The Pakistan foreign ministry has issued a statement displaying injured innocence as a result of India’s cancelling the Foreign Secretary level talks in Islamabad on Aug 25. The statement says that it was the usual practice to consult a wide range of Kashmiri opinion before any talks with India. But it chooses to hide the fact that Pakistan was able to indulge in the ‘usual’ practice because previous Indian governments did not object to it.
For good measure, the High Commissioner should be declared persona non grata and asked to leave the country. No doubt it will escalate the issue, but an exemplary punishment should be meted out to deter such future actions.
This time, however, India’s foreign secretary Sujata Singh had called up the Pakistani High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit and warned him against talking to Kashmiri separatists. She bluntly told him that the Pakistani government will have to choose between talking to the Indian government and the separatists. That Basit ignored the warning means he was briefed by his government that he had to engage with the Kashmiris despite Indian objections. This is blatant interference in the internal affairs of India.
Is Pakistan serious about having peace talks with India? Or is it more interested in catering to the hawks in its political and military establishment? All indications in the last few days point to the latter. The Pakistani army has been consistent in violating the ceasefire at the LoC. It deliberately and consciously allows its jawans to indulge in various kinds of misadventures from across the borders. They help jihadis cross over to India, they supply them with rations, ammunition and communication devices. Some of these jihadis are even army personnel in disguise, with specific short term missions of either establishing contact with Kashmiri separatists or recruiting jihadis this side of the border with help from previous contacts here.
But the last straw was the High Commissioner’s undiplomatic action. How can a High Commissioner of another country hold discussions with separatists who are fighting against the government of India? If this is not meddling in the internal affairs of India, what is? He was warned not to hold such talks, but he did not pay heed. India was left with no other option but to cancel the Islamabad talks. For good measure, the High Commissioner should be declared persona non grata and asked to leave the country. No doubt it will escalate the issue, but an exemplary punishment should be meted out to deter such future actions.
Frankly, one is surprised that the High Commissioner chose to invite them over to Delhi for talks. Such publicized action was done only for one reason: to needle the Indian government. Otherwise, after the warning from Foreign Secretary Singh, he could have had a teleconference or videoconference with them without any one being the wiser. Or they could have been asked to slip into the friendly territory of Pakistan for direct talks with the government there. But Pakistan wanted India to know that it was holding talks with the separatists. Do these elements set the agenda for Pakistan’s talks with India? Already, some of them are talking about absurd things like trilateral talks. Then there is little chance of peace between the two countries.
Modi exhorted neighbouring countries to shun the path of war and unite to fight poverty and underdevelopment in his Independence Day speech. In Pakistan, it is a cardinal sin to allow India an upper hand in anything.
Having come to India for Modi’s swearing-in and having agreed to these talks, Nawaz Sharif was seen as having allowed Narendra Modi to set the pace in bettering Indo-Pak relations despite his hawkish image. Modi exhorted neighbouring countries to shun the path of war and unite to fight poverty and underdevelopment in his Independence Day speech. In Pakistan, it is a cardinal sin to allow India an upper hand in anything. Sharif is also facing various problems at home. While he has been forced to set up two separate committees to look into the demands of Imran Khan of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf party and the Barelvi cleric Tahir ul-Qadri, he has handed over the security of Islamabad to the military in order to appease them. Hence, Sharif has been boxed in by the political, the religious-fundamentalist and the military establishment in Pakistan.
Under these circumstances, holding talks with India would be seen as bowing down to it. Hence, Sharif was perhaps looking to sabotage the talks anyway. The Kashmiri separatists came in handy. If this is the attitude it adopts, India will have to radically alter its policy vis-à-vis Pakistan. Many in India have termed the government’s move variously as reactionary, alarmist and unwanted. This is playing into Pakistan’s hands. Now that India expressly told them to stay away from such elements, their ignorance of the warning can be considered a grave provocation. India had extended the olive branch. That Pakistan chose not to clutch it due to its internal compulsions is regrettable. But this does not mean India will allow Pakistan to engage with enemies of the state.
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It is incredible that this rag tag seperatist group from Kashmir with anti national agenda is allowed to hobnob in Delhi with representative of a country that India fought three wars. Where are the policy makers and strategic thinkers? The biggest challenge to India is integration of the nation economically, politically and culturally. The nation cannot move forward in a big way if terrorists groups continue to carve out their areas of influence for no other reason than private agendas. India has elected Modi government so that we put an end to this dangerous nonsense perpetuated by the Congress government over last sixty years. It was the biggest policy blunder not to scrap Art 370 and make Kashmir part of India politically. The current separatist groups have been emboldened because of appeasements of the past working on only one goal, hand Kashmir over to Pakistan. If this was a remote wasteland, perhaps, but Kashmir happens to be the most strategically import asset for the defense of India’s 1.2 billion people. Two mortal enemies of India face eye ball to eye ball, the major waterways originate in that region and the landmass is an extension of the Indian sub-continental confine. So, leaders of India stop the rubbish about negotiation with Pakistan on the future of Kashmir.
Is it also the usual practice of the Paki Army to resort to cease-fire violations before talks and visits of dignitaries? What other devious and sinister practices do the Paki Army and ISI follow? Pak must be isolated internationally and massive retaliation by Indian forces must follow every Paki action.
While some may argue that allowing a dialogue between Kashmiri seperatists and Pakistani officials, that too in New Delhi is a measure of Indian confidence and maturity. I for one would advocate that the seperatists should have been arrested and tried for sedition. Wasn’t Sheikh Abdullah interred for similar acts? The message from South Block should have been clear and unambiguous. No external power has the right to openly meddle in the affairs of another.
Arrests are not deterrent enough for terrorists like Geelani. Physically eliminate them. Start with Geelani and Yasin Malik.
What India and Indian writers need to understand that the peace process is more important than achieving peace itself. If it was a regular practice to meet Hurriyat leaders than what was the problem this time? What difference would the talks with Hurriyat leaders made to the peace process? None. What difference would not meeting them make? None. In both cases you cannot reach a solution to Kashmir but cancelling talks is cancelling peace process which is a pity.
Please preach about the benefits of peace to Pakis.
Pakistan should amend it’s way otherwise they will perish. Pakistan is a Nation of Terrorists.
You know so little about Pakistan.