This refers to the editorial, “Janus-faced Pakistan” (August 19). One needs to understand Pakistan's raison d'être to comprehend its attitude towards India. Pakistan exists for, and indeed boosts itself by, launching an anti-India rhetoric and waging a covert war against India.
The anti-India theory, kept alive by the Pakistani establishment and the Army, is a handy tool to bring in a semblance of unity and cohesiveness to a nation which is battling trouble in its own backyard. It serves Pakistan well to keep provoking India, in a bid to deflect the people's attention from the former’s domestic woes.
New Delhi must redefine its relations and foreign policies vis-a-vis Islamabad on the basis of ground realities. It is for the Government of this country to send out a firm message that India's rectitude should not be read as cowardice. No purpose is served by engaging in an artificial relationship which is based on platitudes and promises which are never honoured.