By IANS,
New Delhi : Sharply differing with National Security Advisor M.K. Narayanan’s comments on Islamabad’s attitude towards the Mumbai terror probe, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee Tuesday underlined that India was yet to receive any official response from Pakistan.
“That he (Narayanan) has stated in his own way. But the fact of the matter is that after they (Pakistan) received material from us, we have not received any official communication (about the probe) from them,” Mukherjee told reporters here when he was asked about Narayanan’s comments in a TV interview.
In an interview to CNN IBN Sunday, Narayanan had said that Pakistan “appeared to be taking things seriously and at least they are proceeding in a manner that one would expect an investigating agency to proceed, asking queries and not taking everything that is given at the face value that has been given.”
Narayanan also claimed that Pakistan had reverted on the Mumbai attacks dossier, asking questions to which answers were being given. “What I am aware of is that after the receipt of the dossier by Pakistan, the Pakistan government has reverted to us and asked number of questions to which answers are being provided…. I presume they are yet to receive replies to the second set of queries they have made,” the NSA had said.
In fact, Mukherjee had contradicted Narayanan’s remarks on Sunday itself when he underscored India’s mounting anger with Pakistan for not responding to 26/11 dossier through proper diplomatic channels.
Mukherjee’s statement Tuesday came on the day Pakistan summoned its high commissioner here Shahid Malik for a briefing on the outcome of Islamabad’s probe into the Nov 26-29 Mumbai carnage that claimed more than 170 lives and which New Delhi has blamed on elements operating from the neighbouring country.
Mukherjee, however, said he was opposed to bringing cricket into politics. “It is for them (to decide). I do not bring politics in cricket. Sometimes, we also cancel trips,” he replied when asked about Pakistan barring its cricketers from playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Pakistan Monday barred its cricketers from playing in the IPL tournament, saying it would be unsafe for the players to travel to India in view of strained relations between the two countries.