26/11: PM may convey displeasure to Gilani over Pak inaction

Prime minister Manmohan Singh is likely to meet his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani on sidelines of the Saarc summit in Thimphu and is expected to convey India's disillusionment over Pakistan not acting against the Mumbai attack suspects and its failure to take credible steps to dismantle terror infrastructure on its soil.

The meeting may take place tomorrow but that is subject to Singh's arrival well before the inauguration of the 16th Saarc summit which is slated for 2.30pm.

The prime minister is expected to utilise the occasion to do some plainspeaking with Gilani and seek an update on the progress in the 26/11 probe.

India is unhappy with Pakistan maintaining that there was nothing new in the dossiers handed over by India at the February 25 foreign secretary-level talks in New Delhi.

New Delhi feels that it has given enough evidence to Pakistan to act against 26/11 mastermind and Jamat-ud-Dawa chief Hafeez Saeed who is moving around freely and has been making anti-India statements.

Concerns over spurt in infiltration levels and intelligence inputs of possible terror attacks in J&K and other parts of the country is also expected to be conveyed to the Pakistani side.

On its part, Pakistan has indicated that it will raise the issue of water-sharing and other issues.

Officials said the interaction will be exploratory in nature giving the two sides an opportunity to put across their respective stands.

While Pakistan is keen to restart the composite dialogue process halted by India after the 2008 Mumbai attacks, India feels that the time is not ripe for it.

"We would like to reactivate the engagement process if the meeting between the two leaders takes place," Pakistan foreign office spokesman Abdul Basit said.

The Pakistan side is not pinning hopes on any breakthrough during this meeting. "It may not yield instant results but if the composite dialogue process between the two countries is reactivated, it will be a positive development," he said.

This will not be a structured meeting, officials said.

Ahead of his trip, Singh also gave enough indications of such a meeting happening only because the two leaders are participating in the summit of the eight-member grouping.

"We will be coming under one roof. So, if we come at the same time, it is inevitable that we will run into each other," Singh had said in New Delhi.

Though the meeting has not been finalised, there have been enough indications from both sides on the possibility of Singh and Gilani meeting during the summit.

When asked about the possibility of a meeting yesterday, external affairs minister SM Krishna said he was not ruling it out.

If they meet, Singh and Gilani would hold talks for the first time since their meeting in Sharm-el-Sheikh in Egypt last year during which the controversial joint statement with a mention of Balochistan was issued.

The two leaders had exchanged pleasantries during the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington a fortnight back, but did not have any discussions.

The Pakistani side is expected to raise the issue of Kishanganga water dispute and India would respond to it, sources said.

Pakistan has been alleging that a power project being constructed on Kishanganga river in Jammu and Kashmir violates the 1960 Indus Water Treaty, that governs sharing of common river waters.

India has rejected the allegation but Pakistan has lately threatened to move the World Bank for arbitration.