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| Dialogue with Pakistan meaningless | | | RUSTAM
EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, Apr 15: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has done well to rebuff Pakistan and make it loud and clear that India would talk only if Pakistan acts against terror accused. He made public these views in Washington on Wednesday. It shows that the Prime Minister, who otherwise had been very anxious to break the impasse by engaging Pakistan in the dialogue process, has revised his approach. It is a significant development considering the fact that he expressed these views in Washington at a time when his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani was also there.
What our Prime Minister said was a plain speaking. He took the Pakistani government to task and said: "India could resume dialogue with Pakistan on all issues if 'concrete' and 'effective' action is taken against those behind the Mumbai terror strikes"; "there is no need for the US or any other country to get involved in Indo-Pak affairs"; "first of all, I do not see the need for any further evidence about the role of Lashkar-e-Toiba"; "I think the American intelligence and the American forces have been saying and pointed out the role of Lashkar-e-Toiba, the link of Lashkar-e-Toiba with Al-Qaeda, so I do not see there is any need for me to provide any additional evidence to Prime Minister Gilani about the role of Lashkar-e-Toiba, Hafiz Saeed, Illyas Kashmiri, Zaki-ur-Rehman, are names with regard to fanning terrorism directed against India"; "conspirators, including Saeed, are still roaming about freely"; 'he hated to 'enter into an argument' with Gilani at a press conference"; and so on.
That Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would be so blunt was never expected. After all, he is a soft-spoken person. He has all along told Pakistan that India would be always ready to walk an extra mile if Pakistan adopts a reasonable attitude and takes a definite action against those involved in the 26/11 Mubmai terrorist attacks that took away more than 170 innocent lives, including the lives of a few foreigners. Besides, he is the person who has always condoned the crimes of Pakistan and not allowed its belligerency to become a stumbling block in the resumption of talks between the two countries. That he used somewhat strong language indicates that he has perhaps realized that Islamabad will never address the Indian concerns.
Pakistan is a rogue state. It has been not only creating difficulties for India in Pakistan by instigating the Kashmiri leadership and its supporters, who are also unreasonable despite the fact that New Delhi has always given Kashmir a special treatment, but also indulging in activities that could help it establish its control over Afghanistan and end the Indian presence there. Indians are there in Afghanistan for reconstructing the ravaged country and not for promoting its territorial designs and their presence in Afghanistan is important for India. The Pakistani control over Afghanistan would create additional difficulties for India.
It is important to note that the Obama administration is also helping Pakistan. So much so, it has started indicating that it is willing to talk to the Taliban, who have been in war with the Karzai administration. It is also too well known now that the US administration has asked India not to take any interest in the security-related issues in Afghanistan. The message is clear. The situation has reached a point that even the desperate Afghanistan president Hamid Karzai has hinted at the possibility of his joining the Taliban. His frustration can be measured from the fact that the American administration has virtually decided to pull out its forces from Afghanistan.
Besides, the American administration is exerting pressure on India so that New Delhi gives concessions to Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir. The situation, in short, is not encouraging for India. New Delhi has to tackle many factors simultaneously. It has to tackle the United State, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh and even Sri Lanka and Nepal, and it has to ensure that it continues to help Afghanistan. It is good that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has taken a tough stand against Pakistan. But this will not do. He should also tell Pakistan in clear terms that if Islamabad wants to cultivate god relations with India, it should not only stop cross-border terrorism but also hand over PoK and Gilgit-Baltistan to India. Such a stance of his would put not only put Islamabad on the defensive but would also enhance the prestige of India in the eyes of the world.
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