SAARC Summit: India rejects ploy after Pakistan has invited Prime Minister Modi to Saarc summit | India News

NEW DELHI / ISLAMABAD: India was rejected for "applying" on Tuesday to a Pakistani foreign affairs office that it would "invite" Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a Sa'ad summit in Islamabad.

In the wake of the two countries' union to build the Kartarpur corridor, a long-standing Indian demand, the announcement made by Pakistan would have raised the possibility of a resumption of the process from Saarc, stuck since 2016, s' he had been. no crucial detail – Pakistan can not "invite" unilaterally for Saarc.

A Saarc summit is only announced after being decided by all members.

It is only after the date has been set by the Member States that formal invitations are sent.

"India is not a special guest, but Pakistan has the discretion to invite us. India is an integral part of the Saarc process, "said a senior government official. "The date of the Saarc Summit is finalized with the consent of all members. And that did not happen, "added the manager.

According to sources, Pakistan probably wanted to obtain public relations points in the presence of a large contingent of Indian media who went to the inauguration of the Kartarpur corridor to portray India as an obstinate hindering regional cooperation . However, sources in Delhi said that Bangladesh, which is going to go to the polls, or Sri Lanka, which is plunged into a political crisis, is unlikely to accept a Saarc summit earlier. Another member country, Afghanistan, is also unlikely to accept one, sources added.

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan is scheduled to meet with Indian journalists, where he is likely to raise the issue pending a resolution.

The last Saarc summit in which Modi participated was in Kathmandu in 2014. In 2016, after the terrorist attack of an army camp in Uri, India had refused to accept a summit. Bangladesh, Bhutan and Afghanistan have followed suit, resulting in the cancellation of the Saarc summit, which has not yet been revived. India and Pakistan have recently had official commitment.

Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammed Faisal recalled that Khan, in his first speech to the nation, had said that if India took a step forward, Pakistan would make two . In his response to Modi's letter, Mr. Khan stated that Pakistan was willing to resolve all outstanding issues through dialogue. "We have waged a war with India, relations can not be settled quickly," he added.

The growing expectation of a thaw between India and Pakistan was fueled by Modi's own remarks that if the Berlin Wall could fall, the Kartarpur corridor could do the same.