Manmohan open to Musharraf's four-point proposal

On board the PM’s aircraft

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh indicated on Saturday that he was open to all ideas to resolve the outstanding Kashmir issue, including Pakistani Prime Minister Pervez Musharraf’s four-point proposal aired in a recent interview to NDTV.

While he was careful to not accept the Musharraf proposal, he did not reject it either.

“If any time new ideas come, we welcome them,’’ he said in an interaction with the media on his way back from Japan. “I welcome (any) efforts (that anyone puts in) to normalise relations between India and Pakistan.’’

He said that over the past two and a half years, India and Pakistan have had a “very intensive dialogue’’. 

The context seemed to suggest that the Musharraf proposal is one of the several ideas that are being explored through back channels as part of an effort to resolve outstanding issues between India and Pakistan including the status of Kashmir. A Pakistan visit by the PM is on the anvil. The timing will be decided after a breakthrough on one of the issues.

The PM said he was not disappointed by Japan’s reluctance to support India on the nuclear question. He said that India must respect Japanese sensitivities on the subject because of its history.

“I am convinced that when the time comes, Japan will be on our side,’’ he added. He said he was ready to answer all questions on the Indo-US N-deal. “I am a servant of Parliament. I am very happy to share my thoughts with the MPs,’’ he said.