Reconsider talks with Pak, BJP tells Centre

Bharatiya Janata Party spokesman Prakash Jawadekar, who visited Pune on Saturday night after a blast ripped through a popular bakery and claimed nine lives here, urged the government to reconsider its proposed dialogue with Pakistan.

"Terror and talks cannot go together," he told reporters at the blast site. Jawadekar said the blast in the city was 'a terrorist attack'. "What is the logic in holding talks," he queried.

Meanwhile, the BJP attacked the Maharashtra government over the Pune blast, alleging that it was too busy protecting the makers of the film My Name is Khan, to provide security to the common man.

"The whole Congress-led government and the police in Maharashtra were engaged in protecting the interests of the actor, director, producer and distributor of My Name is Khan on the orders of Rahul Gandhi," BJP vice president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said.

He said, "This left the terrorists scot-free to attack innocent people in Pune."

The Congress, however, condemned the statement of the BJP, saying it was unfortunate that political parties were trying to take mileage from an unfortunate incident.

"The incident is very unfortunate. Nobody should play politics with the security system of the country," party spokesman Shakeel Ahmed said.

He said no political party should make a statement which jeopardises the country's fight against terror. "This is a time for all of us to stay united. Unfortunately, some political parties are trying to extract some mileage out of it. This is pathetic," Ahmed said.