Krishna's schedule of meetings was altered

New Delhi, Jul 18 (PTI) An inexplicable last-minute
switch in the schedule of India's External Affairs Minister S
M Krishna on Thursday afternoon gives a clue to how the script
went wrong in the Indo-Pak talks in Islamabad.
Krishna and his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood
Qureshi were said to have made good progress during their
first session of talks which started at 11 am and lasted for
nearly five hours, well beyond the schedule. The two also had
a working lunch.
Krishna's schedule was to leave at 3.20 pm and to reach
Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani's office to meet
him at 3.30 pm. The call on President Asif Ali Zardari was to
follow at 5.30 pm at the Presidential palace.
Just 15 minutes prior to his departure, Krishna was
informed that the order has been reversed and the call on
Zardari will precede.
In the time slot Krishna was to meet Gilani, Pakistan's
powerful army Chief Ashfaq Pervez Kayani met the Prime
Minister. Kayani had also met Zardari.
According to the official release issued after Kayani's
meetings with Pakistan's political leadership, the army chief
discussed the security situation in the country and
operational matters of the army.
However, when the talks resumed after Krishna's two
call-ons, the atmosphere totally changed and Pakistan took an
unexpectedly stringent posture leading to the deadlock at the
talks.
Many commentators in India feel that it was Pakistani
army which put spokes in the way of progress between India and
Pakistan. PTI PYK
MRD