Back Advani, at 'home' in Pakistan
Rasheeda Bhagat
| Bilateral relations get another thrust with the Pakistan visit of the BJP President, Mr L. K. Advani, who has gone on record to fully support the UPA Government's efforts to take forward the peace process, undoubtedly initiated by his party and its stalwart leader, Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee. In this milieu, the leaders of the Hurriyat, who are also headed the Islamabad way, must read the writing on the wall, says Rasheeda Bhagat. |
But much water has flowed along the Jamuna since, and at subsequent meetings both Mr Vajpayee and his successor, Dr Manmohan Singh, have achieved much in taking the Indo-Pak peace process forward.
Born in the Hyderabad region of Sindh province in Pakistan, Mr Advani had come to India during Partition as a refugee and naturally harbours some of the bitterest memories of that traumatic event. But 58 years after Partition, it would be difficult to keep fresh the wounds inflicted on one's heart and soul by events that compelled one to flee from home. Even bitter critics of the BJP cannot deny that it was the saffron party that has done the most in recent years to take the peace process forward with our recalcitrant neighbour. Of course, many people believe that despite opposition from within the BJP Mr Vajpayee pushed ahead with the peace process, agreeing to meet Gen Musharraf despite Kargil having followed his Lahore bus yatra in February 1999 and the failure of the Agra Summit. Mr Vajpayee then followed this up by giving his nod to the Indo-Pak cricket series in Pakistan despite apprehension from the Sangh Parivar and stiff opposition from the Shiv Sena chief, Mr Bal Thackeray.
In recent years, the single event that has helped soften hearts and blunt at least some suspicion in the minds of both Indians and Pakistanis for one another is cricket. When large groups of people from one side of the LoC visit the other for the cricket matches and found to their surprise much affection, camaraderie and hospitality instead of hatred or acrimony, at least they, their families and friends were compelled to change their opinion.
But there is a limit to which the people's opinion can push a country's foreign policy. That is why it was a masterly move by Gen Musharraf during his recent visit to India on the pretext of watching an Indo-Pak match, to not only meet Mr Advani, but also call upon Mr Vajpayee. While the former had the official title of the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, the latter had none. But the savvy general was only too aware that his move would not only please a vast constituency in his own country which has a soft spot for Mr Vajpayee, but also Indians, in general, and the BJP, in particular. An added bonus was, of course, the international applause. Whether the UPA Government liked it or not, it had to grin and bear it.
Later, of course, there were indignant denials by the Congress(I) of the BJP claims that it had tried to stop the Pakistan President from visiting Mr Vajpayee. During his meeting with Mr Advani, Gen Musharraf reiterated a warm invitation to visit his birthplace, an invitation that was graciously accepted by the BJP leader. Those Indians who have visited Pakistan a few times and have been both surprised and charmed by the warmth and hospitality they receive from ordinary Pakistanis have no doubt that Mr Advani too will be mellowed by his one week stay in Pakistan.
Predictably, the Pakistan Government has pulled all stops to make it a memorable visit for Mr Advani. On Tuesday, Mr Advani met both Gen Musharraf and the Pakistani Prime Minister, Mr Shaukat Aziz. An AFP report quoted Mr Advani as saying that he had told the Pakistani Premier that his visit was part of the peace efforts begun by the BJP. "He said there was a `broad consensus' on the peace process in India and the current government of Indian premier Manmohan Singh had the `full support' of his party," said the report.
The BJP President said he had `interesting' discussions with Mr Aziz and expressed confidence that his visit would `reinforce' the peace initiatives and movement towards normalcy, adding that besides Jammu and Kashmir, trade, media, communications and energy had figured in the discussions.
How sharp rhetoric can get blunted in the face of warmth and affection can be seen from Mr Advani's statement that the ongoing peace process had the support of his and other parties in the Opposition. ``Even though we are not in the government, the process that is on has our support," he said, not forgetting to add that the process had been initiated by the BJP-led NDA Government.
Later when Mr Advani met Gen Musharraf, during the hour-long talk, the latter sought his support as the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha in continuing the peace process. Apparently the two leaders not only spoke on "all issues including Kashmir", but also re-lived memories of their days at Karachi's St Patrick's High School, whose alumnus was also Gen Musharraf, though much later.
The Pakistani media report that the Pakistan Government has no intention whatsoever of reopening an old criminal case pending against "Mr Advani and 17 other Hindu hardliners for allegedly conspiring to kill the Pakistani founder, Mohammad Ali Jinnah, and other leaders of the Pakistan movement." An AFP report quoted a senior Pakistani Government official as saying: "He is our guest and visiting Pakistan on our invitation; so we cannot open the case against him at this juncture."
While it is all bonhomie between the Pakistan Government and Mr Advani, the drama of the Hurriyat leaders riding the bus from Srinagar to Muzaffarabad continues. Even during the meeting with Mr Advani, the Pakistan Premier made the mandatory references to how the Kashmir issue needed to be resolved in consultation with the people of Kashmir; irritating is the importance the Pakistan Government continues to give the Hurriyat leaders. Granted that they do have some kind of a following in Kashmir, but the fact remains that the Hurriyat is yet to give concrete evidence of its claim that it is the "most important" and the "most influential" representative of the interests of the Kashmiri people — by winning elections, that is. Of course, its stand has been that if it starts contesting elections it would be accepting the sovereignty of the Indian Government and its ownership of a region that the Hurriyat leadership believes is under dispute. But in what other way can it prove that it represents the Kashmiri people more completely or more convincingly than Mufti Mohammed Sayeed's PDP, the National Conference or even the Congress(I)? By giving out election boycott calls and organising bandhs that are getting less and less support by a people who are devastated and exhausted by long years of conflict and bloody violence?
When a person like the blatantly pro-Pakistan and breakaway Hurriyat hardliner Syed Ali Shah Geelani, goes into a sulk and turns down Islamabad's invitation to the Hurriyat leaders to visit it on the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus, because he is "upset with Islamabad of deviating from its principled stand on Kashmir", and accuses India of going back on its "promise of plebiscite" one feels like asking him to go and take a walk instead of riding the Bus.
The Government of India may have its own reasons for humouring Hurriyat leaders such as Mr Geelani because it is, or should be, genuinely interested in bringing peace to the Valley. But why Kashmiris, or the rest of Indians, should take him seriously is something that defies reason. By quickly agreeing to accept the invitation and go to Pakistan, while at the same time asking for a dialogue with the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, pragmatic leaders of the Hurriyat, such as Miwaiz Umar Farooq, Maulana Ansari and even Abdul Gani Bhat, seem to have read the writing on the wall.
The Indo-Pak peace process is gathering a momentum that they thought was not possible.
The Hurriyat would do well to gracefully accept whatever degree of importance that Pakistan and India are willing to grant it.
Throwing tantrums is not going to impress anybody, leave alone scuttle the peace process. All the major players in the Indo-Pak dialogue process have got this message, including Mr Advani; or else he would not have gone so far.
Response can be sent to rasheeda@thehindu.co.in
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