Government should clear its stance on LoC killings, suggests Mayawati

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Tuesday said that the UPA-led government and the Indian Army were not speaking in a united voice, and that the former should clarify its account of the Poonch District incident in which five Indian soldiers were ambushed by the Pakistani army on Tuesday morning.

"This issue is extremely serious. ...The Government and the Indian Army are not speaking in the same voice. The House was prematurely adjourned again today because their statements are not aligned. This is a worrisome and serious matter. I believe that the Government should clear its stance on this issue in both Houses of Parliament and to the nation," Mayawati said.

While Pakistan has denied the involvement of its troops in the incident, Defence Minister A.K. Antony on Tuesday said in Parliament that the intruders were "terrorists along with persons dressed in Pakistan Army uniform."

Antony's statement attracted a lot of flak, as it has contradicted the Indian Army's account, which said that the perpetrators were "soldiers from the Pakistan Army."

After Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Yashwant Sinha issued a breach of privilege notice against the Defence Minister, Antony changed his statement in Parliament on Wednesday after Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh's approval.

Meanwhile, the Congress has maintained that there is no contradiction in voices between the Indian Army and the Central Government.

External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said "The Defence Minister did not say anything wrong " while criticizing the BJP-led opposition for targeting Antony.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari appealed to parties not to politicise the Line of Control killings, saying that Antony had made his statement on Tuesday with the information that he had at the time.

Both Houses of Parliament were adjourned prematurely again today after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led opposition continued to mount pressure on the Congress-led UPA Government and demanded an apology from the Defence Minister for misleading the nation through his statement.

Leader of Opposition (Lok Sabha) Sushma Swaraj launched a frontal attack on Antony asking "Who is the defence Minister to give a clean chit to the Pakistani Army?"

The Prime Minister is expected to meet opposition parties on the Poonch District killings today before taking a decision on the response to Pakistan.

On Tuesday morning, Pakistan had ambushed five Indian soldiers who were patrolling an area along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch District.

Of the five Indian soldiers killed, four belong to the 21 Bihar Regiment and one to the Maratha Light Infantry. They were killed in an ambush by a force dressed in Pakistan Army uniform. The Indian Army soldiers killed in the incident have been identified as Prem Nath Singh, Shambhu Saran Ray, Vyay Kumay Ray, Raghunandan Prasad and Pundalik Mane.