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Pak artillery targets Vajpayee, but PM escapes

Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had a narrow escape today when the office of the divisional commissioner in Baro area of Kargil, where he was scheduled to address the people, was destroyed in artillery shelling by the Pakistani Army.

The timing of the shelling coincided with the timing of Vajpayee's address.

But on the advice of security and intelligence agencies, the venue of the function was shifted at the last moment to the helipad in Kargil, just a kilometre away.

During Vajpayee's one-hour stay at the helipad, five shells landed on the commissioner's office, destroying it.

Official sources said Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah wanted Vajpayee to make a first-hand assessment of the damage caused to Kargil town by the Pakistani attacks over the last several days.

Vajpayee had initially accepted the proposal, but it was later dropped under pressure from the security forces and intelligence agencies.

The first shell burst in Baro as soon as Vajpayee's helicopter landed. Undaunted, the prime minister first addressed the soldiers and then the local residents.

All through his hour-long address, the Pakistani shelling continued.

Vajpayee, who was accompanied by Defence Minister George Fernandes, Principal Secretary Brajesh Mishra, and Chief of Army Staff General Ved Prakash Malik, later left for Srinagar.

Vajpayee's scheduled visit to Drass had to be cancelled because of heavy shelling from across the border.

According to officials, Kargil has been shelled continuously since last night and three shells were fired before Vajpayee's arrival in the town this morning.

UNI

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The Kargil Crisis

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