CPM’s Sitaram Yechury asked the BJP if it would sign the joint statement if the word “Pakistan” was included in it. This put the BJP on the defensive. The party demanded an immediate Parliament session to which Mukherjee said that a session had already been convened on December 10.
MNS’s Raj Thackeray came under severe criticism for his divisive anti-North Indian propaganda in Mumbai at the meet. Yechury pointed out to a larger problem confronting the Indian media — the US media had acted with utmost restraint in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, he said, adding that the media here could have shown more responsibility in covering the tragedy. This concern was shared by the PM.