SHAHBAZ Sharif’s visit to India is a sincere message from Pakistan to India to revive the peace process. Arguably Nawaz Sharif’s most trusted lieutenant by virtue of being his brother, the Punjab chief minister conveyed to the Indian prime minister his Pakistani counterpart’s keenness for an early normalisation of relations in spite of the many difficulties involved. The visit followed a relative improvement in the Kashmir situation when the two director generals ordered a halt to skirmishes following the New York meeting between Nawaz Sharif and Manmohan Singh. Also noteworthy was Prime Minister Sharif’s proposal, made during a meeting with the Indian high commissioner, for a counterterrorism dialogue at the level of security advisers. In his interaction with the media, Shahbaz Sharif emphasised the need for ditching the “baggage of the past” and resolving all disputes, including Kashmir, through peaceful means.

That CM Sharif’s pleas went largely unreciprocated should not come as a surprise. India is in the midst of an election campaign, and the Congress, which recently suffered reverses in state polls, is unlikely to take major foreign policy initiatives at this time. With the fundamentalist BJP going strong, and Gujarat’s anti-Muslim Narendra Modi a candidate for prime minister, the Congress would hate to be seen by India’s communal groups as pursuing a soft policy towards Pakistan. On this side of the border, we have not helped matters by failing to actively pursue the Mumbai trial or the MFN status for India. The extraordinary delay in the Mumbai case has come in handy for India’s right-wing media which has used the opportunity to whip up anti-Pakistan sentiments. From the benefit of hindsight, we can say that Shahbaz Sharif’s visit was a goodwill gesture that produced no results. As for Mr Singh’s acceptance of the invitation to visit Pakistan, the Indian prime minister has done this many times. What is needed is for the two governments to take on the hardliners on both sides and resolve to revive and pursue the peace process.