No division of Kashmir on basis of religion: Manmohan

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Wednesday said any proposal to divide Jammu and Kashmir on the basis of religion would not be acceptable to India.

"I have made this point clear that any redrawing of the international border is not something which is going to be acceptable to our country," Manmoahn Singh said at a press conference here on the first day of a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir.

"Any proposal which would further divide our country on the basis of religion is not going to be acceptable to us," he said.

Maintaining that Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf should put his proposals on resolving the Kashmir issue in a "proper form", Manmohan Singh said he was not prepared to respond to any hypothetical questions on the issue.

"We will look at them when they are presented," he said.

He was reacting to a question on Musharraf's proposal to divide Jammu and Kashmir into seven zones and demilitarize them to be administered by India, Pakistan or the UN.

Manmohan Singh insisted the starting point of the dialogue with Pakistan will and should be the understanding that was reached between Musharraf and former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee Jan 6, when the Pakistani leader agreed not to allow his country's soil to be used as a base for terrorist attacks against India.

Asked if he envisaged a resolution of the Kashmir issue "in our lifetime", the prime minister replied: "I am not a pessimist. Who could have imagined that the Berlin Wall would collapse? But that happened in our lifetime. Our efforts are to resolve (the Kashmir issue) through a purposeful and meaningful dialogue."

Manmohan Singh denied that the dialogue between the centre and the separatist All Party Hurriyat Conference, which was initiated by the previous Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, had been derailed.

He said his government, which had not yet completed six months in office, had taken certain "vital decisions" like that of offering unconditional talks with the separatists.

"We have an elected government here, a recognised opposition party here...but I also recognise the people outside political system. We are willing to talk to them."

Manmohan Singh refused to accept the allegation by opposition parties that the Congress-led government was not putting pressure on Pakistan for ending cross-border terrorism.

"It's not true. Pakistan has to abide by the Jan 6 declaration in which it has explicitly committed to end cross-border terrorism. It is the basis of the composite dialogue we have been holding," he said.

Asked whether Kashmir issue could be a stumbling block to India's efforts for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council, Manmohan Singh said: "Nobody told me it's an obstacle.

"India's seat should be the reflection of the role it plays in the world economy. We are marching ahead as the fastest growing economy in the world. We have the fourth largest GDP in terms of purchasing power."

The prime minister travels to Jammu Thursday before returning to New Delhi.