20000106India urges world censure "rogue" Pakistan

NEW DELHI: India is seeking international censure of Pakistan as a "rogue" state following last week's hijacking of an Indian plane and continued "cross-border terrorism", Defence Minister George Fernandes said on Wednesday.

"We are mobilising world opinion on that," Fernandes said in response to questions from reporters after addressing a seminar in New Delhi on "The Challenges of Limited War".

Indian Foreign Ministry spokesman Raminder Singh Jassal said later that the hijacking strengthened India's campaign.

"It's an ongoing process and this hijacking lent further weight to the point that we have expressed about Pakistan's support for terrorism," Jassal said. "There is a whole pattern of Pakistan being a nurturing ground for the export of terrorism."

On Wednesday Indian newspapers quoted Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee as saying New Delhi had enough evidence to establish Pakistan's role in the week-long hijack, which ended with the exchange of three jailed militants for the lives of 155 hostages.

But Vajpayee said the evidence would only be disclosed "at an appropriate time".

Witnesses said two of the freed militants, Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar, the founder chief of Kashmiri group Al-Umar Mujahideen, and Islamic cleric Masood Azhar, have appeared in Pakistan.

Fernandes said India was keen the world community take note of the need for some action because of what New Delhi says is Pakistan's sponsorship of insurgency in Indian-controlled Kashmir and Musharraf's hostile rhetoric towards his neighbour.

"Not only the hijacking, but by infiltrating terrorists into India and repeated statements in recent times since the general (Musharraf) took over that 'we shall continue with this and no stopping this'," he said.

Fernandes said the U.S. had itself launched missile attacks against Saudi-born Osama bin Laden to defend its interests.

"What the U.S. and the rest of the world needs to understand is that terrorism knowns no country borders," he said.-Reuters