Daily Times

Sir: The Pakistani government had tried to engage the new Bharatia Janata Party (BJP) government in positive and meaningful dialogue to resolve the Kashmir issue. However, the frequent skirmishes at the Line of Control and cross-firing along the Working Boundary last year have made relations between the two countries strained. The BJP has proved that it is a sectarian party and trying to divide Kashmir on a Hindu and Muslim basis. India wants to keep the Kashmir issue pending and maintain the status quo, which favours India. Instead of resolving this long standing dispute, which is a major hurdle to Indo-Pak relations, India is more interested to achieve its other regional and extra-regional goals. However, Pakistan has always extended its moral, political and diplomatic support to Kashmiris in their struggle for the right of self-determination. The government even offered to engage a third party like the US or China for mediation to resolve the dispute. However, India did not want any foreign role in the matter nor is it willing to conduct a sustained dialogue with Pakistan to resolve it bilaterally. The efforts to resolve the Kashmir issue at international forums like the UN, SAARC and OIC have also been futile. President Obama’s recent visit to India raised hopes in Pakistan that the Kashmir issue would be highlighted but nothing happened in this regard. Any immediate breakthrough on the Kashmir issue seems impossible but it should be noted that the settlement of the Kashmir issue is imperative for better Indo-Pak relations and for durable peace in South Asia.

AYMEN IJAZ

Islamabad