Writing to his Pakistani counterpart Mr Nawaz Sharif on the occasion of the neighbour’s National Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called for bilateral dialogue to resolve issues in a terror free atmosphere. The PM has evidently chosen to overlook the controversy being generated in a section of the media over the proposed participation of Kashmiri separatist leaders in a function at the Pakistani high commission to celebrate the national day on Monday.
“It is my firm conviction that all outstanding issues can be resolved through bilateral dialogue in an atmosphere free from terror & violence, Mr. Modi tweeted.
In another tweet he said: “I have written to Pakistan PM Mr. Nawaz Sharif, conveying my greetings on the National Day of Pakistan.”
Observers see Mr. Modi’s statement as a mellowing down of the tough stance on dialogue with Pakistan. The government had in August last year cancelled Foreign Secretary-level talks after Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit met Kashmiri separatist leaders ahead of the talks despite calls by the India to not go ahead with it. After a lull, last month the government resumed dialogue under the garb of the Foreign Secretary’s “SAARC Yatra”. This letter is seen as a direct outreach to Pakistan towards resumption of dialogue.
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