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Government sets up inquiry into Kargil conflict

The government today decided to appoint a committee headed by defence analyst K Subrahmanyam to "review the events leading to the aggression by Pakistan in the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir".

The committee has been asked to submit its report within three months and recommend measures to strengthen national security.

This was announced in New Delhi by Information and Broadcasting Minister Pramod Mahajan after a meeting of the Union Cabinet.

Mahajan said Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Home Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani, Defence Minister George Fernandes and External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh had repeatedly said the government had nothing to hide on the events in Kargil.

He said he was sure the committee comprising eminent persons would give a report that would help strengthen national security.

Clarifying that it would not be a statutory committee, he said it has nevertheless been given "full scope" to go into all the events leading up to the Pakistani aggression.

Besides Subrahmanyam, who will be chairman of the committee, the other members are Lieutenant General (retd) K K Hazari and eminent journalist B G Verghese. Satish Chandra, secretary of the National Security Council, will be member-secretary of the committee.

UNI

The Kargil Crisis

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