India would deal with any government in Pakistan: Ranjan Mathai

NEW DELHI: Amid the perceived tug of war between Zardari government and the Army in Pakistan on memogate row, India today said it would prefer democracy in that country but was willing to work with any dispensation to normalise ties.

Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai said irrespective of one's liking, India has to find a way to get along and manage a normal relationship with Pakistan irrespective of who is in government there.

"We will obviously prefer to deal with a democratic government in Pakistan. But we will learn and live with any kind of government that Pakistan has," he told an interactive session with participants of Jagriti Yatra 2011 here.

Mathai was responding to a question from a participant whether or not a "weak democracy" in Pakistan is a problem for India to deal with it.

"We have found that democracies don't go on war.... Generally, in any democracy, the government of the day tends to be focussed on the most priorities of the people and those that we know from our own experiences that priorities like the day-to-day problems, development issues and sometimes that of survival," he said.

The Foreign Secretary said India has had a "chequered history" in dealing with Pakistan in the past.

"Be that as it may, we can choose friends but you can't choose neighbours. Whether you like it or you don't like it, you need to find a way to get along and manage a normal relationship irrespective of who is in government in Pakistan," he said.