Lok Sabha to discuss Indo-Pak joint statement on Wednesday

New Delhi, July 27 (ANI): Lok Sabha will hold discussion on the Indo-Pak joint statement issued in Sharm-el-Sheikh, Egypt, earlier this month, on Wednesday.

The opposition has been demanding a discussion on Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh's visit to Italy and Egypt following difference of opinion on Indo-Pak joint statement after Dr. Singh held talks with his Pakistani counterpart on the sidelines of the NAM summit.

Earlier in the day, the Congress Party openly backed Dr. Singh on the Indo-Pak joint statement.

Congress General Secretary Janaradhan Dwivedi said the party is confident that Singh would set all questions to rest during his speech in Parliament on July 29.

The statement issued after talks between Dr. Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani has generated a lot of criticism from the opposition.

Earlier, Dr. Singh said he had the answers to all the questions and would give them at an appropriate time.

It was reported that several Congress leaders, and some senior ministers, had serious reservations about the joint statement, especially on the de-linking of terror from the composite dialogue and the reference to Balochistan.

Meanwhile, Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram has said that there is no difference between the party and the government on the joint statement and added that the Congress Party would stand firmly behind Dr. Singh when the issue comes up in Parliament. (ANI)