Manmohan, Zardari to discuss ‘important’ issues

Although President Asif Ali Zardari is going to India Sunday to pray at the Ajmer Sharif, he will discuss “issues of importance” with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the foreign office said Saturday.

Foreign office spokesperson Abdul Basit confirmed here that Zardari will meet Manmohan Singh at lunch in New Delhi, DawnNews reported.

The spokesperson said the president’s visit to India was “personal” and the “real motive of the visit is to pay a visit to the shrine of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti at Ajmer Sharif”.

But Manmohan Singh and Zardari “will also be discussing some issues of importance during their meeting”, he added.

In reply to a question, Basit said he had no knowledge of a meeting between Zardari’s son Bilalwal Bhutto Zardari and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

Zardari is flying to India on a short visit Sunday. He will land in New Delhi, meet the prime minister, fly to Ajmer and then return to Pakistan.