ISLAMABAD – The peace process with India is likely to gain pace under the Nawaz Sharif government, says the Foreign Office. “We hope that the dialogue process would pick up momentum in all areas,” Foreign Office spokesman Aizaz Chaudhry said at the weekly media briefing.
The peace process has been on a virtual hold since the violations of the Line of Control in Kashmir at the start of this year. Tensions resurfaced when Indian prisoner Sarbjit Singh died after an attack by inmates in a Lahore jail and a Pakistani prisoner Sanaullah Ranjay was fatally beaten in Jammu jail. Another Pakistani Abdul Jabbar was injured in an attack at Tihar prison.
Chaudhry said Pakistan had always emphasised on the continuity of the peace talks so that the outstanding issues could be resolved.
The peace process has remained accident prone and there have been numerous starts and stops, which impeded progress towards normalisation of ties between the two countries.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, while congratulating PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif on the victory of his party in the May 11 elections, had expressed the hope to work with him to “chart a new course and pursue a new destiny in the relations between our countries”. Singh also invited Sharif to visit India at “a mutually convenient time”.
The PML-N chief, who is set to become the next prime minister, also extended an invitation to the Indian leader to visit Pakistan.
