NEW DELHI : Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad today asserted that the government had taken a right decision to call off foreign secretary level talks between India and Pakistan,
as the Pakistan government had to make a choice between the Indian government and the separatists. He said, “it was upto them (Pakistan) to make up their mind whether they wanted to hold talks with the government or separatists, pointing out that the government had not minced any word to articulate its position, and despite this Pakistan chose to go ahead with meetings with the separatists.” Expressing its strong protest against Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit engaging with Kashmiri separatist leaders, India yesterday had called off the foreign secretaries level talks,to be held in Islamabad on August 25. The initiative to hold the talks had been taken after a meeting of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who had been invited here in an unprecedented gesture by Mr Modi to attend his swearing-in ceremony along with other heads of states of the neighbouring countries.
Accordingly, Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh was to travel to Islamabad next week to hold talks with her Pakistani counterpart Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry.
Senior BJP leader Mukthar Abbas Naqvi also echoed a similar sentiment and said Pakistan should understand the Indian government’s stand on talks and said Pakistan should desist from holding meetings with separatists when the government had strongly opposed such interactions.
(AGENCIES)
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