India distances itself from reports of Track-2 dialogue with Pakistan
What's the story
India has distanced itself from reports of a Track 2 dialogue with Pakistan, stating that there is no official involvement or support from the Indian government. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri clarified that such meetings are private initiatives and do not hold any official value. "I have seen the reports... I would say is that firstly, dozens of these kinds of events take place in dozens of places around the world on a whole variety of subjects," he said.
Official stance
Nothing official about them, as far as we are concerned
Misri further emphasized that these events are organized by private individuals and institutions without any official backing from the Indian government. "As far as we are concerned, these are private events organized by private parties. There is nothing official about them, as far as we are concerned," he said. He also added that anyone participating in such events does so in a personal capacity and doesn't represent India's official position.
Misri
'They cannot represent view of the government of India'
"It should be obvious, therefore, that anybody from India who is participating in these events, whether it is retired diplomats, retired military officials, members of civil society, who are all distinguished individuals in their own right, that they, when they participate in such events, they speak for themselves and they represent their own point of view," he added. "They do not in any way, they cannot in any way represent the view of the government of India."
Diplomatic freeze
Reports Indian-Pakistani representatives had new Track-2 discussions in Colombo
The clarification comes after reports claimed that Indian and Pakistani representatives had new Track-2 discussions in Colombo on the sidelines of the International Institute for Strategic Studies' (IISS) South Asia Dialogue. Per reports, the informal meetings included politicians, retired military officers, and former ambassadors from both nations. It was stated that the Indian group comprised prominent BJP politician and India Foundation President Ram Madhav, former Army Chief General MM Naravane, and former Indian High Commissioner to the UK Ruchi Ghanashyam.
BJP
BJP leader rejects reports
Earlier, Madhav had also denied participating in any India-Pakistan Track-2 dialogue. Madhav called the reports a "totally wrong portrayal," saying he had only attended one session of the IISS conference as a speaker and had no separate backchannel meetings with Pakistani delegates. "I did not attend the two-day dialogue. I was invited to speak at one session, which I did and left. Complete spin to a non-story," he said.