A rare thing

Over the weekend India once again started firingacross the Line of Control, naturally provoking aresponse from Pakistani troops. There was also an‘attack’ on an Indian army camp in Kashmir which killedone Border Security Force officer. Even the avian divisionof Indian law enforcement swung into action and detaineda pigeon which, according to reports, they claimwas sent by the Lashkar-e-Taiba with a threatening noteto Narendra Modi. Modi himself was in typically belligerentform, one again insisting that his country had carriedout surgical strikes across the border rather than randomlyfiring and taking pride in these supposed strikes.In the same breath, Modi also declared that India hasnever attacked anyone and is not hungry for any territory,an assertion that millions of Kashmiris will scoff at.In Pakistan, there was a long overdue show of unityas Nawaz Sharif chaired an All-Parties Conference attendedby the heads of all major political parties – withthe notable exception of Imran Khan. They agreed on theneed for national unity and condemned Indian aggressionand, for once, there seemed to be unanimity across thepolitical spectrum, with even the routinely oppositionalPTI having no critical words. The meeting agreed to thesingle-point agenda to send a message to the world tocondemn Indian aggression on the Line of Control andoccupied Kashmir, and the government decided to set upa National Security Council on Kashmir. Still, it can besaid that such a demonstration should first have come inthe form of a public joint sitting of parliament rather thana closed-door APC. What was encouraging was the attitudeof the PPP leadership which, while critical of thegovernment over the Panama Papers leaks and its failureto appoint a foreign minister, called for unity over theKashmir issue. The APC was meant to show the Pakistanipublic that political parties can put aside differences inthe face of an external threat. But for them to succeed inthat aim, this rare moment of political unity will have tolast beyond just one meeting.