No bilateral talks during Rajnath’s visit to Pakistan: Rijiju

New Delhi, Aug 1:

Home Minister Rajnath Singh’s visit this week to Pakistan will afford no occasion for bilateral talks between the two countries, his junior Kiren Rijiju said on Monday.

“He is going to Pakistan for Saarc conference. It’s a multi-lateral meeting, not bilateral talks,” Rijiju, who is Minister of State for Home Affairs, told reporters at parliament.

Rajnath Singh is scheduled to travel to Pakistan to attend the seventh meeting of Home/Interior Ministers of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) on August 4.

Rijiju said terrorism will figure in the talks during Rajnath Singh’s visit to Islamabad.

Asked if any security issue arises during the two-day trip of Rajnath Singh to Pakistan, Rijiju replied, “It’s Pakistan’s responsibility to deal with it.”

Rijiju’s response came in the wake of Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed’s warning of a countrywide protest in Pakistan by his outfit when Rajnath Singh arrives in Islamabad to attend the Saarc ministerial conference. (IANS)