If Pakistan wants then talks can be held again: Rajnath Singh

New Delhi: Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday threw indications that the Narendra Modi government is willing to engaging Pakistan in a meaningful dialogue if it responds positively.

Speaking to reporters, the Home Minister said, “If Pakistan wants then talks can be held again.”

“We want better relations with our neighbours but we should be capable enough to respond when needed,” Rajnath Singh added.

The Home Minister made this remark while replying to a volley of questions on Centre's relief and rescue measures for flood-hit J&K.

The remarks from Singh came minutes after Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit said that both the countries should make a new beginning.

Speaking at Alishan Pakistan Expo in Pragati Maidan, Basit asserted that Indo-Pak relations are unique and both the neighbours should forget the past and make a new beginning.

“The economic and commercial relation constitutes an important aspect between both India and Pakistan,” Basit said.

Encouraging the lifestyle exposition 'Aalishan Pakistan', the Pakistani envoy said that such events will show the path to create opportunities for both the neighbours.

The Narendra Modi government on August 19 called off the talks between Foreign Secretaries of the two countries scheduled to be held in Islamabad on August 25, telling Pakistan bluntly to choose between an Indo-Pak dialogue or hobnobbing with the separatists.

India cancelled the talks, raising strong objections to consultations held with separatist Hurriyat leaders by Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit.

Pakistan described the cancellation of the talks as a "setback" to Indo-Pak ties and defended its consultations with Kashmiri separatists, saying it was a "long-standing practice" to hold such meetings prior to bilateral parleys.