Osama dead: Growing opinion against Pakistan should not hinder Indo-Pak engagement - Government

NEW DELHI: The capture and killing of Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad may have reinforced the belief that Pakistan has been maintaining dreaded terrorists in its inventory, but it will not come in the way of the Indo-Pak engagement planned by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Although the government leadership acknowledged the public mood for tough action against Pakistan, they said India cannot afford to overlook the fact that even the US considers an unreliable Pakistan more preferable than a hostile state.

According to a source, foreign policy is not wish fulfillment. Pakistan in not a pushover and there is a reasonable, sober way of dealing with neighbour. That India would not like the growing opinion against Pakistan to derail the engagement process was clear when the source said that it was easy to be hawkish about Pakistan but bringing it on its knees was not a good idea for India.

The anxiety to stay engaged with Pakistan saw the government displaying a willingness to buy into Pakistan Army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani's claim that his force was determined to "break the backbone" of terrorists. This claim, incidentally, has no takers on Capitol Hill, which has been bankrolling Pakistan's so-called war against terrorism.

Though India's efforts will be on reducing contentiousness in Indo-Pak relations through dialogue, sources said they will put as "passionately" the concerns over terrorism as ever. They said this will include punishment for all those responsible for the Mumbai terror attacks.

On Pakistan Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir's remarks that the demand for justice for 26/11 was outdated, sources said that it was not a "serious statement".

Commenting on the situation in Afghanistan, the source reiterated India's position of inclusive transition and no dilution of 'red lines' on reintegration and reconciliation of Taliban and said that the concerns over reconciliation remains valid.

It would be wrong to assume that there would be faster withdrawal of the US and other forces from Afghanistan, as a result of Osama's elimination.

Nobody who is committed to Afghanistan would want a precipitous withdrawal of coalition forces, according to the source, who added that the writing on the wall did not indicate cut and run strategy by Western forces.

Asserting that elimination of bin Laden does not mean end of jihadi mindset, sources said Afghanistan cannot be left to fend for itself. The source also maintained that there was a very thin line dividing terror groups like al-Qaeda, which has already been dispersed in several affiliated groups, and JeM and JuD as their ideologies were fused.