Meeting Between Jindal And Nawaz Part Of Back-Channel Diplomacy, Pakistan Government Tells Army

The ‘secret’ meeting between Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Indian Steel tycoon Naveen Jindal's brother Sajjan Jindal was “a part of a back-channel diplomacy” with India, Pakistan's civil leadership has informed the Army.

According to Geo News, Prime Minister Sharif, during one of his recent meetings with Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Bajwa, had taken the latter into confidence over Jindal's visit to Pakistan.

Jindal went to Pakistan to reduce tension between the two neighbouring countries, Geo News quoted a BBC Urdu report as saying. The report also stated that COAS Bajwa took other top army officials into confidence over the matter.

Jindal, along with a small delegation, traveled to Pakistan in April in a private aircraft and was received by Sharif’s son Hussain Nawaz before meeting Sharif in Murree. Jindal had reportedly played an important role in organising a secret meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Sharif on the sidelines of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation Summit in Kathmandu in 2014.

Speculations are rife about the involvement of Pakistan’s Inter-Service Intelligence and the Army in leaking details about Jindal’s visit to Pakistani media.