Not just Pakistan’s National Day celebrations in Delhi, India skipped Pakistan FM’s iftar dinner too

Not just Pakistan’s National Day celebrations in Delhi, India skipped Pakistan FM’s iftar dinner too

New Delhi: It was not just Pakistan’s National Day commemoration at the High Commission here that India skipped Thursday, but also an iftar dinner hosted by the country’s new foreign minister Ishaq Dar in Islamabad.

Diplomatic sources said Pakistan had extended invitations to Indian diplomats for both events but no one showed up.

Government sources here told ThePrint that India, as a policy, had decided not to attend Pakistan National Day celebrations since 2019 after the Pulwama attack, which it responded to with the Balakot strike.

Sources said India has been very clear that there cannot be any engagement with a country which supports terrorism against it. However, last year, Indian diplomats reportedly attended an iftar dinner hosted by then foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.

The Pakistan High Commission hosted a dinner as part of its National Day celebrations in Delhi Thursday, the first such public event in four years. The reception was hosted by Charge d’ Affaires Saad Ahmad Warraich.

A day before, Dar hosted an “interfaith” iftar dinner at the Pakistan Foreign Office in Islamabad. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif participated in the event as the chief guest.

However, no diplomat from the Indian Embassy in Islamabad participated.

India and Pakistan downgraded relations in August 2019 when the latter took issue with the Narendra Modi government’s decision to scrap the special status to Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 of the Indian Constitution.

‘Ball in Pakistan’s court’ 

Diplomatic sources said the Pakistani side sent a formal invite to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to attend Thursday’s dinner.

During the reception, Saad Ahmad Warraich pitched for amicable relations between the two countries. “A cycle of perpetual conflict and tensions is not our ordained destiny. We can emerge from the shadow of the past and script a future of hope for our two peoples based on peaceful coexistence, sovereign equality and mutual respect,” he said in his address.

He added that regional peace and stability can be achieved by enhancing mutual understanding, addressing shared concerns and resolving long-standing disputes, including the Kashmir issue.

Asked about Warraich’s comments, government sources said it was “ironic” that a country which has indulged in a “cycle of perpetual conflict and terrorism against India was talking about forgetting the past”.

“India is very clear. Terrorism and talks cannot go hand in hand. The ball is in Pakistan’s court to ensure that steps are taken in the right direction,” a source said.

Guests at the iftar event in Delhi were served traditional Pakistani cuisine and shown documentaries about the country’s art and culture.

(Edited by Tikli Basu)