Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee drew flak over Jammu and Kashmir from an old adversary at the Kashmir Peace Conference in Washington, DC.

While other�speakers, including pro-Pakistan Senator Tom Harkin and Mushahid Hussain, information minister in the Nawaz Sharief government,�praised�Vajpayee's peace efforts,�Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy said nobody knew the prime minister's�stand on Kashmir.

"You are congratulating Vajpayee here. But we do not know what his stand (on Kashmir) is," Swamy�said, in response�to a question about the differences between his party and that of the Bharatiya Janata Party on Kashmir.

"The BJP is not a party but it is a front organisation for the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. They (the BJP) keep on hanging (their stand)," Swamy said, adding, "So, we do not know (what their stand is)."

Asked why�more than '600,000' Indian troops are stationed in Jammu and Kashmir, Swamy justified it on the ground of violence.

"We would not allow Kashmir to be taken away forcefully or by threat," the maverick politician said. "If needed, we will�send many more soldiers there."

Former Pakistan foreign minister Inam-ul Haq, who was speaking on a discussion on 'Kashmir: A Way Forward', said India could reduce the number of its troops in Kashmir as a small step towards peace building.

Referring to Swamy's remarks, he said, "I heard Swamy's argument, but I think India should try wherever possible."

Mushahid Hussain, who noted Vajpayee's "good initiative," wondered whether the�Indian leader would be able to carry forward his vision in view of next year's�general election.

Quoting from Khushwant Singh's recent book End to India, he said the threat to India is much more from within the country than outside. "We have to see if the Indian leaders can rise to the occasion," Hussain�said.