PM-Zardari to talk, India wants Saeed probed

The Pakistani President will hold talks with PM Manmohan Singh before flying to Ajmer to offer prayers on Sunday.
PTI file photo
PTI file photo

NEW DELHI: Bilateral issues are likely to be discussed when Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari visits India Sunday, External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna said Friday while asking Islamabad to probe Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) chief Hafiz Saeed's role in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack.

"We have been saying that the dossier the home minister of India has provided to Pakistan contains every detail of Hafiz Saeed's involvement in the planning and execution of the terror attack," Krishna said here.

The US Monday announced an award of $10 million for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Saeed. Pakistan said it cannot take action against Saeed in the absence of "solid evidence".

But Krishna said: "The amount of denial would not exonerate them unless there is a judicial inquiry into the whole episode whereby responsibilities can be fixed. But unfortunately, the Pakistan government has not thought it proper to investigate this." Zardari will hold talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the latter's official residence and have lunch with him before flying to Ajmer to offer prayers at the Sufi shrine of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti Sunday.

"All bilateral issues between the two countries are likely to be discussed. I don't know if they will have enough time to go into details, but the very fact the prime minister is hosting a lunch, they might get a chance to discuss some bilateral issues," Krishna told reporters. Krishna said India-Pakistan bilateral relations were looking up and talks would eventually resolves issues. "In the last three years, especially during (Pakistan) Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar's visit to India, she told me and the media that there is a mindset change in Pakistan and she brings that mindset in bilateral talks to India," he added.

Related Stories

No stories found.

X
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com