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| Cabinet keeps Pak talks options open | | | ABID SHAH
NEW DELHI, FEB 15: Forty-eight hours after Pune bomb blast the Cabinet Committee on Security met here this evening to take stock of initial investigations into the ghastly incident. It also reviewed the general security situation after the blast that killed nine people, including two foreigners, and injured over 50 others on Saturday evening.
The issue of the forthcoming talks with Pakistan between the Foreign Secretaries of the two countries too came up for discussions. After the meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the Union Home Minister P Chidambaram indicated that talks between the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan scheduled to take place on February 25 in New Delhi have not yet been called off.
Emerging from the hour-long meeting he said that he briefed the CCS. He quipped “no comments” when asked by reporters whether the Indo-Pak talks would be held as per schedule. Earlier, External Affairs Minister SM Krishna had excused himself while talking to reporters in Chennai on Sunday from predicting about the fate of the talks by saying that he would prefer to wait for reports from investigating agencies.
Thus, it is now amply clear that Government wants to give investigators more time and in the meanwhile it does not want to say no to talks with Pakistan. The Government has also been thinking in terms of talking to Pakistan only on issues related to terrorism.
This has been so since even before the blast at German Bakery in Pune which has turned out to be déjà vu of Mumbai blast of 26/11 in 2008. And now since another blast has taken place as late as on last Saturday evening, the Government is obviously busy assessing different aspects before taking a public stand on talks with Pakistan.
Nevertheless, the Government has to account for the Opposition’s response to the blast and amid this its move to hold talks with Pakistan. The BJP has already been trying to shoot down this move. And not only the BJP but also the Left parties have blamed the Government of intelligence failure in the wake of Pune blast.
Yet there is a great difference between 26/11 and the Pune blast which has turned out not only to less lethal vis-à-vis the number and scale of casualties but also this time the Government is in tighter control of the situation.
The Prime Minister did not invite the then Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil to the CCS meeting that took place after 26/11, leading to the resignation from the post by Patil and take over of Home Ministry by Chidambaram.
Pune blast is the first major terrorist strike ever since as also during the tenure of Chidambaram as Home Minister. In today’s Cabinet meeting besides him Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Defence Minister AK Antony and Foreign Minister SM Krishna were present. A TV channel reported that all of them were of the view to go ahead with talks with Islamabad and take up the issue of recurring terror strikes in major cities with the Foreign Secretary of the neighbouring country. Union Home Secretary GK Pillai has said that as many as 14 attempts by terrorists have been aborted since 26/11 and until last Saturday when Pune was rocked with the blast.
The National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon too was present in today’s CCS meeting. He has been India’s High Commissioner in Pakistan and is a former Foreign Secretary. He has generally been in favour of talking to Pakistan unlike his predecessor MK Naraynan who recently became Governor of West Bengal along with Shivraj Patil who has taken over as Governor of Punjab.
Besides Menon, Foreign Secretary and Home Secretary Nirupama Rao and GK Pillai also attended today’s CCS meeting. What transpired during their hour-long discussions may take time to unravel. Yet it is clear that the Government is moving cautiously while trying to keep the pressure on Pakistan but without closing the option of engaging it in talks on the issue of terrorism.
This was also echoed in today’s briefing by Congress spokesman Shakeel Ahmed here today he said that the February 25 talks with Pakistan could well take place in New Delhi to discuss relevant issues and mainly the issue of terrorism.
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