History
Born out from the furnace of animosity, India and Pakistan, the twin brothers have a history of unique relations. There is much in common between Republic of India and Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
Born out from the furnace of animosity, India and Pakistan, the twin brothers have a history of unique relations. There is much in common between Republic of India and Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
The diplomatic relations developed soon after independence but these relations did not ensure good friendship. The blaming process started soon after the inception of Pakistan when during the world’s biggest mass migration both states were unable to provide security to minorities. At that time there were 680 princely states and their future was to be decided according to their own will. Junagadh and Kashmir are two of these states which are still a bone of contention between India and Pakistan.
Junagadh was composed of 88% Hindu Majority with a Muslim ruler named Nawab Mahabat Khan. The ruler voted for Pakistan but India did not accept it on the plea of heavy Hindu majority. The other reason projected by India was that the state of Junagadh was encircled by Indian state and giving it to Pakistan would contradict the two nation theory. The stand of Pakistan was on the basis of the Muslim ruler and the maritime link of Pakistan with junagadh coastal line.
One the other hand, the ruler of Kashmir, Hair Singh, wanted to join India but the majority of Muslim population was in the favour of Pakistan. Maharaja Hair Singh made a “stand still agreement” with the Government of Pakistan. However, the rumoures spread in Pakistan that Mahraja Hari Singh was going to accede with India. The forces of Pakistan invaded in Kashmir in 1947 and Hari Singh asked India for help.
One the other hand, the ruler of Kashmir, Hair Singh, wanted to join India but the majority of Muslim population was in the favour of Pakistan. Maharaja Hair Singh made a “stand still agreement” with the Government of Pakistan. However, the rumoures spread in Pakistan that Mahraja Hari Singh was going to accede with India. The forces of Pakistan invaded in Kashmir in 1947 and Hari Singh asked India for help.
Indian Armed forces violating the provision of their constitution entered into the jurisdiction of Kashmir. In 1957, Pakistan acquired Azad Kashmir and India captured state of Jammu and Kashmir. Both of these parts are being held by the same countries which occupied these states forcefully.
In 1965 India launched operation Meghdoot and captured 80% of Siachen Glacier. 1971 was a black year in the history of Pakistan as she lost its eastern wing as India intervened to favour Bengali people and seized the Qasim part. 90, 000 Pakistani soliders surrendered in Bangladesh. In July 1972 P.M India Gandhi and PM Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto met in Indian Hill station of Simla and signed an agreement to return 90, 000 Pak personnel, and that India would get its captured territory in the west. They also agreed that from then on, they would settle their disputes through peaceful bilateral negotiations. Eventually, the trade relation restarted in 1976 but the Afghan crisis of 1979 again disrupted the peaceful process started in 1976.
Pakistan supported Taliban and India favoured Soviet Union. India was also worried about US military aid to Pakistan, Pakistan’s purchase of arms from us and the advancement in her nuclear programme. The change in leadership brought a new era of relation between the two rivals. In Dec 1988 Benazir Bhutto Shaheed and Rajiv Gandhi resumed talks on different issues melding cultured exchange, civil aviation and not to attack each other nuclear facilities. At that time BB said.
Pakistan supported Taliban and India favoured Soviet Union. India was also worried about US military aid to Pakistan, Pakistan’s purchase of arms from us and the advancement in her nuclear programme. The change in leadership brought a new era of relation between the two rivals. In Dec 1988 Benazir Bhutto Shaheed and Rajiv Gandhi resumed talks on different issues melding cultured exchange, civil aviation and not to attack each other nuclear facilities. At that time BB said.
“Burry the Hatchet; we have had enough of it. Let’s start a new chapter. India has a new generation leadership. Rajiv & I belong to a new generation. We have some kinship. He father was assassinated and so was my father. He lost his brother and so have I we both can start from clean state.”
In 1997, high level talks were resumed after 3 years. Prime Minister of India and Pakistan met twice and foreign secretaries conducted 3 rounds of talks in which they identified 8 outstanding issues to focuss. These 8 issues were
Kashmir issue Water crisis Sir creek issue Rann of kutch MFN status Siachen issue State sponsored issue Nuclear DeterrenceIn September 1997 the talks broke down on structural issue where as in May 1998 the situation became harder because of nuclear experiment conducted by Pakistan. The environment further became deplorable when Indian Air lines Flight IC 814 was hijacked in 24 Dec 1999. The plan landed in Lahore for refuelling but the final destination was Kandhar, Afghanistan. Rivalry increased when attack was conducted on Indian parliament on Dec 2001. India blamed Jash-e-Mohammad for that act. The Samjhota express carnage of 18th February 2007 added fuel to fire. The series of blaming each other started again where as Pakistan tried to project cordial relations.
In Nov, 2008, a series of ten co-ordinated attacks were committed by terrorist which began across Mumbai which is the Indian financial capital and the largest city. The attack was started on 26 November 2008 and ended on 29 November 2008. In these attacks 173 people were killed including 35 foreigner where as 38 were wounded. India blamed Lashkar-e-Taiba and gave evidences that weapon, candy wrappers, telephone sets and branded milk Packets used by the terrorists belonged to Pakistan. But it was also found that the terrorist were drunk as the Lashkar-e-Taiba elements did not drink, and were speaking Hyderabadi language.
Additionally, Hermant Kurkure was the first man to be murdered in that attack. He was the man who was on the hit list of Indian Dons because he arrested General Parohit, who was the master mind of Samjhota Carnage. Another reason was that Obama Discussed to solve Kashmir issue to bring stability in the South Asian region. This attack was done to divert his attention. The lok sbha election could not be ignored as the current government needed the Pakistan card to flame the sentiments of Indian masses.
In spite of this deteriorated situation Pakistan did not give up to create friendly atmosphere. Currently, the government of India is not that much brutal. Recently Indian minister of state for external affairs said they were not worried about Pakistan purchasing of armaments but if these weapons will be used against India, they were ready to fight. In addition, Pakistan nukes were unsafe.
Bit recently the statement of Indian Army Chief Gen Deepak Kapoor regarding his army’s capacity to fight on two fronts, upset a lots of people in Pakistan. This also shows that there is a conflict of interest between Indian army and Indian Government.
India and Pakistan must work jointly to coeate a peaceful atmosphere. Sharing a long border with common geographic importance can increase to their worth if the joint venture is adopted
In spite of this deteriorated situation Pakistan did not give up to create friendly atmosphere. Currently, the government of India is not that much brutal. Recently Indian minister of state for external affairs said they were not worried about Pakistan purchasing of armaments but if these weapons will be used against India, they were ready to fight. In addition, Pakistan nukes were unsafe.
Bit recently the statement of Indian Army Chief Gen Deepak Kapoor regarding his army’s capacity to fight on two fronts, upset a lots of people in Pakistan. This also shows that there is a conflict of interest between Indian army and Indian Government.
India and Pakistan must work jointly to coeate a peaceful atmosphere. Sharing a long border with common geographic importance can increase to their worth if the joint venture is adopted
1971 Bangladesh Liberation War
Main articles: Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 and Bangladesh Liberation War
Pakistan, since independence, was geo-politically divided into two major regions, West Pakistan and East Pakistan. East Pakistan was occupied mostly by Bengali people. In December 1971, following a political crisis in East Pakistan, the situation soon spiralled out of control in East Pakistan and India intervened in favour of the rebelling Bengali populace. The conflict, a brief but bloody war, resulted in an independence of East Pakistan. In the war, the Pakistani army swiftly fell to India, forcing the independence of East Pakistan, which separated and became Bangladesh. The Pakistani military, being a thousand miles from its base and surrounded by enemies, was forced to give in.
Shimla Agreement
Since the 1971 war, Pakistan and India have made only slow progress towards the normalisation of relations. In July 1972, Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and Pakistani President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto met in the Indian hill station of Simla. They signed the Simla Agreement, by which India would return all Pakistani personnel (over 90,000) and captured territory in the west, and the two countries would "settle their differences by peaceful means through bilateral negotiations." Diplomatic and trade relations were also re-established in 1976
Afghanistan crisis
After the 1979 Soviet war in Afghanistan where Soviet Union military Occupied Afghanistan, new strains appeared in Indo-Pakistani relations. Pakistan actively supported the Afghan resistance against the Soviet Union, which was a close ally of India, which brought opposing political opinions.
The Taliban regime in Afghanistan was strongly supported by Pakistan – one of the few countries to do so – before the September 11 attacks. India, on the other hand, firmly opposed the Taliban and criticised Pakistan for supporting it.
Gujarat Earthquake in India
Pakistani President Pervez Mushrraf sent a plane load of relief supplies to India from Islamabad to Ahmedabad.[9] That carried 200 tents and more than 2,000 Blankets.[10] Furthermore the President called Indian PM to express his 'sympathy' over the loss from the earthquake.[11]
Earth quake in Pakistan
India offered generous aid to Pakistan in response to the 2005 Earthquake. Indian and Pakistani High Commissioners consulted with one another regarding cooperation in relief work. India sent 25 tonnes of relief material to Pakistan including food, blankets and medicine. Large Indian companies such as Infosys have offered aid up to $226,000. On October 12, an Ilyushin-76 cargo plane ferried across seven truckloads (about 82 tons) of army medicines, 15,000 blankets and 50 tents and returned to New Delhi. A senior airforce official also stated that they had been asked by the Indian government to be ready to fly out another similar consignment.[12] On October 14, India dispatched the second consignment of relief material to Pakistan, by train through the Wagah Border. The consignment included 5,000 blankets, 370 tents, 5 tons of plastic sheets and 12 tons of medicine. A third consignment of medicine and relief material was also sent shortly afterwards by train.[13] India also pledged $25 million as aid to Pakistan.[14] India opened the first of three points at Chakan Da Bagh, in Poonch, on the Line of Control (LoC) between India and Pakistan for the 2005 Kashmir earthquake relief work. (Rediff) Such generous gestures signalled a new age in confidence, friendliness and cooperation between both India and Pakistan.
Samjhauta Express bombings
Main article: 2007 Samjhauta Express bombings
The 2007 Samjhauta Express bombings was a terrorist attack targeted on the Samjhauta Express train on the 18th of February. The Samjhauta Express is an international train that runs from New Delhi, India to Lahore, Pakistan, and is one of two trains to cross the India-Pakistan border.
Mumbai attacks
Main article: 2008 Mumbai attacks
The 2008 Mumbai attacks by ten terrorists killed over 173 and wounded 308. The sole surviving gunman Ajmal Kasab who was arrested during the attacks was found to be a Pakistani national. This fact was acknowledged by Pakistani authorities.[15] In May 2010, an Indian court convicted him on four counts of murder, waging war against India, conspiracy and terrorism offences, and sentenced him to death.
India blamed the Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistan-based militant group, for planning and executing the attacks. Islamabad resisted the claims and demanded evidence. India provided evidence in the form of interrogations, weapons, candy wrappers, Pakistani Brand Milk Packets, and telephone sets.[17] Indian officials demanded Pakistan extradite suspects for trial. They also said that, given the sophistication of the attacks, the perpetrators "must have had the support of some official agencies in Pakistan".
Kargil crisis
Attempts to restart dialogue between the two nations were given a major boost by the February 1999 meeting of both Prime Ministers in Lahore and their signing of three agreements.These efforts have since been stalled by the intrusion of Pakistani forces into Indian territory near Kargil in Jammu and Kashmir in May 1999. This resulted in intense fighting between Indian and Pakistani forces, known as the Kargil conflict. Backed by the Indian Air Force, the Indian Army successfully regained Kargil. A subsequent military coup in Pakistan that overturned the democratically elected Nawaz Sharif government in October of the same year also proved a setback to relations.
In 2001, a summit was called in Agra; Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf turned up to meet Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. The talks fell through.On June 20, 2004, with a new government in place in India, both countries agreed to extend a nuclear testing ban and to set up a hotline between their foreign secretaries aimed at preventing misunderstandings that might lead to a nuclear war.As of early 2005, both countries are committed to a process of dialogue to solve all outstanding issues. Baglihar Dam issue was a new issue raised by Pakistan in 2005.
Newly independent
1947-48 - Hundreds of thousands die in widespread communal bloodshed after partition. 1948 - Mahatma Gandhi assassinated by Hindu extremist. 1948 - War with Pakistan over disputed territory of Kashmir. 1951-52 - Congress Party wins first general elections under leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru.
Regional tensions 1962 - India loses brief border war with China. 1964 - Death of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. 1965 - Second war with Pakistan over Kashmir. 1966 - Nehru's daughter Indira Gandhi becomes prime minister. 1971 - Third war with Pakistan over creation of Bangladesh, formerly East Pakistan. 1971 - Twenty-year treaty of friendship signed with Soviet Union. 1974 - India explodes first nuclear device in underground test.
Democratic strains 1975 - Indira Gandhi declares state of emergency after being found guilty of electoral malpractice. 1975-1977 - Nearly 1,000 political opponents imprisoned and programme of compulsory birth control introduced. 1977 - Indira Gandhi's Congress Party loses general elections. 1980 - Indira Gandhi returns to power heading Congress party splinter group, Congress (Indira). 1984 - Troops storm Golden Temple - Sikhs' most holy shrine - to flush out Sikh militants pressing for self-rule. 1984 - Indira Gandhi assassinated by Sikh bodyguards, following which her son, Rajiv, takes over. 1984 December - Gas leak at Union Carbide pesticides plant in Bhopal. Thousands are killed immediately, many more subsequently die or are left disabled. 1987 - India deploys troops for peacekeeping operation in Sri Lanka's ethnic conflict. 1989 - Falling public support leads to Congress defeat in general election. 1990 - Indian troops withdrawn from Sri Lanka. 1990 - Muslim separatist groups begin campaign of violence in Kashmir. 1991 - Rajiv Gandhi assassinated by suicide bomber sympathetic to Sri Lanka's Tamil Tigers. 1991 - Economic reform programme begun by Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao. 1992 - Hindu extremists demolish mosque in Ayodhya, triggering widespread Hindu-Muslim violence. BJP to the fore 1996 - Congress suffers worst ever electoral defeat as Hindu nationalist BJP emerges as largest single party. 1998 - BJP forms coalition government under Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. 1998 - India carries out nuclear tests, leading to widespread international condemnation. 1999 February - Vajpayee makes historic bus trip to Pakistan to meet Premier Nawaz Sharif and to sign bilateral Lahore peace declaration. 1999 May - Tension in Kashmir leads to brief war with Pakistan-backed forces in the icy heights around Kargil in Indian-held Kashmir. 1999 October - Cyclone devastates eastern state of Orissa, leaving at least 10,000 dead. Population: 1 billion 2000 May - India marks the birth of its billionth citizen. 2000 - US President Bill Clinton makes a groundbreaking visit to improve ties. 2001 January - Massive earthquakes hit the western state of Gujarat, leaving at least 30,000 dead. 2001 April - 16 Indian and three Bangladeshi soldiers are killed in border clashes. A high-powered rocket is launched, propelling India into the club of countries able to fire big satellites deep into space. 2001 July - Vajpayee meets Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf in the first summit between the two neighbours in more than two years. The meeting ends without a breakthrough or even a joint statement because of differences over Kashmir. 2001 July - Vajpayee's BJP party declines his offer to resign over a number of political scandals and the apparent failure of his talks with Pakistani President Musharraf. 2001 September - US lifts sanctions which it imposed against India and Pakistan after they staged nuclear tests in 1998. The move is seen as a reward for their support for the US-led anti-terror campaign. Kashmir tensions rise 2001 October - India fires on Pakistani military posts in the heaviest firing along the dividing line of control in Kashmir for almost a year. 2001 December - Suicide squad attacks parliament in New Delhi, killing several police. The five gunmen die in the assault. 2001 December - India imposes sanctions against Pakistan, to force it to take action against two Kashmir militant groups blamed for the suicide attack on parliament. Pakistan retaliates with similar sanctions, and bans the groups in January. 2001 December - India, Pakistan mass troops on common border amid mounting fears of a looming war. 2002 January - India successfully test-fires a nuclear-capable ballistic missile - the Agni - off its eastern coast. 2002 February - Inter-religious bloodshed breaks out after 59 Hindu pilgrims returning from Ayodhya are killed in a train fire in Godhra, Gujarat. More than 1,000 people, mainly Muslims, die in subsequent riots. (Police and officials blamed the fire on a Muslim mob; a 2005 government investigation said it was an accident.) 2002 May - Pakistan test-fires three medium-range surface-to-surface Ghauri missiles, which are capable of carrying nuclear warheads. War of words between Indian and Pakistani leaders intensifies. Actual war seems imminent. 2002 June - UK, US urge their citizens to leave India and Pakistan, while maintaining diplomatic offensive to avert war. 2002 July - Retired scientist and architect of India's missile programme APJ Abdul Kalam is elected president. 2003 August - At least 50 people are killed in two simultaneous bomb blasts in Bombay. Kashmir Ceasefire 2003 November - India matches Pakistan's declaration of a Kashmir ceasefire. 2003 December - India, Pakistan agree to resume direct air links and to allow overflights. 2004 January - Groundbreaking meeting held between government and moderate Kashmir separatists. 2004 May - Surprise victory for Congress Party in general elections. Manmohan Singh is sworn in as prime minister. 2004 September - India, along with Brazil, Germany and Japan, launches an application for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. 2004 November - India begins to withdraw some of its troops from Kashmir. Asian tsunami 2004 December - Thousands are killed when tidal waves, caused by a powerful undersea earthquake off the Indonesian coast, devastate coastal communities in the south and in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. 2005 7 April - Bus services, the first in 60 years, operate between Srinagar in Indian-administered Kashmir and Muzaffarabad in Pakistani-administered Kashmir. 2005 July - More than 1,000 people are killed in floods and landslides caused by monsoon rains in Mumbai (Bombay) and Maharashtra region. 2005 October - An earthquake, with its epicentre in Pakistani-administered Kashmir, kills more than 1,000 people in Indian-administered Kashmir. Bombs kill 62 people in Delhi. A little-known Kashmiri group says it is behind the attacks. 2006 February - India's largest-ever rural jobs scheme is launched, aimed at lifting around 60 million families out of poverty. Nuclear deal 2006 March - US and India sign a nuclear agreement during a visit by US President George W Bush. The US gives India access to civilian nuclear technology while India agrees to greater scrutiny for its nuclear programme. 14 people are killed by bomb blasts in the Hindu pilgrimage city of Varanasi. 2006 May - Suspected Islamic militants kill 35 Hindus in the worst attacks in Indian-administered Kashmir for several months. 2006 11 July - More than 180 people are killed in bomb attacks on rush-hour trains in Mumbai. Investigators blame Islamic militants based in Pakistan. 2006 8 September - Explosions outside a mosque in the western town of Malegaon kill at least 31 people. 2006 November - Hu Jintao makes the first visit to India by a Chinese president in a decade. 2006 December - US President George W Bush approves a controversial law allowing India to buy US nuclear reactors and fuel for the first time in 30 years. Train attack 2007 18 February - 68 passengers, most of them Pakistanis, are killed by bomb blasts and a blaze on a train travelling from New Delhi to the Pakistani city of Lahore. 2007 February - India and Pakistan sign an agreement aimed at reducing the risk of accidental nuclear war. 2007 March - Maoist rebels in Chhattisgarh state kill more than 50 policemen in a dawn attack. 2007 April - India's first commercial space rocket is launched, carrying an Italian satellite. 2007 May - At least nine people are killed in a bomb explosion at the main mosque in Hyderabad. Several others are killed in subsequent rioting. 2007 May - Government announces its strongest economic growth figures for 20 years - 9.4% in the year to March. 2007 July - India says the number of its people with HIV or AIDS is about half of earlier official tallies. Health ministry figures put the total at between 2 million and 3.1 million cases, compared with previous estimates of more than 5 million. First woman president 2007 July - Pratibha Patil becomes first woman to be elected president of India. 2008 July - Congress-led governing coalition survives vote of confidence brought after left-wing parties withdraw their support over controversial nuclear cooperation deal with US. After the vote, several left-wing and regional parties form new alliance to oppose government, saying it has been tainted by corruption. 2008 July - Series of explosions kills 49 in Ahmedabad, in Gujarat state. The little-known group Indian Mujahideen claims responsibility. 2008 October - Following approval by the US Congress, President George W Bush signs into law a nuclear deal with India, which ends a three-decade ban on US nuclear trade with Delhi. India successfully launches its first mission to the moon, the unmanned lunar probe Chandrayaan-1. Mumbai attacks 2008 November - Nearly 200 people are killed and hundreds injured in a series of co-ordinated attacks by gunmen on the main tourist and business area of India's financial capital Mumbai. India blames militants from Pakistan for the attacks and demands that Islamabad take strong action against those responsible. 2008 December - India announces "pause" in peace process with Pakistan. Indian cricket team cancels planned tour of Pakistan. 2009 February - India and Russia sign deals worth $700m, according to which Moscow will supply uranium to Delhi. 2009 April - Trial of sole surviving suspect in Mumbai attacks begins. 2009 May - Resounding general election victory gives governing Congress-led alliance of PM Manmohan Singh an enhanced position in parliament, only 11 seats short of an absolute majority. 2009 July - Pakistani, Indian premiers pledge to work together to fight terror irrespective of progress on improving broader ties. A Dehli court rules that homosexual intercourse between consenting adults is not criminal, overturning a 148-year-old colonial law. 2009 December - The federal government says it will allow a new state, called Telangana, to be carved out of part of the southern state of Andhra Pradesh. Violent protests both for and against the new state break out. 2010 February - Bomb explosion in a restaurant popular with tourists in Pune, in the western state of Maharashtra, kills 16 people, sparking security fears. 2010 May - The solve surviving gunman of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, Ajmal Amir Qasab, is convicted of murder, waging war on India and possessing explosives. 2010 June - A court in Bhopal sentences eight Indians to two years each in jail for "death by negligence" over the 1984 Union Carbide gas plant leak. Thousands died in this, the world's worst industrial accident. 2010 September - Allahabad High Court rules that disputed holy site of Ayodhya should be divided between Hindus and Muslims; the destruction of a mosque on the site by Hindu extremists in 1992 led to rioting in which about 2,000 people died. 2010 October - Delhi Commonwealth Games go ahead despite widespread criticism of the state of the facilities and claims of poor organisation. 2011 February - Prime Minister Singh denies he is a lame duck leader and vows to carry on in office after a run of debilitating scandals, including a parliamentary decision to investigate a costly telecoms deal.http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/india/3537954/Mumbai-attacks-Indias-relationship-with-Pakistan-in-the-balance.html
By Imdad Hussain
ISLAMABAD, May 1 After two years' interval, Pakistani and Indian leadership agreed in Bhutan Thursday, once again, to start peace process.
After returning from Bhutan, Pakistani foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told a press conference Friday that he would meet his Indian counterpart as soon as possible to form the modalities of the future interaction between the two countries.The history of Pakistan-India relations had ups and downs. Now the ice between the two South Asian rivals becomes to thaw.
Since 1947 Pakistan and India had been in bad relations with each other. Having long standing disputes, like Kashmir, water, Kargil and so on, the two countries fought three major wars in 1948, 1965 and 1971. A partial war, known as Kargil war, between the two countries took place in 1999. In 1998 both Pakistan and India carried out successful tests of nuclear arsenal. So the two rivals and warring neighbor countries became nuclear armed entities. After 1998, the world was intensely focusing on relations of the two countries.
After the 9/11 attack, the international scenario changed and a new concept known as "war on terror" emerged. Pakistan, whose role U.S. considered important in the fight against terrorism, became the frontline state in the war on terror. However, Pakistan always complained that it couldn't fully focus on its western border along with Afghanistan as long as its eastern border with India is not secured.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/database/2010-05/01/c_13275364.htm
Mohali
After the terrorist attack on the Sri Lanka cricket team I can not see any country will be keen to send their cricket team to Pakistan for a few years, it is okay for the Indian and Pakistani prime ministers to sit and watch a game of cricket together in Mohali but it is much more difficult for the Indian cricket team to travel to Pakistan so soon after the Pakistani terrorist attack in Mumbai . f such a series is planned, it will most likely be played at a neutral venue, although PCB Chairman Ijaz Butt ruled out the option, saying Pakistan wants to host India on its soil.
“The prime minister has directed us to host this series in Pakistan so we are not looking at the option of a neutral venue,” Butt told reporters. Primer ministers of both countries met and held talks at the Mohali semi-final, showing signs of revival of ties between the arch-rivals.
THAT the two prime ministers met at Mohali on Wednesday in an environment enlivened by what by any standards was a carnival is itself an achievement. Their second meeting since February in Thimphu, this get-together should serve to help revive the ‘composite dialogue’ so rudely shattered by the Mumbai episode. A breakthrough was never expected, and nobody seemed to share the misplaced optimism generated by some TV channels on both sides. Nevertheless, we can detect a modest diplomatic gain: an invitation was sent by India, and Pakistan accepted it, the grace being mutual. This should be a matter of satisfaction seen against the background of the mistrust that has characterised India-Pakistan ties for six decades. More significantly, the Mohali meeting is a clear indication of the two prime ministers’ resolve to pursue the peace process despite the hurdles in the way, not the least of which is the opposition from the hawks in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s cabinet to a soft line towards Pakistan, and his weakened position because of the corruption scandals now rocking Indian politics. The interior secretaries’ accord in New Delhi must have gladdened the two chief executives, because they agreed to set up a ‘terror hotline’, coupled with the declaration in the joint statement that they will “remain engaged on outstanding issues
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