Daily Times

Indian involvement in fomenting terrorism in Pakistan and its support to insurgents in Balochistan is an established fact. The government of Pakistan has been continuously sensitising the world capitals, including the US as well the UN, about Indian involvement in these sinister acts. The UN and the US have even been handed over dossiers with substantial evidence in this regard. The arrest of Kalbushan Yadav, an officer of the Indian Navy, in Balochistan and his confessions, left no doubt about Indian designs against Pakistan. His arrest was an irrefutable corroborative evidence of India sponsoring terrorism in Pakistan with a view to destabilising the country.

The Indians also do not mince words about their anti-Pakistan stance and their resolve to harm it. A former Indian Army Chief Vikram Singh participating in a panel discussion on an Indian TV channel said, “Pakistan is using Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) to carry out terrorist attacks in India. These groups continue to enjoy the patronage of the Pakistani security establishment and the political leadership. While the Indian Army is taking care of their infiltration at the LOC, it cannot carry out attacks at their headquarters within Pakistan at Kamoke and Bahawalpur respectively. But they need to be taken out. That can be accomplished through Pakistani nationals who were ready to do Indian bidding for money.” That proves beyond an iota of doubt Indian involvement in Pakistan and the tactics that it is employing to achieve its nefarious objectives, particularly in Balochistan.

But the painful reality is that while the world community and the powers invariably buy the Indian propaganda of involvement of these groups in acts of terrorism in India and keep pressurising Pakistan not to allow these entities to use Pakistan soil for attacks in the neighbouring countries, they are not bothered about what India is doing. Why India finds it convenient to sell its propaganda is because both these organisations have been declared terrorist outfits by a number of countries, including the US and the UN. Even Pakistan banned these organisations in 2002. Nevertheless, it is alleged that these organisations are still operating under different nomenclature.

The fact is that in the new narrative evolved by the security establishment and present government in Pakistan, there is zero tolerance for the terrorist outfits which are being targeted through intelligence-based operations indiscriminately. A serious and well thought out strategy is being pursued to stop the proscribed groups to operate under new names, including LeT and JeM. However, these efforts are not being duly acknowledged and recognised because the past still continues to haunt Pakistan. It is said that being ill-reputed is worst than being an actual evil-doer

That, unfortunately, is also the reason that Indian atrocities against the people of Kashmir during the current uprising failed to stir the conscience of the world. India continues to use the bogey of terrorism to malign Pakistan, and portray the freedom movement as terrorism, abetted and sponsored by Pakistan. Under the prevailing circumstances, Pakistan needs to evolve an effective strategy to not only build its credibility as an honest and committed crusader against terrorist entities but also to unveil the Indian machinations. Simultaneously the efforts to highlight the barbarity of the Indian security forces in Kashmir and re-engaging the global fraternity and UN in finding a solution to the Kashmir dispute need to be upgraded and vigorously pursued. It would perhaps be pertinent to point out that PM Nawaz Sharif did plead the Kashmir cause effectively in his speech in the UN General Assembly besides reminding the world body and the international fraternity about their obligations towards the people of Kashmir. Pakistan needs to persist with such efforts regularly at all available forums and through diplomatic offensive.

In the meantime, however, endeavours to mend fences with India must continue. The prevailing situation and the stalemate in regards to dialogue with India should not discourage the quest for finding an amicable solution to the disputes between the two countries, including the Kashmir issue which is the root-cause of animosity and has bedevilled relations between them for nearly seven decades. It is hard to contest the view that peace, security and economic progress in the region including Pakistan and India depended on amity between them. Both of them could not afford to continue with hostility towards each other indefinitely.

Pakistan government, under the stewardship of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, understands the importance of peaceful co-existence with India and other neighbours. Its initiative to build regional linkages for shared prosperity is an outcome of this realisation. In this regard, the PML-N made positive overtures towards India including promoting bonhomie through trade and other initiatives. PM Nawaz’s interactions with Indian PM at different forums did ease tensions between the two countries and echoes of the revival of dialogue resonated on both sides of the border. It was in the backdrop this spirit that when the Pathankot incident occurred, both Pakistan and India showed a rare spirit of equanimity, refraining from impulsive streak to indulge in the blame game and also decided to cooperate in finding out the real culprits. But that effort was torpedoed by the later incidents and the general Indian intransigence.

India and Pakistan are neighbours and also nuclear powers. Their continued mutual animosity poses a grave threat to peace and security in the region besides jeopardising their efforts to ameliorate the lot of teeming millions within their territories. Peaceful co-existence between them is a must as none of them can change the historical and geographical realities. History is a witness to the reality that war-like states cannot exist for long. India has problems with almost all its neighbours including Pakistan and needs to revisit her aggressive postures towards its neighbours. History also gives a strong reminder to the fact that freedom movements cannot be subdued through the barrel of the gun. Efforts to quell freedom movements have a hefty cost.

Kashmir undoubtedly is an unfinished agenda of the partition. The dispute pertains to the inalienable right of self-determination of the people of Kashmir which has been duly recognised in the UN resolutions on the subject and commitment given to them both by India and the UN. It is a shame that the dispute remains unresolved for nearly 69 nears, reflecting negatively on the UN as a peace-making body.

Instead of raising the ante against Pakistan, Modi government must recognise the ground realities and come out of the self-destructive mode. Resolving the issues between Pakistan and India is indeed a very complicated phenomenon, but given the will on both sides, all the obstacles can be surmounted. Modi must think bigger with a futuristic outlook, and he surely would see the light at the end of the tunnel. The international community, the UN and the sole Super Power also have a role to play.

The writer is a retired diplomat, a freelance columnist, and a member of the visiting faculty of the Riphah Institute of Media Sciences, Riphah International University Islamabad. He can be reached at ashpak10@gmail.com