Pakistan asked to take firm action to curb terrorism, says Krishna

New Delhi, Apr 25 (ANI): External Affairs Minister S M Krishna on Wednesday disclosed that Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh has asked Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari to take firm action to curb terrorism to enhance bilateral ties.

Making a suo motu statement in Lok Sabha, Krishna said: "Prime Minister told President Zardari that there is need for taking firm action to curb terrorism to enable us to make forward movement in the bilateral relationship."

"He (Dr. Singh) conveyed that it was imperative to bring the perpetrators of the Mumbai attack to justice, and prevent activities aimed against India from Pakistani soil," he added.

Krishna further informed that Dr. Singh also mentioned the activities of Laskhar-e-Taiba founder Hafeez Saeed to Zardari, to which the latter referred to the judicial processes against Saeed and to discuss the matter further between the two governments.

"He also mentioned that the activities of Hafiz Saeed were carried out in public. It would be evident that our concerns on terrorism had to be addressed if the people of India are to support and sustain progress in bilateral relations. President Zardari referred to judicial processes against Saeed and said the matter needed to be discussed further between the two governments," Krishna told the Lok Sabha.

Zardari had come to India on April 8 to visit the sufi shrine of Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti in Ajmer, Rajasthan.

Before visiting the shrine, Zardari had accepted the invitation of Prime Minister Singh for lunch where they had friendly and constructive discussions covering India-Pakistan relations, and regional and global issues of common interest for over forty minutes. (ANI)