Islamabad/Lahore, April 10
The change of government in Pakistan after the exit of hawkish Imran Khan and his likely replacement by hard-core realist Shehbaz Sharif may provide a little window of opportunity for the leaders of India and Pakistan to reset their nearly frozen bilateral ties, according to experts.
As the younger brother of former three-time premier Nawaz Sharif, Shehbaz over the years has earned the reputation of a matter-of-fact person who makes no bones while performing onerous tasks.
His realism is often rancorous for friends and foes alike. When a Geo News TV anchor asked him a few days ago about terms of ties with the US under his leadership, Shehbaz responded: “Beggars cannot be choosers” – a remark instantly compared by his opponents with Khan’s “honour in foreign policy” notion.
A man who can work across the aisles in Parliament as well as with the powerful establishment with equal ease, can Shehbaz’s rise to power help to untangle the Indo-Pak puzzle?
Samiullah Khan, a Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) lawmaker and close aid of Shehbaz, told PTI that his leader would chalk out a new policy for India.
“Pakistan under Shehbaz will come up with a new policy towards India. Basically the Imran Khan regime had no or weak policy towards India, which allowed India to revoke the special status of Kashmir and Khan could only watch helplessly,” he said.
Leading political analyst Dr Hassan Askari said first of all, Pakistan and India should start the dialogue which was suspended by India in 2014 because no forward movement is possible unless they start talking.
“Since India suspended the talks, the responsibility for its revival also lies on India. No government in Pakistan has opposed a meaningful dialogue,” he said.
When Khan came to power in 2018, he promised to rebuild ties with India but soon the two countries came to blows in the wake of the Pulwama terror attack. Though the storm passed but left behind jarring gaps in the relations with no possibility of quick mending.
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