New Delhi: Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari arrived in New Delhi on Sunday on a personal visit to Ajmer Sharif. However, while the arrival was scheduled at about 11 am, the Pakistani President reached New Delhi about an hour late, following which he headed to the residence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for a luncheon meeting.
According to sources, Zardari's arrival was delayed deliberately to avoid one-on-one meeting with the Prime Minister.
For the same reason, the Pakistan Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar was not a part of the 40-member delegation, which comprised Zardari’s son and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) president Bilawal.
The talks between Zardari and Singh were expected to feature 2008 Mumbai terror attacks and Lashkar-e-Taiba founder Hafiz Saeed, in wake of the US $10 million bounty on his head.
UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi were also invited for the lunch hosted by the Prime Minister for the Pakistani president.
On Saturday, Zardari had asserted that he was not coming to India to discuss the issue of Hafiz Saeed, reiterating that it was a personal visit.
However, according to reports, the Pakistani president discussed the issue of the Jamaat-ud-Dawaah chief Hafiz Saeed.
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