Dubai: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan must be a happy man today after hearing reports of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi very apparently winning the election to take up his second stint in the office.
Imran had expressed his wish early this month that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) should win the Indian elections as they are more prone to holding dialogue with Pakistan.
Perhaps if the BJP— a right-wing party — wins, some kind of settlement in Kashmir could be reached
Going by the history of relations between the two countries, Pakistan and India made some headway in relations, and held talks only when the BJP was in power in India.
Imran thinks that there may be a better chance of peace talks with India if Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist BJP wins the Indian general elections.
“Perhaps if the BJP— a right-wing party — wins, some kind of settlement in Kashmir could be reached,” he had said earlier.
As far as Pakistan-India peace efforts are concerned, Imran’s views reflect his insight into Indian politics and the power of the BJP as no other Indian political party, including the Congress, has ever taken the initiative to make peace with Pakistan.
Imran was quite right in his believes as foreign ministers from both the countries met soon even a day before the Indian election results are announced.
Foreign Ministers from both the countries met in Bishkek in the Krgyz capital on Wednesday and sat next to each other during a joint call on Kyrgyz president. This is a clear hint that the BJP leadership is now open for talks with Pakistan.
Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi spoke to Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj during the Shanghai Cooperation (SCO) meeting in Bishkek.
"Today [I] met Sushma Ji. She had a complaint that we sometimes talk in a bitter manner. She brought sweets today so we could also speak sweetly," Qureshi was quoted as saying by the Pakistan Foreign Office.
"We made it clear to her that we want all the matters resolved through dialogue, and that Prime Minister Imran Khan had said in his very first speech that if India takes one step forward, we would take two steps forward. Even today we are ready for a dialogue," Qureshi added.
The results of India's general elections are very significant for Pakistan as the formation of the next government in New Delhi will determine the course of Indo-Pakistan ties, which were pushed to a new low after the Pulwama terror attack.
