Chidambaram meets Malik, presses for action against Saeed

Ajay Kaul
Islamabad, Jun 25 (PTI) Indian Home Minister P
Chidambaram Friday night met his Pakistani counterpart Rehman
Malik and is believed to have pressed for urgent action
against Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed and 26/11 handlers,
including those who are believed to be in the Pakistani Army.
Chidambaram, the first Indian Home Minister to visit
Pakistan in three decades, met Malik at the Interior Ministry
here, where he was accorded a red carpet welcome and given a
ceremonial Guard of Honour.
In a special gesture, Malik went to the Chaklala Air
Base in Rawalpindi and personally received Chidambaram, who
arrived to attend the SAARC Home Ministers' Conference
Saturday.
On their way to the VIP lounge, both Chidambaram and
Malik were seen talking to each other and posed for
photographs.
The meeting went on for almost two hours, well beyond
the scheduled time of 45 minutes and Malik said his talks with
Chidambaram were "inconclusive" and will meet again over
dinner.
Chidambaram and Malik held one-on-one talks for over
one hour after which the delegations joined them.
"It is a very good moment and good beginning. It was a
good discussion and it sends out a good message to the people
of both Pakistan and India," Malik told reporters after the
meeting.
"There should exchange of hearts (between India and
Pakistan) rather than dossiers," he said.
During the meeting, Chidambaram, the first Indian
Minister to visit Pakistan after the 26/11 strikes, is
believed to have told Malik that the time has come for
Pakistan to address issues concerning the deadly Mumbai
attacks with seriousness that they warrant.
The Indian Home Minister is also understood to have
sought action against Saeed, whom New Delhi considers as the
mastermind of the 26/11 attacks, and handlers, including those
who are believed to be serving in the Pakistani Army, of the
deadly attack that killed 166 people.
Chidambaram is also believed to have sought voice
samples of the Pakistani handlers and raised issues like
infiltration on the border of Jammu and Kashmir and Pakistanis
who have infiltrated and are indulging in militant activities.
Later, Chidambaram also met Foreign Minister Shah
Mehmood Qureshi. (More) PTI AKK
KAB


The information contained in this electronic message and any attachments to this
message are intended for the exclusive
use of the addressee(s) and may contain proprietary, confidential or privileged
information. If you are not the intended
recipient, you should not disseminate, distribute or copy this e-mail. Please
notify the sender immediately and destroy
all copies of this message and any attachments contained in it.


Delete & Prev | Delete & Next