Partition of India & Pakistan: A Move Forward or Backwards?

By Nitika Bubna

Only a few decades ago, there was no Pakistan.  The territories of an undivided India nestled within it a land which the British, in pursuance of their policy of divide and rule, partitioned and created what is now called Pakistan. Inevitably, ever since Pakistan’s inception, territorial disputes have continued to plague relations between both of these countries. The lingering hostility and doubt that mars their relationship makes it hard to sustain the common historical, cultural, geographical, and economic links that they share.

Despite the haunting shadows of conflict, three major wars in merely 67 years of existence, (Tribune.com.pk, 2011) both India and Pakistan have made several attempts towards improving their relationship, even if it is just “to a point where they can talk.” (Tribune.com.pk, 2011) In the past, substantive and forthcoming talks had been established; however, serious border clashes in a disputed Kashmir and the terror attacks of 26/11 added major setbacks to any successful implementation of stability.

Recently, Pakistan put forward a proposal to resume peace talks with India, promising to refine ties. While this was the first discussion between the two countries since the election of the Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, many thought that it could potentially also be the last one, generating much-anticipated concord and harmony.

As citizens hoped and dreamed, militants attacked, stormed and killed in Indian-administered Kashmir. All this, even before the confidence-building meeting between the two countries could take place. Unavoidably, this had an impact on people’s attitudes towards the upcoming peace talks and it immediately generated mixed views over India’s decision not to cancel the peace talks.

The fragile peace between the two nuclear-armed neighbors has been challenged once again with the recent LoC violations.  The Indian military has openly accused Pakistan of the recent militant infiltration and declared it as the “epicentre of terrorism in South Asia.” (Aljazeera.com, 2013)

Regardless of these attacks, India continued to maintain its anti-aggressive policy towards Pakistan, which was clearly reflected in the Indian Minister of External Affairs’ statement that India has to, “show some perseverance, some patience and some fortitude” in order to ensure that it does not “play into the hands of the forces that want to create trouble.” (The Times of India, 2013) Conversely, the ruling Congress Party’s ability to conform to the peace processes remains precarious, especially owing to the growing anti-Pakistan sentiment amongst the common people.

The Pakistani Prime Minister described the meeting on the 29^th as a “new beginning” (Aljazeera.com, 2013) with India. During the meeting, he also made a claim to take action against the fighters who were responsible for the Mumbai attacks, which can be seen as a necessary step for stability between the two countries. Furthermore, the meeting could be viewed as a much-needed breakthrough and could help move cooperation between the two nations forward; as despite the adverse political atmosphere, “many routine things”(Tribune.com.pk, 2013) were still continuing the two countries.

It seems to remain eternally unknown if peace talks would ever lead to the normalization of ties between the two neighbors. Its possibility, however, remains intrinsically linked to the dynamics of national politics, the ascendancy of the hardliners in each country, and what appears to be a deliberate wait-and-watch strategy on the part of the leadership in both India and Pakistan.