Pakistani diplomats — Manzoor Memon, head of the media wing, and Naeem Anwar, minister (trade) — had on January 16 sought permission to travel to Jaipur, which was turned down by the External Affairs Ministry.
“Diplomatic requests are made from time to time to the ministry for travelling across the country. In most cases these requests are acceded to and accepted. In some cases for specific reasons, at that time best known to the ministry and other agencies that are consulted, we have to say no,” External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said here on Friday. He said one should not confuse any “coincidence with any specific decision vis-a-vis the Jaipur Literature Festival or for that matter anything else”.