Jaswant firm on Jinnah remarks

KARACHI - Former Indian external affairs minister Jaswant Singh said Monday he stood by the stand he had taken in his book on Pakistans founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah that had led to his expulsion from the Bharatiya Janata Party.

“Whatever I have written about Jinnah in my book, I fully stand by it,” Geo TV quoted him as telling reporters at Karachi airport on his arrival from New Delhi.

“I have come to Pakistan on a literary tour and will meet different scholars and readers to apprise them about my book,” the author of “Jinnah: India-Partition-Independence” said.

He will travel to Islamabad Tuesday for the release of his book in Pakistan. He is also expected to visit Lahore during his six-day stay in the country.

Jaswant Singh also hailed the “Aman Ki Asha” initiative of Pakistan’s Jang Group and the Times of India, and hoped it would yield durable results.