The Hindu : Aggressive 'tailing' of diplomats: Pak.

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Feb 01, 2003

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Aggressive 'tailing' of diplomats: Pak.

By B. Muralidhar Reddy

ISLAMABAD Jan. 31. Islamabad today complained to the Indian mission here of "aggressive tailing'' of two of its top diplomats in New Delhi. The complaint came less than a week of lull in tension between the two countries.

Relations between Pakistan and India have been particularly strained this month. What began as alleged harassment of the Pakistan Acting High Commissioner, Jalil Abbas Jilani, took a nasty turn with personnel of Pakistan intelligence agencies "boxing in" the flag car of the Indian Acting High Commissioner, Sudhir Vyas, twice obstructing his diplomatic duties. The episode culminated in the expulsion of four staffers of the Pakistan High Commission and Pakistan retaliated the next day. The Pakistan Foreign Office on Thursday called Mr. Vyas and complained of alleged "aggressive chasing'' of Mr. Jilani and the Defence Adviser of the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi. A written protest was lodged with the Foreign Office in New Delhi.

In a press statement here, the Foreign Office said Pakistan had taken a serious note of the "harassment" of Mr. Jilani and the Defence Adviser in New Delhi and "aggressive chasing" of their official vehicles by the Indian intelligence agencies.

Pakistan's concern has been conveyed to the Acting Indian High Commissioner here. Islamabad called upon India to fulfil its obligations under the 1961 Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations and the bilateral Code of Conduct signed between the two countries in 1992. Indian High Commission officials here said that Mr. Vyas had been orally told about the Pakistani complaint.

Interestingly, for the second time in recent days the Indian Charge d' Affaires has been told that Pakistan is ready to release over 280 Indian fishermen detained in Karachi. The Foreign Office also repeated the readiness to hand over a plot of land — located opposite the Indian High Commission — bought by India a long time ago to construct residential quarters for its staff. Indian High Commission officials said that "tailing'' — intelligence officials following the vehicles of diplomats either on motorbikes or cars — was a regular feature in Pakistan. "This is something we all have been subjected to during the entire tenure of our posting. The intelligence officials follow us wherever we go. This is the same case with Indian journalists too,'' a senior Indian diplomat here said.

During the recent visit of the Janata Party president, Subramanian Swamy, the Pakistan Foreign Secretary, Riaz Khokar, said that Pakistan was ready to release 280 Indian fishermen and 22 Sikh youth detained in various jails to create a conducive atmosphere for resumption of the stalled dialogue.

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