There is a negative view of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Pakistan, according to Awais Khan Leghari, Member of Pakistan’s National Assembly.
“What else can you expect when our Prime Minister is speaking at SAARC and the Indian Prime Minister is looking at a brochure,” Mr. Leghari told The-Hindu here on Friday.
Mr. Leghari is leading a 12-member Pakistani Parliamentary delegation to India for the sixth round of Pakistan-India Parliamentary Dialogue, an initiative by the Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency, being held here.
The Dialogue was co-chaired by Mr. Leghari, from the Pakistani side and Mr. Mani Shankar Aiyar, senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha member, from India. The Indian side had 25 participants.
‘Something wrong on Indian side’ Responding to questions, Mr. Leghari said there was something wrong on the Indian side with respect to talks. “Nawaz Sharif has always been ready to talk. Talks for talks are necessary,” he said.
“We have a strong appetite for improving relations and peace, but talks are not a concession from Pakistan. Talk if you want to or else the whole region will suffer.”
Mr. Leghari said he was surprised that Mr. Modi’s no-talks stance had found resonance among the articulate section of the Indian society. He felt there was a degradation in relations between the two countries since Mr. Modi came to power.
Briefing journalists, Mr. Aiyar said: “We had two productive days of interactions between the two sides. The talks come at a time when our relations are at their lowest. I would like to highlight that the dialogue was brutal and candid in terms of expressing views.”
