No mention of Jindal in PM, COAS meeting: Marriyum Aurangzeb

There was no mention of Indian businessman Sajjan Jindal in meeting between the prime minister and chief of army staff, said Minister of State for Information Marriyum Aurangzeb, adding that the BBC Urdu report which made rounds on Thursday was incorrect.   

"Jindal is a friend of the prime minister and met him in his personal capacity," she said in a statement issued on Friday. 

On May 11, a news report quoted official sources as saying that during a meeting Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had taken COAS General Qamar Bajwa into confidence over Jindal's visit to Pakistan. The news report read that Pakistan's civil leadership had informed high-level officials of the army that the recent meeting between Nawaz and Jindal was a part of back-channel diplomacy. 

It further stated that the COAS had also informed his officials about the matter.

Read: Nawaz, Jindal meeting part of back-channel diplomacy

In April, Jindal made an unannounced visit to Pakistan and met Nawaz.

Jindal, who is also said to be accompanied by other businessmen, met the Pakistani prime minister in his personal capacity in Murree, where the premier had gone for a private trip.

The meeting came at a time when India and Pakistan were going through tense times – Indian security forces brutality being at an all time high in Kashmir, along with the contention over the agent of Research and Analysis Wing, Kulbhushan Jadhav.

Nawaz’s daughter had also tweeted over the matter, writing Jindal is an old friend of the prime minister and that there was nothing 'secret' about the meeting and should not be blown out of proportion.