Modi is fourth Indian PM to visit Pakistan

LAHORE: Narendra Modi became the fourth Indian Prime Minister to visit Pakistan in over 62 years since July 25, 1953, when Jawaharlal Nehru had landed at Karachi to hold talks with his Ayub Khan the CMLA of Pakistan.

Prime Minister Modi’s brief yet historic stop-over at Lahore came about 19 months after Nawaz Sharif had visited New Delhi on May 26, 2014 to attend the swearing ceremony of the then newly-elected Narendra Modi.

Modi’s visit has come exactly 11 years, 11 months and 20 odd days after Atal Bihari Vajpayee had visited Pakistan between January 4 and 6, 2004. Narendra Modi also became the first-ever Indian or Pakistani ruler to have visited each other’s personal residence.

By the way, December 25 had marked the 139th birthday of the founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah, 66th birthday of Pakistani Premier Nawaz Sharif and 91st birthday of a former Indian head of government Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Jawaharlal Nehru’s July 25 to 27, 1953 visit was dubbed the first serious effort by the two countries to settle all disputes, including Kashmir. Despite the bitter 1947 partition and the 1948 standoff in Kashmir, this state visit was given a lot of importance by media houses on both sides of the border.

Reciprocating the gesture, the then Pakistani Governor General Ghulam Muhammad was the first guest invited on January 26, 1955 for the Indian Republic Day parade at New Delhi.

Ghulam Mohammed was greeted by the Indian President, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Vice-President Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, Prime Minister Nehru and Pakistan High Commissioner, Raja Ghazanfar Ali Khan at New Delhi Airport.

A top Indian newspaper “The Hindu” had reported: “In New Delhi: President, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, and Pakistan’s Governor-General, Mr. Ghulam Mohammed, watched a march-past by troops, workers and school children. The Indian President took the salute at the parade, made up of nearly 400 service personnel and a number of vehicles. Hundreds of people from all walks of life witnessed the biggest ever ceremonial military parade and cultural pageant.”

It had added: “Among the distinguished visitors from Pakistan, besides the Governor General, who watched the parade, were Dr. Khan Sahib, Minister for Communications, and Major-General Iskander Mirza, Minister for Interior.”

This is what Ghulam Mohammed had told reporters in his arrival statement on January 25, 1955: “ I have come here not as a politician, but as the Head of a State bringing peace and goodwill with which any problem can be solved and I have more faith in Mr. Nehru than you have.”

Jawaharlal Nehru had again visited Pakistan between September 19 and 23, 1960 to sign the Indus Water Treaty, which has since stood the test of time. Nehru visited Karachi, Murree, Nathiagali, Rawalpindi and Lahore, and was received by huge crowds.

After 28 years, between December 29 and 31, 1988, Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi had landed at Islamabad to attend the fourth Saarc Summit. His visit came within months of the first democratically elected government in Pakistan in over a decade headed by Benazir Bhutto. The two signed three bilateral agreements - banning attacks on each other’s nuclear installations and improving cultural cooperation etc.

On July 16, 1989, Rajiv Gandhi was again in Islamabad for two days, though his visit had delivered little with both Gandhi and Bhutto embattled by pressures of domestic politics.

On February 19-20, 1999, Premier Atal Bihari Vajpayee had travelled to Lahore on the inaugural Lahore-Delhi bus service and walked across the border to be received by his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif. However, the promise of Lahore Declaration had vanished within months with a military takeover in Pakistan and the Kargil war.

Between January 4 and 6, 2004, Atal Bihari Vajpayee was again in Pakistan to attend the 12th Saarc Summit held in Islamabad.

The visit had consolidated the composite dialogue that the succeeding Manmohan Singh-led government had pursued with some intent until it was severed after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks in 2008.

(References: The July 11, 2015 edition of a reputed Indian media house “The Business Standard” and the documents of the Indian External Affairs Ministry)

The then Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf had visited India between July 14 and 16, 2001 to attend the historic Agra Summit. The talks and peace process, however, collapsed and no signatures were attained for the Agra treaty.

Despite the failure of the talks, General Pervez Musharraf joined Vajpayee to call on the two countries to bury their past.

President General Pervez Musharraf had again toured India on April 16, 2005 for three days.

President Musharraf called for a substantive dialogue on all issues.

Speaking at a banquet hosted by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Delhi, President Musharraf had said: “People’s wishes and aspirations have overtaken their leaders and their governments. Therefore, I think the peace process is irreversible.”

(Reference: The April 16, 2005 edition of the BBC News)

Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani had travelled to Mohali on March 29, 2011 to witness the Pak-India World Cup 2011 semi-final match.

President Asif Zardari was in India on April 8, 2012.

Though originally mooted as a personal religious pilgrimage to the shrine of revered saint Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti (RA) in Ajmer, Zardari’s trip had raised hopes that the long chill in relations between the two south Asian states could be close to ending.

Prestigious British daily “The Guardian” had reported on April 8, 2012: “Zardari had arrived amid heavy security with more than 40 others – including his 23-year-old son and apparent political heir, Bilawal Zardari Bhutto – and travelled almost immediately to a personal meeting with the Indian prime minister, Manmohan Singh.”

In March 2009, General (R) Pervez Musharraf had visited India on a personal visit while he was not in power, and had received a standing ovation from the combative crowd in New Delhi, where he had asked the Indian audience to treat his home country with the same respect shown to other sovereign nations.

“We have done enough damage to each other,” he told a conference hosted by the news magazine India Today. “We should try for peace now, with equal zeal that we had confronting each other.”

During his 2009 visit, Musharraf had said there was plenty of evidence to show India’s spy service (the Research and Analysis Wing or RAW), had helped anti-government fighters in Pakistan.

“Your RAW does exactly to us what our ISI does to you,” Musharraf was quoted as saying.

(Reference: The March 9, 2009 edition of the Wall Street Journal)