New Delhi: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah yesterday said Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari owes him one rupee because he had bet that the Pakistani leader won't be able to visit the Himalayan state on his India trip.
Speaking in a lighter vein on NDTV news channel, Abdullah recalled how during his visit to Pakistan in 2006 he had taken a bet of one rupee with Zardari that he won't be able to visit Kashmir. "He has not and he owes me one rupee."
Abdullah said the visit of any Pakistani leader to Jammu and Kashmir was long overdue.
Asked if he wanted Zardari to visit Jammu and Kashmir, the chief minister replied: "Certainly. It is long overdue. I would also like to visit Mirpur and Muzaffarabad [in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir]."
On the 40-minute meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Zardari during the Pakistan president's private trip to India, the chief minister said he "was not expecting too much in the first place".
Dialogue
He said he wanted the dialogue process to continue between the two countries. "Nothing to be disappointed [about the Zardari trip]. We wanted a continuous engagement. It is perhaps a possibility where n we can meet and talk...," he said.
Omar added that "Jammu and Kashmir is an important issue between the two countries that has festered for very long".
Speaking in a lighter vein on NDTV news channel, Abdullah recalled how during his visit to Pakistan in 2006 he had taken a bet of one rupee with Zardari that he won't be able to visit Kashmir. "He has not and he owes me one rupee."
Abdullah said the visit of any Pakistani leader to Jammu and Kashmir was long overdue.
Asked if he wanted Zardari to visit Jammu and Kashmir, the chief minister replied: "Certainly. It is long overdue. I would also like to visit Mirpur and Muzaffarabad [in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir]."
On the 40-minute meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Zardari during the Pakistan president's private trip to India, the chief minister said he "was not expecting too much in the first place".
Dialogue
He said he wanted the dialogue process to continue between the two countries. "Nothing to be disappointed [about the Zardari trip]. We wanted a continuous engagement. It is perhaps a possibility where n we can meet and talk...," he said.
Omar added that "Jammu and Kashmir is an important issue between the two countries that has festered for very long".
