Zardari to make "personal" visit to India

Published
0

Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari - AP (File Photo)

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari is expected soon to make the first visit to India by a Pakistani head of state since 2005.

Zardari's spokesman said on Sunday that the visit would be personal but held out the possibility that it could be official.

Indian media quoted government sources there as saying they hoped there would be formal talks.

“It has been on the cards, and now it is confirmed,” spokesman Farhatullah Babar told Reuters.

“It was supposed to be a private visit. But what it turns out (to be) finally, whether private, official, or private (and) official has yet to be confirmed,” he added.

Zardari is expected to visit a shrine to a revered Sufi saint in the Indian city of Ajmer.

Indian newspapers, citing government sources, said that Indian officials were making efforts to hold political discussions during the visit.

Opinion

Editorial

Privatisation framework
Updated 27 Oct, 2026

Privatisation framework

The proposed merger of the Privatisation Commission and the Public-Private Partnership Authority (P3A) into a single institution is a sensible move.
Chromebook scheme
Updated 27 Oct, 2026

Chromebook scheme

Technology can widen opportunity, but only when it is tied to good teaching, reliable connectivity and clear educational purpose.
Dengue season
27 Oct, 2026

Dengue season

ANOTHER dengue outbreak looms over the country for reasons of lack of preparedness and negligence. This month’s...
Wheat price dilemma
Updated 26 Oct, 2026

Wheat price dilemma

A price no buyer is obliged or financially equipped to pay is only a number. Growers seem to have grasped this before the government did.
Encounter culture
Updated 26 Oct, 2026

Encounter culture

Whether police actions in "encounters" were legitimate or unlawful can only be established through credible investigations.
Recognising distress
26 Oct, 2026

Recognising distress

THE deaths of two families in Karachi, being investigated as suspected murder-suicides, raise disturbing questions...