A Reality Check over Hype
India-Pak relations have been on a blow hot and blow cold phases since their independence after being portioned on religious lines. While Pakistan became an Islamic Republic, India chose to remain grounded on its age old secular Hindu tradition of ‘Sarva Pantha Samabhav’ – equal just treatments to all faiths with appeasement to none.
Created on the ‘anti-Hindu’ plank, Pakistan could never foster ‘normal’ bilateral relations with neighbouring India and resorted to four major and one minor war with India over the protracted issue of ‘Kashmir’, whose accession to India since 1947 has been disputed by Pakistan.
After its dismemberment in 1971 war, Pakistan vowed to ‘bleed India’ through ‘thousand cuts’ policy and resorted to waging cross-border ‘proxy-war’ against India which has been its ‘un-official’ State policy till now. Though ‘peace’ was chosen to be established over war by the famous Shimla Accord of 1972, an incorrigible Islamic State of Pakistan has been trying relentlessly to ‘internationalize’ the ‘Kashmir dispute’ issue, and the quest for peace between the two countries has remained elusive till date.
Notwithstanding Pakistan’s utter lack of reciprocity in overall bilateral diplomacy since 1947, India has always extended its hand of friendship to Pakistan by signing many accords viz Shimla Accord of 1972, Lahore Declaration of 1999, Agra Declaration of 2001, Ceasefire Agreement of 2003 etc. But Pakistan’s continued ‘anti-India’ ‘proxy-war’ activities by sponsoring deadly terrorist strikes- Kargil intrusion of 1999; 2001 Parliament attack; 2003 Akshardham Temple attack; 26/11 Mumbai attack et al as well as uncountable events of bomb blasts etc. have ensured an overwhelming angry public mood in India against making any compromise with Pakistan over the ‘core-issue’ of reigning continuous terror attacks against India, while always making pretence for seeking ‘peaceful resolution’ of all the protracted bilateral issues with India.
Above all, with the ‘real ruling authority’ of Pakistan i.e. omnipotent Pakistan Army having remained steadfastly rooted in its eternal anti-India credo, how will any ‘titular’ civilian PM of Pakistan, notwithstanding its popularity, can ‘dare’ to make ‘peace’ with India, remains a question? And with this kind of historical legacy and cumulative experiences of successive Indian PMs in dealing with Pakistan, how can the meeting between the new Indian PM Narendra Modi and his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif be viewed different or an exception or even an aberration? If not, then why the 24×7 ‘peacenik media’ in India and across the globe has been resorting to such ‘irrational exuberance’ over ‘NaMo-Nawaz Meet’ – an utter nonsensical TRP driven marketing Hype, while completely ignoring the reality.
Is public memory of the ‘peacenik media’ so short lived? Have they forgotten that just two days before Modi was to be sworn in as 15th PM of India, Indian Consulate in Afghanistan’s Herat province was attacked by Pak trained Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) terrorists on May 24 to make Indian officials hostages to sabotage the grand function causing embarrassment to the new Indian Modi Government.
Luckily, the deadly Pak sponsored attack was successfully repulsed killing all the Islamic terrorists. What more, as the oath-taking ceremony on May 26 was taking place; Pakistani Army resorted to heavy firing across LoC violating the 2003 ceasefire agreement once again as has been done by it on an almost daily basis since then. What then can we expect from a meet for which the Pak PM had to first seek prior approval from the Chief of Pakistan’s Army who takes de facto call,especially on the issues pertaining to India?
Nevertheless, Indian PM Modi has conveyed to Pakistan’s PM Sharif on the imperative of Pakistan shedding its dualistic nature vis-a-vis dealing with India and reminding him it’s time Pakistan ‘WALK the TALK’. And that its ‘dualistic India policy’ can no longer continue as usual under the new Indian Establishment under PM Modi Government. It is being hoped that with Modi becoming the PM of India, this dangerous anti-India malice will be put to an end forever.
Until and unless Pakistan acts on the real ‘core-issues; stops exporting terror targeting India; ensure conviction of 26/11 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed of LeT, and hands over Dawood Ibrahim to India, peace between the two neighbours will remain elusive.
-Sourabh Jyoti Sharma ?(The writer is pursuing PhD research scholar at Department of Political Science, DU Email ID: sourabhlibra@gmail.com)
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