145;Where146;s my invite to Pak?146;

Most Pakistanis may perceive him as a hawk, but Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani will be 8216;8216;happy8217;8217; to visit Pakistan if...

Most Pakistanis may perceive him as a hawk, but Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani will be 8216;8216;happy8217;8217; to visit Pakistan if officially invited.

The Deputy Prime Minister pointed out that he 8216;8216;only read it in the media8217;8217; that he had been invited by Pakistan8217;s Interior Minister. 8216;8216;The invite never came,8217;8217; he added. Advani, who was talking to a group of mediapersons on his way back from a BJP rally at Varanasi, was asked if he would like to visit Pakistan to watch the forthcoming cricket series between the two countries. He said: 8216;8216;I am very excited about the cricket matches, but I cannot go to Pakistan to watch them because of ensuing Lok Sabha polls. I will watch them on the TV.8217;8217;

However, he added: 8216;8216;I will feel happy to go to Pakistan after the elections if there is an official invitation.8217;8217; The last time he went was way back in 8216;78 when Islamabad had invited him to his native place, Karachi, to watch an India-Pakistan cricket match. He recalled, 8216;8216;I was the I038;B minister then and I met Sia then Pak President Zia-ul-Haq.8221;

Getting nostalgic, he said he expressed a wish to visit his school and see his home. 8216;8216;Since it was a Sunday, I told them his hosts it would be closed. They said, we have a holiday on Friday. They took pains to find my teachers also. I went to see my house 8212; a Gujarati family lived there.8217;8217;

Referring to the thaw in Indo-Pakistan relations, Advani said: 8216;8216;The joint statement and the dialogue with the Hurriyat has helped Hindu-Muslim relations.8217;8217;

Earlier, while speaking at the rally, he said there is a 8216;8216;feel-good8217;8217; sentiment in the country due to improved relations with Pakistan. 8216;8216;This has become possible because the Pakistan President has given a commitment that he would not allow his country for use for terrorism. It would have been better if he said so at Agra during summit. Anyway, better late than never.8217;8217;