New Delhi: A diplomatic controversy the government is working desperately to overcome. The inclusion of Balochistan in an India, Pakistan joint statement for the first time ever has even forced Congress party members and UPA allies to stay silent rather than come out in open support of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
Congress sources say that though the draft of a joint statement was discussed at the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) meeting held before the PM left for Egypt but there was no discussion on including Balochistan in it.
Cornered for capitulating to Pakistan for no good reason, Dr Singh has maintained that India has nothing to hide.
Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh said:
"The prime minister of Pakistan did bring up this thing when I said about terrorist acts aided, abetted and inspired from Pakistan's side. He said that in his country people say India is active in Balochistan. I said our conduct is an open book. We are willing to discuss all issues because we are doing nothing.
And I said to him that I have been told several times that Indian consulates in Afghanistan are engaged in undesirable activities and I said these consulates have existed not today, they were set up way back in the 1950s. But if you have any evidence, we are willing to look at it because we are an open book; we are doing nothing. Therefore we are not afraid of discussing these issues."
But several of his party colleagues feel the Prime Minister's open book policy has undermined India's tough position on getting Pakistan to deliver on terror.
Sources in the foreign ministry say Pakistan is using the Balochistan inclusion for domestic gain.
But there continues to be a mystery over what Islamabad said to New Delhi to convince the PM to say yes to the final statement.