India, Pakistan only stakeholders on issue of J&K, no one else: Govt
India on Tuesday hit back at Pakistan`s contention that the talking to separatists was the bottom-line for talks between the two countries was to engage all stakeholders.
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Following Simla Agreement there are only 2 "stakeholders" on the issue of Jammu & Kashmir - India & Pakistan. None else.
— Syed Akbaruddin (@MEAIndia) August 20, 2014
An approach different to the one laid down in the Simla Agreement & Lahore Declaration does not yield results in India-Pakistan relations.— Syed Akbaruddin (@MEAIndia) August 20, 2014
A defiant Pakistan today made it clear that it will continue talking to Kashmiri separatists despite India`s protestation, saying that the "bottomline" for Indo-Pak talks on Kashmir issue was to engage all stakeholders and dialogue was not a favour by Pakistan to India or vice versa.
At the same time, Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit said his country "attaches enormous importance" to its ties with India and that there was no need to be "pessimistic" about cancellation of the Foreign Secretary-level talks.
"We need to engage with all stakeholders. It is not a question of either, or as far as we are concerned. We are engaging with India to find peaceful ways," Basit said during an interaction with foreign journalists here while reacting to India`s stand that Pakistan should either choose dialogue with separatists or Indian government, PTI reported.
Justifying his meeting with the Kashmiri separatists, which was objected to by India, Basit said, "We strongly believe that our interaction is helpful to the process itself. It is helpful to find peaceful solution to the problem. It is important to engage with all stakeholders. So that is the bottomline for us."
Asserting that he has not breached any protocol by holding talks with Kashmiri separatists, Basit said, "This has been a long-standing practice. We have been meeting the Kashmiri leaders...It is important to engage with all the stakeholders to find a peaceful solution to the issue."
India had called off the talks between Foreign Secretaries slated for August 25, telling Pakistan bluntly to choose between an Indo-Pak dialogue or hobnobbing with the separatists.
With PTI inputs