Powell said.

He stressed again and again, at his meetings with Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, Deputy PM Advani and Principal Secretary Brajesh Mishra, the need for New Delhi to return to some form of dialogue with Pakistan.

With a substantial part of his press conference devoted to Kashmir, it was quite clear that Washington would watch developments in the region with a keen eye. Powell announced a series of visitors over the next few months, including Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Richard Armitage and Assistant Secretary of State Christina Rocca.

Later, in Islamabad, he did some plainspeaking on infiltration across the LoC though General Musharraf had told reporters bluntly: ‘‘It is not taking place and whatever the Indian side is saying is absolutely baseless.’’ Asked what further steps his government would take on Kashmir, Musharraf added, ‘‘I don’T have to do anything because we have already done it…Our stand is very, very clear. We need to start a dialogue on Kashmir and all the issues,’’ he said.

(India rejected as ‘‘terminological inexactitude’’ Musharraf’s claim that infiltration of terrorists had stopped, saying there had been a ‘‘spurt’’ in this in the past few weeks.)

Still, Powell insisted that the US role in the region was that of a ‘‘good friend of both India and Pakistan’’ and that the relationship with both these nations was not a zero-sum game.