Announces release of Pak fishermen; Nawaz calls for overcoming differences. PHOTO: AFP
ISLAMABAD:
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday telephoned Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to convey his greetings on the advent of the Islamic holy month of Ramazan amid ongoing tensions triggered by a verbal duel between politicians from the two hyphenated but hostile neighbours.
The conversation, which according to the prime minister’s office lasted for five minutes, is seen as significant against the backdrop of the current verbal spat between Pakistan and India. According to an official statement, Modi informed his Pakistani counterpart that his country was releasing Pakistani fishermen as a ‘goodwill gesture’ on the eve of Ramazan.
“The fishermen released will be able to be with their families to observe this blessed month (Ramazan),” Modi said on micro-blogging website Twitter. He also spoke to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to greet them on the start of Ramazan.
The Indian leader said his country wanted ‘good ties’ with Pakistan. Nawaz, on his part, stressed that Islamabad and New Delhi should strive for peace by overcoming their differences. “We must avoid warmongering and as neighbours should live peacefully by not allowing our mutual differences to become hurdle in our relations,” he told Modi.
Premier Nawaz also said that statesmen were like ‘heads of family’ who always helped their nations to stay away from fighting and lead them towards peace.
Nawaz’s remarks suggest that despite rising tensions, the Pakistani government is still keen to de-escalate the situation. It is, however, unclear whether the brief telephone conversation between the two prime ministers may help cease the current hostilities.
Relations between the two countries have deteriorated in recent weeks after Indian political leadership launched an unprecedented campaign against Pakistan ranging from Modi’s admission of his country’s role in the events of 1971 to his cabinet members’ threats of ‘surgical strikes’ in Pakistan and ‘neutralising terrorists through terrorists’.
Modi offers Pakistan help against polio
The India prime minister separately offered his country’s help to Pakistan in its fight against the crippling poliovirus.
“Just as India had successfully battled polio, it could also share its knowledge with Pakistan to eradicate the crippling disease,” Modi told an audience in New Delhi during the launch of a book, Education of Muslims, by historian JS Rajput and India Islamic Culture Centre President Sirajuddin Qureshi.
India moved out of the World Health Organisation’s list of polio endemic countries in 2011. Reaching out to the Muslim world, avowed Hindu nationalist Modi praised Islam for underscoring the importance of education, according to The Times of India. “The Holy Quran mentions the word ilm [knowledge] 800 times. It is among the most repeated words after Allah. This is the importance of knowledge in the religion of Islam,” Modi said.
The audience at the event comprised the high commissioners of countries from the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) as well as diplomats from Muslim states such as Qatar, Bahrain, Egypt and Indonesia.
During the launch, Modi also conveyed good wishes to the guests for the month of Ramazan which is to start in a couple of days. Mod’s outreach has been limited to meeting community members and religious clerics. The launch was the first meeting where Modi hosted envoys of Muslim countries. In his address, Modi also emphasised the importance of keeping abreast of contemporary developments, saying, “No community or religion can ignore modernity. If we do not embrace modernity, the world will move ahead and we will be left behind.”
Published in The Express Tribune, June 17th, 2015.
COMMENTS (2)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ