PM in Pak fire,Sonia to spell Cong line

Congress sources said Sonia would spell out her stance at the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) meeting on July 30. She is likely to host a dinner for the party MPs the same evening. A day before the CPP meeting,the Prime Minister is expected to intervene in the discussion on this issue in the Lok Sabha and clear the air.

Sources said while there was some unease in a section of the party about the joint statement — de-linking of terrorism from composite dialogue process and the reference to Balochistan in it — their misgivings,if any,would be cleared by the Prime Minister in his statement in Parliament.

“As far as our stance on talks with Pakistan is concerned,it will be spelt out by the Congress president at the CPP general body meeting. It is likely to be forcefully enunciated at the AICC session next month,” said a party leader. “There is no question of the party not backing the PM. Suffice it to say that you have seen the equations between the PM and the Congress president all these years,” he said.

The Congress has so far maintained that it had nothing more to add to what the PM had already stated twice. Referring to the joint statement de-linking terrorism from the composite dialogue process,Singh had clarified in Parliament on July 17: “Whether,when and in what form we broaden the dialogue with Pakistan will depend on future developments.”

“As I have said before in this House,India seeks cooperative relations with Pakistan,and engagement is the only way forward to realise the vision of a stable and prosperous South Asia living in peace and amity. We are willing to go more than half way provided Pakistan creates the conditions for a meaningful dialogue. I hope that there is forward movement in the coming months,” he had stated.

The PM on Thursday met President Pratibha Patil during which the two leaders discussed national and international issues. In the 40-minute meeting,he briefed the President about his recent visits to Italy in connection with the G-8 summit,France where he was the chief guest on its National Day,and Egypt for Non-Aligned Movement Summit,a Rashtrapati Bhavan spokesperson said. President Patil also completed two years in office on Thursday as the first woman President of the county.

JAN MORCHA MERGES WITH CONGRESS

AICC general secretary in charge of Uttar Pradesh Digvijay Singh on Thursday announced the merger of Jan Morcha led by Ajeya Singh,son of late prime minister V P Singh,with the Congress. “We are happy to announce that Jan Morcha president Ajeya Singh has decided to merge the party with the Congress,” Singh told reporters here. He said the workers of the Jan Morcha will formally merge with the Congress on July 25 in Lucknow. ENS