The healing touch provided by the feel-good diplomacy for the return of Geeta from Pakistan has evaporated with the cancellation of the Delhi concert by Ghazal maestro Ghulam Ali. While the Ministry of External Affairs refuses to acknowledge any setback to India-Pakistan people-to-people relationship, the Pakistani civil society figures think otherwise.
Speaking to The Hindu , Najam Sethi, former chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), said that the people of Pakistan had been surprised by the strain of intolerance visible in contemporary India. He said Pakistani artistes and creative individuals had noted that fringe elements in India were committing acts that outraged the public while people in power extended support to the elements. “This tacit support from influential sections in India for the fringe elements has created an impression among the Pakistani people, which can be removed if the government of India clearly states its position on hate crimes and what it thinks of democratic dissent,” said Mr. Sethi.
“Cricket and cultural events are the two most significant people-to-people platforms that should not be blocked. But while cultural events are being blocked by the fringe elements, the India-Pak cricket series which was planned for December is being blocked by the Indian government,” said Mr. Sethi. Blocking the cricket series, Mr. Sethi said, showed that the Indian government did not want big ticket people-to-people contacts to take place, despite the fact that such contacts were urgently needed to keep channels of communication open.
Agreeing with Mr. Sethi, Amir Ghulam Ali, son of the ghazal maestro, said the political atmosphere of intolerance in India was the main factor that forced Ghulam Ali to cancel his trip to India. Pakistani civil society figures said the mention of Pakistan in the course of the polarising election campaign in Bihar had also shown that leading figures in the governing party of India believed in whipping up anti-Pakistan passion when it suited them. “As artistes and writers, our visits to India and the visits by Indian artistes to Pakistan have been important factors in our creative process, which has been spared by the political masters of India and Pakistan, Amir Ghulam Ali told The Hindu .
However, former Indian foreign secretary and current chairman of the Research and Information System (RIS), Shyam Saran said the present government of India, like the previous governments, understood the utility of people-to-people contact in India-Pakistan diplomacy. But the real issue was the perception of India beyond its borders, which was preventing the Pakistani people from having meaningful exchanges with their Indian counterparts.
