New Delhi: A day after Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan asked India to move forward on the peace dialogue process, India’s Army Chief General Bipin Rawat said on Friday that Islamabad needed to be a secular state first to have better ties with New Delhi.

“Pakistan has made its state an Islamic state. If they have to stay together with India, they have to develop as a secular state. If they are willing to become secular like us, then they seem to have an opportunity,” General Rawat said at a function in Pune, Maharashtra.

On Thursday, Imran had said that his country wanted a “civilised relationship” with India.

Reacting to that, the army chief said it was only logical for both parties to be secular to reach an agreement on contentious bilateral issues.

“We are a secular state. How can we stay together if you say ‘I am an Islamic state?’ And there is no role for anybody else. So for us to stay together, both of us will have to become secular,” he added.

Rawat also countered Imran on his comment that Pakistan took one step forward by proposing the Kartarpur corridor between the two countries, and India should follow suit.

“Pakistan is saying you take one step, we will take two. There is contradiction in what they are saying. One step from there should come in a positive manner, we will see if the step has effect on ground. Till then our nation has a clear policy, terror and talks cannot go together,” General Rawat stated.

Earlier this week, Pakistan said it will invite PM Narendra Modi for SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) summit.

Later, however, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj announced that India would not attend the summit.

She also said the Kartarpur corridor initiative was not linked to the dialogue process with Pakistan.

“Dialogue with Pakistan and the Kartarpur corridor are two different things. Dialogue will begin only when Pakistan stops terrorist activities in India,” she said.

The Kartarpur corridor connects the Sikh shrines of Dera Baba Nanak Sahib, located in Punjab, India, and Gurudwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Punjab, Pakistan.

Currently under construction, the corridor is intended to allow religious devotees from India to visit the Gurudwara in Kartarpur, 4.7km from Indo-Pak border, without a passport or visa.