ISLAMABAD- Pakistan’s envoy to India, who was called back to Islamabad forconsultations over the alleged harassment of its diplomats and theirfamilies in New Delhi, is unlikely to return to his posting until thesituation improves, officials in Islamabad said on Saturday, HindustanTimes has reported.

Islamabad has also decided not to send commerce minister Pervaiz Malik to aWorld Trade Organisation (WTO) meeting being hosted by New Delhi on March19-20, the officials said. The decision to boycott the meeting was taken atthe “highest level,” The Express Tribune newspaper reported, citing anofficial it didn’t name .

Pakistan high commissioner Sohail Mahmood was called back for consultationson bilateral relations on Thursday because of “non-stop harassment offamilies of the diplomats”, foreign office spokesman Mohammad Faisal said.Officials here said Mahmood, who arrived on Friday evening, was notexpected to return until the situation improves.

“Our high commissioner will not return to India anytime soon,” the Tribunecited the foreign ministry official as saying. This is the first time since2002 that Pakistan has called backed its envoy from New Delhi in thisfashion.

Pakistan has complained about more than 25 instances of its diplomats andtheir families being harassed in New Delhi. India has said it is making allefforts to provide a “safe and secure environment” for the Pakistandiplomats, but it also wants Pakistan to resolve the problems being facedby Indian officials.

Although it was initially thought high commissioner Mahmood would return toNew Delhi after briefing the Pakistan foreign office about the situation,officials said several options were currently being considered. Pakistancould declare New Delhi a “non-family” posting or Mahmood could be askednot to return for an “indefinite period,” they said.

The diplomatic spat erupted just as the two sides announced they had agreedon the release of women, mentally challenged and elderly prisoners.Pakistan had also accepted India’s invitation to attend the informal WTOministerial meeting to discuss an open and inclusive trading system.

Pakistan’s commerce minister Malik, had been expected to meet his Indiancounterpart Suresh Prabhu, but Islamabad decided to boycott the meetingfollowing the row over the harassment of diplomats. “We cannot send ourcommerce minister to India in the current situation and India has beeninformed about it,” PTI cited an unidentified official as saying.

The Tribune also reported that 500 Pakistanis were not granted visas by theIndian mission for travelling to India on March 18 to attend the annual Ursof Sufi saint Hazrat Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer. The report said this wasthe second time this year that India had denied visas to Pakistani pilgrims.