Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit's comments on 8 April on the present state of India-Pakistan relations only confirms that the country's army is not invested in peace with India. The generals have sent many clear and public signals themselves. The last was as recently as 29 March by the Director-General of the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) Lt. Gen. Asim Bajwa.
His message was directly addressed to India's National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. Now Basit has gone on record to contradict the Indian stand on the Pathankot investigations, the salience of terror in the bilateral interaction and on Masood Azhar.
It is curious that the Indian authorities have sought to create an impression that Basit has spoken out of turn and has differed from the views expressed by the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman on the status of the Comprehensive Bilateral Dialogue, announced during External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj's visit to Islamabad in December last year.
It would be best to take Basit'€™s views as authoritative for he is an experienced diplomat who is not new in his Delhi assignment. He has clearly and bluntly articulated the prevailing view in Islamabad especially of those who matter, especially the generals.
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