New Delhi, December 28: Main Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders’ rift is out, not only on the domestic issue of Public Accounts Committee (PAC), but also on foreign policy issues particularly tackling Pakistan.
Against party office bearers’ war cries at a recently concluded meeting at Jammu to teach Pakistan a lesson for promoting terrorism, senior BJP leader Yashwant Sinha here on Tuesday called for peaceful relations with Islamabad and even asked India to take unilateral steps without awaiting for reciprocity. Miffed at a question, whether he was at variance with his party’s tough stand, former external affairs minister said, “no one in the BJP can disregard what former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee did vis-à-vis Pakistan.” He referred to Vajpayee’s path-breaking initiatives in formatting friendship with Pakistan.
Speaking at a seminar on eve of 10th anniversary of South Asia Free Media Association (SAFMA), Sinha agreed with Congress party’s peacenik Mani Shankar Iyer to liberalise visa regimes, increase people-to-people contacts and set clear goals and modalities. The BJP leader also called for liberating India-Pakistan issues from bureaucratic whims and assigning them to parliamentary committees in both countries, which should meet away from media glare.
“As long as we listen to joint secretaries and ambassadors, there will be no breakthrough in India-Pakistan realations,” he added. He said the bureaucracy in both countries hosts a statuesque mindset. Recalling his own tenure as joint secretary shipping under then transport minister P. V. Narasmiha Rao in early 80s, he said officials had rocked a possible shipping agreement between two countries insisting on reciprocity. “Pakistan had opened their only port Karachi for Indian shipping companies and our bureaucrats were insisting they would reciprocate by opening just one port. Pakistan had no other port, but we had 10 ports,” he said, insisting that India being a bigger country in the region should not harbour a fear mindset.
Calling for an asymmetric approach, Sinah said, there was no need to await reciprocity. “We must liberalise visa regime irrespective of what our neighbours are doing…We are a large country and should also be large hearted,” he added. He emphasised to build people-to-people contacts rather government level contacts to achieve tangible results. “We cannot achieve anything next 100 years, if left merely to governments,” said the BJP leader.
Describing India-Pakistan relations accident prone, Sinha prescribed to put all issues on table. “Let us not sweep issues under carpet. We have to confront all issues and bring them to table. In a dialogue, both sides need to put all cards on table and find commonalities on less contentious issues and progress on difficult issues,” he said. He also advised governments not to arrange summits without full preparations. “I am against unprepared and unstructured summits. If they fail, they cause great disappointment,” he maintained.
Opposing any third-party intervention, BJP leader said, those bombing Pakistan with drones cannot be honest umpires. “Look for honesty between ourselves. Third party will only look for its own interest,” he said.
Further, he said only democracies in both countries are better suited to normalise relatiosn and settle issues. He rejected the idea that military dictators in Islamabad were more amenable to settle issues and talk to India with confidence. “We need to shun this thinking sooner the better,” he said.
Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukhjee, who presided the function called for strenghing SAARC and said one way to enhance security of people was to normalise relations with neighbours.