Surprise Pakistan visit: BJP relishes PM Narendra Modi’s ‘unconventional’ steps

NEW DELHI: BJP’s perceived hawkish position on talks with Pakistan apart, PM Modi’s "unconventional" approaches to break the ice in ties with Pakistan has got the ruling BJP to temper its temptation of euphoria on every occasion with a restrained sense of achievement for each step at a time to provide necessary political elbowroom for engagement with Islamabad.

"Unconventional actions are needed to defreeze the ice. As our former party president Venkaiah Naidu used to say ‘strong leader, confident India’, this is an example. When country has confidence and leadership is bold this kind of step is taken," confided a senior BJP leader about the step taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"If we have good relationship with the leaders of neighbouring countries, we can expect to have congenial atmosphere to seek solutions for difficult issues," BJP general secretary Ram Madhav told ET about PM Modi’s meeting with Nawaz Sharif in Lahore on latter’s birthday.

"This is a spontaneous move," a Cabinet minister confided to ET when queried whether the prime minister indicated his visit to Pakistan in the last Cabinet meeting on Tuesday when revised expenditure was approved for Salma Dam project in Afghanistan ahead of his scheduled visit to Kabul.

"This has come as a pleasant surprise that shows innovative diplomacy of PM Modi to think out of box," BJP spokesman Sudhanshu Trivedi said.