Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh again laid the ground rules for resuming comprehensive talks with Pakistan on all issues by stating that “the minimum” requirement is that Pakistan “takes credible steps to bring the perpetrators of the horrible crime of 26/11 to book.” Addressing a press conference at the conclusion of the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington DC, Manmohan Singh scorched speculation that Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani had invited him to visit Pakistan when he met him at the opening of the summit.
The Prime Minister clarified the brief encounters he had with Gilani were restricted to exchanging pleasantaries. He said: “I did run into him (Gilani) twice and we exchanged pleasantaries. In fact, I complimented the Prime Minister on the Constitutional Amendment Bill which makes the Prime Minister a more powerful personality in Pakistan’s political system but beyond that there was no serious discussion on any other issue.” About the possibility of meeting Gilani on the sidelines of the SAARC summit in Bhutan at the end of April, the PM remained non-committal, saying, “Well, there is still time to think about meeting him in Bhutan. I think when we reach there, we will cross that bridge.” Asked about reports that India had complained to the US about Pakistan and whether he saw a role for America in sorting out issues, Manmohan was clear that “India will tackle problems it faces with its neighbours on its own.”
About Gilani’s reported statement that Pakistan was expecting more evidence from India over the involvement of Lashkar-e-Toiba in terrorist acts against India, including the one on Mumbai last year, Manmohan Singh said: “First of all, I don’t see the need for any further evidence about the role of Lashkar-e-Toiba and I would not like to enter into an argument with Prime Minister Gilani on this. The American intelligence and that of other countries have pointed out the role of the Lashkar and their links with the Al-Qaida. So we do not need to provide any additional information about the role that the Lashkar, Hafeez Saeed, Ilyas Kashmiri, and Zakeer-ur-Rehman are fanning terrorist acts directed against India. The PM was also clear about further action that India was looking for from Pakistan stating, “We all know that there are still people who are named as conspirators who are roaming around freely. These facts are borne out of our investigations and our intelligence agencies and by intelligence agencies of friendly countries. We would like Pakistan to, at least, bring to book the perpetrators of these horrrible crimes and do so effectively.” Sources later clarified to The Tribune that the PM complimented Gilani over the constitutional amendment because India always wanted a democratic, liberal polity in Pakistan and anything that strengthened it would always be welcome. He also explained that India’s approach was always to sort out issues with its neighbours bilaterally rather than through mediation or prodding by any other country, namely the US. The scars from Mumbai are still fresh and that Pakistan has to prove its “sincerity” and provide “a balm” by taking action against the perpetrators of terror against India if comprehensive dialogue has to be resumed.
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