M A I N   N E W S

PM: Pull-out speculation

New Delhi, March 3
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said the Indian Army was not an “army of occupation”, but the reduction of troops in Jammu and Kashmir would take place only if terrorist acts ceased.

He termed as mere speculation the statement attributed to Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Moulvi Omar Farooq that withdrawal of troops would be the first step towards finding a durable and acceptable solution to the Kashmir issue. “This is all speculation”, Singh told reporters after releasing a book edited by art historian Kapila Vatsyayan. — UNI