#dnaEdit: Informal gesture

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made it known from the day he assumed office in May, 2014, that he wants to do things differently. This became apparent when he invited the leaders of the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) for the swearing-in ceremony. It was a grand gesture at the time and it was not clear then that it would lead to improvements in India’s relations with the neighbouring countries. He has done it again on Friday when he decided to stop over at Lahore to meet Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. There was a personal touch to the gesture. It was Sharif’s birthday. Modi was there more as a personal, rather than a state, guest in Pakistan. He has meant it to be that way. 

This is something that has not happened at the level of heads of government. It is for this reason alone that what has happened between Modi and Sharif is momentous. It is sure to catalyse bilateral relations because of the atmospherics the visit has created. But it has to be clearly understood that the Modi-Sharif rapport does not mean that the persisting differences and problems between the two countries will be resolved. They will not. But what Modi’s gesture would suggest is that it is not necessary to go through rigid formalities to be able to talk to neighbours and rivals. This is indeed the norm of diplomatic meetings between national leaders across the world. 

Modi has just brought Indian diplomacy abreast of the times. His move looks radical, even a bit bohemian, when looked at from the old, crusty diplomatic standpoint.

Indian media and foreign policy experts are stumped by this apparently unpremeditated visit. Through Friday evening television news channels had been talking about the outcomes of this visit. There are expectations that it would take India-Pakistan relations to a higher plane, and there are others who are flustered and who are dismissing the whole thing as adventurism of a novitiate.

It is not necessary to delve into the anxieties and desires of the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) prime minister to mend fences with the generally right-wing political class of Pakistan. Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee too made valiant attempts for a breakthrough in bilateral relations. The BJP’s Pakistan policy is fertile ground for political psychoanalysts. But it does not yield any great political insights.

There is no doubt that Modi and his National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval are quite keen to come to terms with Pakistan, the arch-rival. Both Prime Minister and the NSA are grappling with the thorny issue of India-Pakistan relations, and they want to find some sort of a big solution. This would indeed be a folly because there cannot be big solutions. The Jammu and Kashmir question cannot be sorted out, though that is the biggest dream of both the hawks and doves on both sides. The reality is that the issue of J&K will be on the negotiating table for a long time to come. Therefore, the success of India-Pakistan relations cannot be tested on the J&K touchstone. 

The other big question is that of Islamic terrorism. There is no single solution to this question as well. Modi’s informal visit to Lahore should be seen for what it is — informal.  The visit cannot be treated as a talisman which would dissolve all the prickly issues that bedevil India-Pakistan relations.