New Delhi: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday pointed out that India is open to engaging in dialogue with Pakistan if Islamabad takes concrete and visible action to dismantle the terrorist infrastructure thriving within its territory. Tharoor, who is heading a parliamentary delegation to Brazil to emphasise India’s stance on terrorism in the wake of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, added that the problem in holding talks with Pakistan isn’t a common language but finding a “common vision for decency and peace”.
Tharoor said: “This is what we keep telling our interlocutors. If Pakistan is as innocent as they claim to be, why do they give safe haven to wanted terrorists?… Why are they able to live peacefully, to conduct training camps…and radicalise further people, to equip arms and get people to practice their arms and Kalashnikovs…”
He stressed that Pakistan should take concrete action against terrorism and then India can talk. “You crack down on this infrastructure of terrorism that is visible everywhere in your country. Then, of course, we can talk,” he underlined.
Tharoor said: “We can talk to them in Hindustani. We can talk to them in Punjabi. We can talk to them in English. There is no problem in finding common ground with Pakistan. The problem is finding a common vision for decency, for peace. We want to be left in peace, to grow and develop. They don’t want to leave us alone. They want to harass us. They want to undermine us.”
He added: “They want to cut us this whole bleeding to death India by 1,000 cuts. They’re not going to bleed to death so easily. Better forget that idea.”
‘I don’t like to boast of success’
After Operation Sindoor, India has stoutly conveyed to Pakistan that any future talks could only focus on terrorism and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, not on Jammu and Kashmir.
When asked whether countries have been acknowledging India’s stance against terrorism, Tharoor said his delegation has been to four nations — Guyana, Panama, Colombia and Brazil — so far and “this has been very clear in all the countries we’ve been to”.
“And I would say in all four countries, we’ve had very clear success, if that’s the word, I don’t like to boast of success. That’s for others to judge. But we have got our message through very clearly, including to those who may have had some misunderstandings,” he said, referring to Colombia.
