India won't take first step to normalise ties, onus on Pakistan: Shashi Tharoor
Tired of too many ads?
Remove Ads
Tired of too many ads?
Remove Ads
India no longer has the appetite to take the first step in normalising ties with Pakistan after repeated betrayals, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said on Tuesday, urging Islamabad to demonstrate sincerity by dismantling terror networks operating from its soil.He was speaking at the launch of the book "Whither India-Pakistan Relations Today?", an anthology edited by former ambassador Surendra Kumar.The Thiruvananthapuram MP said every Indian attempt at outreach -- from Jawaharlal Nehru 's pact with Liaqat Ali Khan in 1950, to Atal Bihari Vajpayee's bus journey to Lahore in 1999, and Narendra Modi 's Lahore visit in 2015 -- had been "betrayed" by hostility from across the border."Given the record of Pakistani behaviour, the onus is on them. They're the ones who have to take the first steps to show some sincerity about dismantling terror infrastructure on their soil."Why can't they be serious about shutting down these terror camps? Everyone knows where they are. The UN committee has a list of 52 names of individuals, organisations and places in Pakistan. It's not that Pakistan doesn't know they exist," Tharoor said.He said, "Shut them down, arrest some of these characters, show some serious intent." India would be more than willing to reciprocate once such action is taken, but won't take the first step now, the Congress leader said.Recalling the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, Tharoor said India had provided "overwhelming evidence" of Pakistani involvement, including live intercepts and dossiers, yet "not one mastermind has been prosecuted".He noted that New Delhi showed "extraordinary restraint" after attacks, but subsequent provocations left India with little choice, leading to surgical strikes in 2016 and 'Operation Sindoor'."In my book Pax Indica, which was published in 2012, I had warned that if there was ever another Mumbai-like attack of comparable impact, with clear evidence of Pakistani complicity, the restraint we had shown in 2008 might become impossible and all bets would be off."And indeed, that is exactly what happened. No democratic government, least of all in India with its long record of betrayals by Pakistan, could sit idle while its neighbour assaults its civilians and innocent holidaymakers with impunity," he explained.Tharoor also stressed that "peace and tranquillity on the borders is indispensable to our national interest", and cited the reconciliation between France and Germany after World War II, as well as the United States' eventual ties with Vietnam, as examples of adversaries turning into partners.The discussion was also joined by former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal, former Indian ambassador to Pakistan T C A Raghavan, ex-Army chief general Deepak Kapoor and academician Amitabh Mattoo.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
21 minutes ago
- The Hindu
TDP and JD(U) support the Bills but express reservation about several ‘grey areas' in the legislations
Two key National Democratic Alliance partners, the Janata Dal (United) and Telugu Desam Party, expressed support for three Bills that seek to remove the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers and Ministers from office if they are 'arrested and detained in custody on account of serious criminal charges', while also underlining reservations about 'grey areas' in the legislations. The allies hoped their concerns would be addressed during scrutiny of the Bills in the Parliament's Joint Committee. Home Minister Amit Shah moved the constitutional amendment Bills in the Lok Sabha, along with a resolution to send them to the Parliament's Joint Committee. According to sources, the allies were neither informed nor consulted about these Bills, which were circulated late on Tuesday night to Lok Sabha members. Speaking to The Hindu, the TDP's Parliamentary Party leader Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu said that these legislations are in the right direction. Listing out the 'coal block allocation, 2G spectrum allocation, AgustaWestland Helicopter procurement and Adarsh Housing scams', Mr. Devarayalu said, 'The country has moved away from the United Progressive Alliance [UPA] era, when such cases made regular headlines. Since 2014, we haven't had such cases… we may not have perfected the system but we have definitely bettered it. No Chief Minister or Minister should run the administration from jail. These legislations are in the right direction.' At the same time, he said that legislation should not be 'misused'. 'There are grey areas that need to be addressed and the Bills should be studied at length, which we believe will be done at Parliament's Joint Committee. We have to ensure that it is not misused,' he said. Secretary General and spokesperson of Janata Dal (United) K.C. Tyagi said that the legislation is aimed to ensure probity in public life. 'This should be implemented without any bias,' he said. He also rejected the Congress's claim that these Bills will be used by the government to target its own allies like the JD(U). 'No corruption charge has ever been levelled against Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. I reject the Congress's claim that the Bills are aimed at us. They are aimed at the corrupt and there is nothing wrong with it,' he said. The government had moved three Bills — the Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill, 2025; the Constitution (One Hundred And Thirtieth Amendment) Bill, 2025; and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2025. The Bills propose the removal of the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers, and Ministers of the Centre and State governments if are arrested and detained in custody for 30 consecutive days for offences that attract a jail term of at least five years.
Hindustan Times
21 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Anatomy of the budding India-China bonhomie
Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi's just concluded visit to India and the agreement between the two sides on the India-China boundary question is an encouraging sign in mending the relationship between the two countries, which has been struggling to normalise since the border standoff in 2020. Wang Yi's visit to Delhi and the agreement outlining several measures to manage the contested border ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's planned trip to China for the annual Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit also reflect broader changes occurring in geopolitics. The India-China dynamics must also be read in conjunction with the engagement of the two countries with Russia. The three-way conversations involving Russia, India, and China are noteworthy as it is reflective of the broader regional geopolitical realignments in response to US policies towards them. In an ideal world, New Delhi would prefer to see Chinese power balanced by the US and/or Russia. (AFP) External affairs minister S Jaishankar is now in Russia. For both India and China (as also for Russia), the three-way conversations present an excellent opportunity to signal to Washington that there are possibilities of alternative global blocs and realignments outside of Washington's orbit and influence. What is perhaps more important and consequential are the underlying causes behind the current bonhomie between India and China. Beyond the optics, it is also evident that both India and China are eager to achieve a degree of normalcy in their relationship. The statement from the ministry of external affairs on the outcomes of Wang's India visit testifies to that. It is, therefore, possible to argue that there is a convergence between New Delhi and Beijing on the need to normalise bilateral relations. However, their respective definitions of normalcy are different. For China, normalcy means moving on from the current border impasse with India and focussing on the global balance of power. As Wang said, 'We (India and China) should never allow bilateral relations to be defined by the boundary question or specific differences to affect the overall picture of our bilateral ties.' Without normalcy with India, China knows that it will not be in a position to leverage Indian unhappiness with US President Donald Trump for its own larger geopolitical purposes. In other words, China seeks to exploit the current opportunity to challenge the US's global supremacy, and for that purpose, normalcy with India would be helpful. But the question is whether Beijing is willing to engage in sustained give-and-take negotiations with New Delhi to settle the border issue. For New Delhi, normalcy with China is centred on disengagement at the border so that it can focus on the larger geopolitical questions of India-China relations, India-China-Russia dynamics, and so on. For India, normalcy on the border and status quo ante bellum as of 2020 is key. China's global objectives behind the current warmth towards India should not be missed. Wang stated recently that 'as important members of the Global South, we have the responsibility to take the lead in opposing hegemonism and power politics'. There is little doubt that China would want to use India and Russia, and the Global South, to target the US-led world order. However, let's be clear. If Trump offers a G-2 with China, Beijing is likely to settle for it, sacrificing its secondary geopolitical equations. A similar logic extends to Russia as well. Moscow would vociferously promote the virtues of an alternative world order outside of the US orbit, but what it wants is to be recognised and treated by Washington and Europe as a great power and be accommodated within the European balance of power system, rather than being part of a China-led global order. As for India, it will continue to emphasise the importance of the Global South, multipolarity, and global alternatives, but New Delhi is not comfortable being part of a China-led, Russia-backed, non-American world order. If India is accommodated into a US-led world order as an important stakeholder, New Delhi is likely to accept that. In an ideal world, New Delhi would prefer to see Chinese power balanced by the US and/or Russia. However, since these options are not currently available, it is inclined to settle for underbalancing China, given its lack of capacity to balance Beijing on its own. In that sense, the three countries – India, China, and Russia – are hedging against geopolitical uncertainties and opting for their respective second-best options. This essential geopolitical dynamic should not be lost on our policymakers. In the meantime, and notwithstanding the deep mistrust between the two countries, India needs to engage with China for two key reasons. For India, conflict management with China is a key issue, as the fundamental contradictions in the relationship are unlikely to disappear soon. Therefore, it is essential to establish and strengthen confidence-building measures (CBMs) to manage Sino-Indian tensions. In that sense, the recent agreements are in the right direction. A no less important reason for India to engage with China on a sustained basis is that managing the relationship with Beijing — its rise as a global power and ambitions for superpower status, aggressive pursuit of its territorial ambitions, and attempts at unipolarity in Asia — is going to be India's most crucial task for the next several decades. From that perspective alone, New Delhi will need to engage productively with Beijing. Happymon Jacob is the founder and director of the Council for Strategic and Defense Research and the editor of INDIA'S WORLD magazine. The views expressed are personal
The Hindu
21 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Cotton farmers condemn removal of import duty, call it a disastrous setback
The Andhra Pradesh Tenant Farmers Association slammed the Union government's decision to remove the 11% import duty on cotton, calling it a 'severe blow' to India's cotton growers. In a press release on Wednesday (August 20), association State general secretary P. Jamalayya and president E. Katamayyah said the Union government scrapped the import duty on cotton, effective from August 19, and it will remain in force until September 30. The government claimed the decision was taken in the interest of the public and agricultural infrastructure development. Farmers' unions, however, dismissed this reasoning as 'false and misleading.' They feared that scrapping import duties would depress domestic cotton prices, allowing importers and traders to stockpile cheap foreign cotton and manipulate markets when the Indian harvest begins in October. 'This will directly hurt small and marginal tenant farmers, pushing them into deeper debt and triggering more farmer suicides,' they felt. They pointed out that the MSP announced for cotton this year is ₹7,710 a quintal, far below the ₹10,075 a quintal recommended under the C2+50% formula. In Andhra Pradesh alone, cotton is grown on nearly 15 lakh acres, meaning lakhs of agricultural families would be severely affected, they said and urged the Centre to restore import duties, guarantee MSP at C2+50%, and ensure that the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) purchases cotton to protect domestic farmers.
