THERE is a rank stench of deceit and hypocrisy arising from the Indian government's announcement that the body exhumed from a grave in northern Kashmir is that of Blackburn student Paul Wells, who was kidnapped by Islamic militants five years ago.

This is evident from the timing of this disclosure.

It comes just days after India released three jailed militants in exchange for the 155 passengers on a hijacked Indian Airlines plane - with one of those freed being the leader of the militant separatist group which abducted Paul and other western tourists in Kashmir in 1995.

And considering that the body in question is not a newly-discovered one, but one recovered two and a half years ago and determined by British police forensic science experts almost two years ago to be definitely not that of Paul Wells, then this sudden declaration by the Indian authorities that it is appears extremely suspicious - and perfidious. For it smacks of a smokescreen to draw attention away from India's dangerous action in bowing, just days ago, to the militants' demands when before - with Paul and his fellow Western hostages as the bargaining counters - they refused them and, in particular, that for the release of the separatist leader who was among those freed last week.

It would seem that for the sake of its own nationals, but not that of innocent Western tourists, the Indian government was prepared to compromise its own stated principle of refusing to do deals with terrorists.

If this is not a preference that amounts to racial prejudice, it is certainly one that reeks of cowardice and corruption and is not only a betrayal of the hostages who are believed to have been murdered, but also betrays a shameless and heartless disregard of the victims' families who are yet again made to endure new grief and anxiety.

This is an absolute disgrace and our Foreign Office should be telling the Indian government so in the frankest of terms.

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