The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Thursday, July 19,
2001,
Chandigarh, India

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All-party meeting on summit today
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 18
The all-party meet called by the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, tomorrow to brief the leaders of various political parties, including the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) constituents, about the recent Indo-Pak summit in Agra is likely to generate a lot of heat.

All major political parties, except the Bharatiya Janata Party, had criticised the government for inept handling of summit which virtually ended in a stalemate.

The Prime Minister in his briefing to his Council of Ministers yesterday had claimed that the summit was not a failure even though it had failed to come out with a declaration. This, the Prime Minister explained, was because of conceptual differences between the two countries.

The opposition parties are expected to grill the Prime Minister on the summit at the meeting which is scheduled to begin at his residence at 6 p.m. tomorrow. Basically, the opposition leaders are blaming the government for being unprepared for the summit, at the same time admitting that there was a need to continue with bilateral discussions.

Meanwhile, the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Mr Pramod Mahajan, today denied that there were differences among the ministers over the summit during this morning’s Cabinet meeting. He also denied that the Human Resources Development Minister, Mr. M. M. Joshi, had expressed his reservations over the Prime Minister accepting the Pakistan President’s invitation to visit Pakistan.

The Prime Minister had held several meetings with the leaders of the opposition parties, constituents of the NDA, former prime ministers and experts before the summit.

Pak offer to media
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 18
In yet another media-wooing exercise, Pakistan has given open invitation to all Indian mediapersons to cover the press conference of Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf in Islamabad on July 20.

In a typical media relation exercise, the Pakistan High Commissioner here has asked the Indian print and electronic media to contact it for visas if they want to cover General Musharraf’s press conference, the General’s first face-off with the press after the Agra summit.

At Agra, on July 16, the entire world was witness to how General Musharraf used his supposedly off-the-record interaction with top Indian editors during a breakfast meet by turning it as a widely televised affair to put across his view point on Jammu and Kashmir.

The aggressive media campaign of General Musharraf against India was also evident from the fact that he repeatedly insisted on holding a press conference.

Thackeray warns PM over visiting Pak

Mumbai, July 18
Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray has warned Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee against travelling to Pakistan before solving the insurgency in Kashmir. “The nation will turn against Mr Vajpayee if he visits Islamabad before any solution is found to terrorism in Kashmir,” Mr Thackeray told the party mouthpiece Saamna.

Mr Vajpayee has accepted an invitation to visit Pakistan.

New Delhi accuses Islamabad and its intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of abetting terrorism in India, especially in the Himalayan state of Jammu and Kashmir.

Pakistan says it only provides moral and diplomatic support to Kashmiri separatists. IANS