'India has never accepted third party mediation on J&K'

Congress on Monday reacted sharply to US President Donald Trump's suggestion that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had asked him to mediate in seeking a solution to the Kashmir issue with Pakistan.

"India has never accepted third party mediation in Jammu and Kashmir," Congress chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala said here.

"To ask a foreign power to mediate in J&K by PM Modi is a sacrilegious betrayal of the country’s interests," Surjewala said demanding an answer from Modi.

"Let PM answer to the nation," Surjewala said.

Trump made the offer to help resolve the Kashmir issue between India and Pakistan in initial remarks with Prime Minister Imran Khan, who is on a visit to the US.

According to reports from Washington, Trump also said that when he met Modi recently in Osaka on the sidelines of the G-20 summit, the prime minister had asked him if he would like to mediate in the Kashmir issue.