India-Pakistan peace process goes for a toss, Congress seeking an 'eye for an eye' approach

NEW DELHI: The brutal killing of two Indian soldiers and the mutilation of their bodies close to the border have put Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s policy to foster peace with Pakistan on a slippery slope, with the ruling Congress seeking an “eye for an eye” approach towards the hostile neighbour. That the India-Pakistan peace process had hit a wall was evident on Wednesday evening when the Congress appeared to have concluded that that a tough stance alone could insulate it from the outrage over the incident.


“This should be the last time that we register our protest with Islamabad. We should tell them that our patience has worn out,” Congress spokesman Rashid Alvi said, advocating an escalation from the familiar litany of protests from the Indian side over such incidents. “Wafa karoge, wafa karenge; jafa karoge, jafa karenge.

Hum aadmi hain tumhari tarah, joh tum karoge, woh hum karenge,” Alvi said in Urdu, which loosely translates as an inevitable tit-for-tat approach. The prime minister, therefore, looks set to face pressure from within the party not to broaden the scope of engagement with Pakistan.

Alvi’s comments came shortly after BJP upped the ante and told the prime minister that his policy on Pakistan could not continue to be reality-challenged. “Pakistan has broken the red line. Our response must go beyond mere words and strong steps should be taken to put an end to beastly actions by the neighbour. Pakistan can be named and shamed for this brutal attack,” BJP leader Arun Jaitley said. Alvi echoed the national sentiment when he said, “Pakistan’s home minister had visited India recently. Their cricket team came here.

They were looked after well by us. But this is how they have repaid our hospitality.” Congress’ anxiety to dispel any impression of a soft approach was evident right from the morning when defence minister AK Antony said the government had evidence to prove that the “inhuman act” against the soldiers was carried out by Pak army personnel. But the foreign policy establishment attempted to steered clear of commenting on the peace process.

“Whatever has happened should not be escalated. We cannot and must not allow for an escalation of a very unwholesome event that has taken place,” external affairs minister Salman Khurshid said after the foreign office summoned Pakistan high commissioner Salman Bashir to lodge a protest. But Pakistan stayed firmly in the familiar denial mode. Pakistan foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar, who denied any role of her country’s army in the attack, said Islamabad was prepared for an investigation by the UN military observer group. “We are a responsible country, a mature country, we must not all go back to having a go at each other". Khar said in a television interview.