They said the meeting was necessitated after "some differences" cropped up in seat-sharing arrangement during the talks between the local leadership of the parties.
Law Minister Salman Khurshid on Friday rejected a demand for initiating a probe against a Union minister, belonging to Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam, reportedly involved in a company which has been allocated a coal block. "Somebody must come with an allegation that requires investigation, somebody must say that this is what has caused undue influence," he told reporters outside Parliament.
The government's position on a meeting that a journalist had with 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed got endorsement from an unexpected quarter on Wednesday with Congress leader Salman Khurshid saying it was a "private initiative" and the Indian High Commission in Islamabad had nothing to do with it.
Salman Khurshid, the minister of external affairs, talks to Nayanima Basu on Pakistan, China, trade and various other challenges on his plate.
India on Thursday expressed disappointment over the United States' refusal to extradite Lashkar-e-Tayiba terrorist David Headley even as it vowed to continue to pursue with its demand for bringing him here for his role in 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.
Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid's remark about Congress president Sonia Gandhi getting emotionally moved by Batl a House pictures might have created a furore in the Congress circles.
A Delhi court on Wednesday dismissed a plea seeking registration of an FIR against Union Minister Salman Khurshid and his wife Louise for alleged criminal misappropriation of funds meant for a family-run trust, saying it has no "territorial jurisdiction".
External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Tuesday backed Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde's statement on "Hindu terrorism" saying it was based "entirely on facts" made available by investigative agencies.
Stating that war was not a solution to any problem, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid has said Army officers of both India and Pakistan will meet to discuss the issue of terrorism.
"Everything may look normal in Kashmir. Everything may look normal here. We may be celebrating the victory, although of course some people believe that that victory or that success of 2024 was perhaps only marginal, perhaps a lot more needs to be done," he said.
India on Friday said the composite dialogue with Pakistan will be resumed after the new government there settles down, and pending confidence building measures between the two countries are implemented.
Referring to China's reported discomfiture over the close Indo-Japan ties, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid Wednesday said just as Beijing's ties with Islamabad did not affect our relations with it, similarly warmth between India and Japan was no cause of concern.
Gearing up for the assembly polls next year, the Congress on Wednesday constituted the election committee for Uttar Pradesh, which includes state unit chief Ajay Kumar Lallu and former Union ministers Salman Khurshid, Rajeev Shukla and R P N Singh.
"During this month, the SFIO will begin the prosecution on those or those areas of company laws that the SFIO is expected to and have been authorised to proceed with," Corporate Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid told a press conference in New Delhi.
Over 6,000 Indians are currently languishing in foreign jails with maximum of 1,691 being lodged in Saudi Arabia. External Affairs Salman Khurshid, replying to a question in Rajya Sabha, said a total of 6,293 Indians are imprisoned in various countries.
Stating that she shared the concerns of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi regarding Sri Lankan Tamils issue, United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi has told him that she "shall take up the matter" with the external affairs minister.
Following the prime minister's reported call to his Cabinet colleagues to stay away from any business interests, Corporate Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Thursday suggested that ministers should hand over their businesses to a trust, as is being practised in the United States.
Against the backdrop of indefinite fast by Anna Hazare coming to an end, Law Minister Salman Khurshid has said the government is "much better equipped" now to deal with such situations even as he underlined that the Lokpal will be created before the 2014 elections.
In fresh trouble for Congress leader Pawan Khera, the Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed his petition challenging the Allahabad high court order refusing to quash criminal proceedings against him for making objectionable remarks targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, paving the way for his trial.
The government is working towards reducing the number of cases pending before various courts through initiatives like e-courts, Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid said on Thursday.
Seeking to re-assure Italy, India on Friday said any doubts on Italian marines being put on trial for committing a terror act should be set aside as the National Investigation Agency is the only agency available to the government for investigating the killing of two Indian fishermen in high seas. External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said he would read the assignment of the task to the NIA, not through the NIA Act but by nomination made through the order of the SC.
A man allegedly forged a letter in the name of External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid and presented it before the consul general of Saudi Arabia to procure a visa to visit Mecca and Medina, police said on Tuesday.
Law Minister Salman Khurshid on Friday said the Supreme Court order quashing the disproportionate assets case against Bahujan Samaja Party leader Mayawati has nothing to do with politics.
The decision on the vote in United Nations Human Rights Council on the resolution against Sri Lanka will be taken after consulting DMK and other allies, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said.
Union Minister Salman Khurshid, who stoked a controversy by calling Narendra Modi "impotent", on Wednesday insisted that he did nothing wrong as there was no other appropriate word to describe him in the context of the 2002 Gujarat riots.
India on Sunday said China was more of a major concern than Pakistan given the power the Asian giant has to impact the country in various spheres. Noting that China was necessarily more important in terms of India's global vision and the ties between the two countries could impact the whole region, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said as far as Pakistan was concerned, the impact was "more pacific".
Salman Khurshid is a known detractor of Samajwadi Party leader and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav.
India on Friday reacted with caution to Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's invitation to engage in a comprehensive and sustained dialogue, saying it will depend on circumstances, which have to be considered "thoughtfully".
A petition was filed on Friday in the Allahabad high court by an estranged associate of Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia demanding an inquiry into the funding and functioning of NGOs being run by the two activists as also those by Law Minister Salman Khurshid.
Holding that investigation into the Rs 3,600-crore VVIP helicopter deal was on at "many levels", India on Monday said letters rogatory is the "best and strongest method" available to it for seeking details from Italian courts on the case.
Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, who had earlier accused India of engaging in war-mongering, has offered to hold "discussion and dialogue" with her Indian counterpart Salman Khurshid to resolve the crisis at the Line of Control.
The Congress party has claimed credit for the extradition of Tahawwur Rana, an accused in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, from the US, saying the Modi government did not initiate the process and merely benefited from the "mature, consistent and strategic diplomacy" begun under the UPA. Former Home Minister P Chidambaram said the government did not secure any breakthrough to make the extradition possible, nor is it the result of any grandstanding. He added that it was a testament to what the Indian state can achieve when diplomacy, law enforcement and international cooperation are pursued sincerely and without any kind of chest-thumping. Chidambaram detailed the UPA government's efforts in securing Rana's extradition, citing the registration of a case against him in 2009, diplomatic pressure on Canada and the US, and continued efforts despite legal setbacks. He highlighted the role of the UPA in securing Rana's conviction for other terrorism-related offences and the cooperation between the US and Indian agencies in gathering evidence and securing his extradition. The Congress leader further stated that it was the UPA's groundwork that paved the way for Rana's extradition, even after the change in government in 2014.
India on Friday said that presenting of evidence by Pakistan on Mumbai terror attacks to a court there was a 'little movement' as far as the accountability of the 26/11 strikes was concerned.
The issue regarding remuneration of company CEOs will be debated by the parliamentary standing committee.
Maldives' new government has commended India for the way it dealt with the political upheaval in the country, saying New Delhi was not "fooled" by Mohamed Nasheed's claims of a coup and was "correct" in its reaction.
With the Central Information Commission holding that political parties are answerable to citizens under the Right to Information, Union Minister Salman Khurshid said on Tuesday it is important to keep a practical control of RTI objectives as they cannot be allowed to "run riot".
Reacting to David Headley's sentencing, Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid said on Friday that in India the trial of the Pakistani origin American would have been more severe and would have been given a longer jail term for his role in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday slammed Union minister Salman Khurshid for describing Narendra Modi as "impotent" and asked him to apologise for the "regrettable" and "shameful" comment, saying it only reflects the Congress party's "desperation".
India on Thursday said it is important to bring to justice the Mumbai terror attacks perpetrators in Pakistan, including Lashkar-e-Tayiba founder Hafiz Saeed, not only to bring a closure to Indians but also to prevent yet another attack.
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