Pakistani PM telephones Manmohan Singh on electoral victory

By IANS,

Islamabad : Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has telephoned his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh to congratulate him on assuming office for a second term following the decisive victory of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) in the general elections.


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Talking to reporters here Tuesday, Gilani said he had congratulated Manmohan Singh and hoped that the new government in India would work towards improving ties with Pakistan.

“Pakistan wants to have friendly relations with India and is ready to resolve all issues, including the Kashmir dispute, through dialogue,” he said.

Gilani said his government was in favour of maintaining cordial ties with all its neighbours including India, Iran and Afghanistan, APP reported.

India-Pakistan ties have been frozen since the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks that New Delhi blames on elements operating from this country.

Manmohan Singh has repeatedly said that the sub-continental composite dialogue process can resume only after Pakistan brings to book the perpetrators of the Nov 26-29, 2008 Mumbai mayhem that claimed the lives of more than 170 people, including 26 foreigners.

On Monday, Indian Home Minister P. Chidambaram said New Delhi had provided adequate evidence to Pakistan on the Mumbai mayhem and it was now for Islamabad to take concrete action on this.

“It is my view, both as the home minister and as a lawyer, that the material we provided is more than adequate,” he told reporters in New Delhi as he began his second innings in the North Block headquarters of the home ministry.

“Any prosecution agency should be more than satisfied with the three dossiers India has provided. In the first, we have given concrete evidence, in the second, we answered their 30 questions and in the third, given all the clarifications.

“This is abundant material to prosecute those who masterminded and perpetrated the dastardly action on Mumbai,” Chidambaram maintained.

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