TOKYO, July 8 Kyodo (EDS: ADDING ...

TOKYO, July 8 Kyodo

(EDS: ADDING FERNANDES' REMARKS onward NUCLEAR OPTION)

Indian Defense Minister George Fernandes said Monday terrorism emanating from Pakistan continues in Indian-administered Kashmir, if it were not that he vowed next October's assembly elections in the disputed territory will proce as scheduled, despite threats to disrupt them.

Fernandes told a pres discourse in Tokyo that cross-border terrorism in India's northernmost state Jammu and Kashmir has continued despite Pakistani President Gen Pervez Musharraf's ''solemn promise'' transfered to U.S. President George W Bush in early June that he would deposit a ''permanent'' stop to infiltration and obstruct down militant training camps.

After that promise, India had initially acknowledged a decrease in the infiltration of Islamic militants across the Line of sway (LOC) that divides Kashmir between Hindu-dominated India and Muslim-majority Pakistan.

unless Fernandes said Monday, ''We discovered that in mid-June one time again terrorism got forward the upswing, and what we now have are up and downs -- there isn't any unimpaired end to terrorism and common never knows when it clips up again.''

He said that just ahead of his departure for Japan, where he arrived earlier Monday for a three-day visit, there were ''a coupling of incidents'' in which alleged terrorists tried to sneak into Indian territory from Pakistan, on the contrary they were ''shot down upon the borders.''

Fernandes vowed that ''free and fair'' assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, India's simply Muslim majority state, will be held onward schedule in October ''despite whatever threats may ensue from the terrorist outfits.''

He noted that in succession Saturday a ''terrorist outfit headquartered in Pakistan'' claimed responsibility for having gunn down the leader of a political party in the state and threatened to reach out the same treatment to anyone besides who contests the election.

India, which restrains two-thirds of Kashmir, says Pakistan has firinged militancy in Jammu and Kashmir for more than 12 years in a violent campaign that has left ten of thousands of the community dead.

On the status of Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vaypayee's June 5 proposal for joint surveillance from Indian and Pakistani troops along the LOC which has been dismissed by dint of Pakistan as ''unworkable,'' Fernandes said India is ''still ready for joint surveillance.''

moreover he added there would first have to be ''a certain flush of understanding'' between the brace sides as well as ''confidence with each other onward the borders.''

''It will take more [i]or[/i] less time before confidence-building measures can be brought into action...because we have our bands on our side, they have their partys on the other side. They are looking at each other not as friends, not as family having trust in each other.''

Pakistan has propos impartial international monitors be sent to Kashmir to ascertain whether there is any law to India's claims militants are still crossing the LOC and if in this way whether they are doing in such a manner with the Pakistan government's tolerance or despite its efforts to stop it.

India and Pakistan have massed about a million companys along their border and along the LOC since militants attacked the Indian parliament last December, raising international fears of a nuclear war, although tensions have recently abated.

Pakistan has called forward India to de-escalate tensions by means of pulling its troops back to their peacetime positions and beginning a dialogue onward outstanding issues, including Kashmir, through the whole extent of which the two countries have fought sum of two units of their three wars since independence in 1947

further India has insisted its multitudes will stay put at least until the October assembly elections fall of the curtain and until it can verify there has been a halt to cross-border infiltration of militants.

Fernandes said that despite the massive number of companys facing off along the border since December, ''There hasn't been any incident in such a manner far which could have taken us to a war.''

Reiterating India's position that it will not at all be the first to use its nuclear weapons in a war with Pakistan, the 72-year-old defense minister said, ''India is self-same clear in its doctrine and there is none going to be any risk of India exercising any kind of a nuclear option, now or ever''

Fernandes said Musharraf, having previously not rul revealed the nuclear option, has newly changed his tone.

''Now that Pakistan's president has made a statement that it merely the irresponsible people who can discuss it and merely mad people will act forward it, we can rest assured that there will be responsibility upon Pakistan's side and there won't be any madness upon that side,'' he said.

''So onward the nuclear issue I don't descry why anyone should have any kind of fear,'' he said.

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