The greatest difficulty in maintaining ties with Pakistan is that its political leadership seems to have little control over what happens on the ground, particularly at the Line of Control. Ironically, while Prime Ministers Manmohan Singh and Nawaz Sharif were shaking hands in New York, serious and sustained infiltration attempts were on at the 778-km-long LoC.
The greatest difficulty in maintaining ties with Pakistan is that its political leadership seems to have little control over what happens on the ground, particularly at the Line of Control. Ironically, while Prime Ministers Manmohan Singh and Nawaz Sharif were shaking hands in New York, serious and sustained infiltration attempts were on at the 778-km-long LoC. By sending what the Indian Army calls a border action team — a mix of Pakistan Army regulars and jihadists from JeM, Lashkar, Al Badr and Hizbul Mujahideen — the Pakistan Army feels free to assist while trying to seek deniability. But despite seeing through this rather obvious ploy, India has to wage war on terror and seek peace through a dialogue simultaneously. But its belief that Mr Sharif can deliver on the goodwill he shows is getting shakier with every incident. The latest outrage, that entered the 10th day Thursday and is still continuing, comes at a particularly inopportune time while reflecting the fact that the Pakistan Prime Minister is yet to get on any sort of terms with his Army high command to be able to influence it in his quest for peace. Whether Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani retires or gets an extension, India will still need to be wary of the intentions of the Pakistan Army, which keeps negating its own government’s intentions with its brazen trysts with sponsored terror. The one hope would be if Mr Sharif finds his equilibrium quickly with his Army to be able to walk the talk on peace.
