New Delhi, Sept 10: Congress today said that meeting of party chief Sonia Gandhi with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was "absolutely a diplomatic formality" and the stand of the party on the question of Palestine remained "unchanged and undiluted". Describing Yasser Arafat as symbol of Palestine nationalism, party spokesman S Jaipal Reddy told reporters that the Congress had often in the past expressed concern over policies pursued in the Middle-East and those concerns continue to remain valid.

Asked whether the Congress felt that there could be a change in India's Middle-East policy following Sharon's visit, he said the party was not privy to the government level talks, but if government "does so it will at its own peril and we reserve our right to know details". Bureau Report