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`Deportation issue will be taken up with PM'

By Our Special Correspondent

CHANDIGARH, SEPT.14. The Haryana Chief Minister, Om Prakash Chautala, today asserted that he would take up with the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, and the External Affairs Minister, Natwar Singh, the issue of the "sending back'' of the Hindustan Times Resident Editor,Kanwar Sandhu, from Pakistan despite his having a valid visa. Mr.Sandhu was part of the private delegation led by Mr.Chautala to fetch "sacred water'' from Sodhra, the birth place of Bhai Kanhaiya,in Pakistan. However, he was asked to leave Pakistan soon after he checked into a hotel in Lahore.

Addressing a press conference here this morning after returning from his "tour'', Mr.Chautala said that he had taken serious note of the "unfortunate'' incident which went against the spirit of the recent deliberations between the Foreign Ministers of the two countries in which the issue of easing visa restrictions on journalists and allowing them to freely visit the two countries had been discussed. It was regrettable that despite the peace process going on between both the countries, a journalist was sent back despite having been issued a visa earlier to accompany the delegation.

He disclosed that he was also writing a formal letter to the External Affairs Ministry to go into the circumstances which caused the faux pas.

The person responsible for such an incident should be dealt with sternly as it was a personal insult to him and his delegation. He said that he would be honoured to accompany Indian scribes if they wanted to visit Panja Sahib in Pakistan in November this year.

He termed the "Goodwill Mission'' as highly successful and much beyond his expectations. The tremendous love, warm hospitality and

affectionate care showered upon the delegation by the people of Pakistan was ample proof of their desire to have cordial relations with India.

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