Qingdao, June 26 -- The perpetrators and sponsors of terrorism must be held accountable, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh told a conclave of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) on Thursday, even as he chose not to sign a communique by the bloc for not explicitly addressing India's concerns over Pakistan-backed cross-border terrorism.
The SCO operates under the framework of consensus, and Singh's refusal to endorse the document resulted in the SCO defence ministers' conclave ending without a joint communique, people familiar with the matter said.
There was no clear-cut approach to combating terrorism, including cross-border terrorist activities, they said.
In his address, Singh said there should be "no double standards" in combating...