The forthcoming annual conference of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association being held in Islamabad has fallen prey to the tense relationship between India and Pakistan.
New Delhi has taken umbrage at Pakistan’s decision not to extend an invitation to the Jammu and Kashmir assembly Speaker for the conference on the ground that the state is disputed territory. However, the Ministry of External Affairs is yet to firm up its response to Pakistan’s decision.
The Speakers of the other state assemblies as well as Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan have been extended an invitation for the nine-day conference to be held from September 30.
Confirming that he had not received an invitation, Jammu and Kashmir Speaker Kavinder Gupta recently told Greater Kashmir: “Pakistan has refused to my participation in the conference saying the Speaker of J&K Legislative Assembly can’t be part of the conference (in Pakistan) as per UN resolutions.”
Deciding a response
The London-based 53-member CPA organises this annual conference in different Commonwealth countries. This is the first time that Pakistan is hosting the event. The Speakers of all the national Parliaments and the presiding officers of the state legislatures of Commonwealth countries are normally invited to participate in the deliberations.
However, first-time hosts of this year’s conference have chosen to deviate from this practice. Pakistan has taken a deliberate decision not to invite the Jammu and Kashmir Speaker ironically when the theme of the coming meet is to renew commitment to pluralism and inclusive democracy in Commonwealth nations.
While she is still waiting to hear from the Ministry of External Affairs on this issue, the Lok Sabha Speaker has called a meeting of the presiding officers of all state legislatures on Friday to ascertain their views on the various options they can exercise, including a possible boycott. According to officials in the Lok Sabha secretariat, the upcoming CPA annual conference constitutes the single-point agenda of this meeting.
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance will have to take a considered view on this issue. The CPA conference is being held at a time when relations between New Delhi and Islamabad have taken a turn for the worse following the last two terrorist attacks in Punjab and Jammu which, according to India, were masterminded by Pakistan. India’s charge has been further buttressed with the capture of a self-confessed Pakistani militant who attacked a security convoy in Udhampur on Wednesday. Islamabad has denied he is a Pakistani national.
Caught in a dilemma
Despite the recent two terror strikes, the word from the External Affairs Ministry is that the scheduled talks between the national security advisors of India and Pakistan, slated for August 23 and 24, will not be affected. While New Delhi has proposed the dates for the dialogue, it has yet to receive a response from Pakistan.
The decision to hold NSA-level talks was taken jointly by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif when they met recently in Ufa, Russia, where both leaders pledged to resume the stalled dialogue between the two countries.
Given that New Delhi is going ahead with the NSA-level talks, it will be odd if the External Affairs Ministry was to advise a boycott of the CPA conference, which is primarily an apolitical forum where bilateral issues are not discussed. Instead, the deliberations focus on larger issues like terrorism, gender equality, disaster management and Parliamentary practices.
At the same time, it will be difficult for the ruling alliance to ignore Islamabad’s decision as the Jammu and Kashmir assembly Speaker belongs to the BJP. It cannot overlook the fact that for the first time, the BJP has formed a government in Jammu and Kashmir in partnership with the People’s Democratic Party. The ruling alliance will have to factor in the sensitivities of the PDP and its own party before it takes a decision on its participation.
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New Delhi has taken umbrage at Pakistan’s decision not to extend an invitation to the Jammu and Kashmir assembly Speaker for the conference on the ground that the state is disputed territory. However, the Ministry of External Affairs is yet to firm up its response to Pakistan’s decision.
The Speakers of the other state assemblies as well as Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan have been extended an invitation for the nine-day conference to be held from September 30.
Confirming that he had not received an invitation, Jammu and Kashmir Speaker Kavinder Gupta recently told Greater Kashmir: “Pakistan has refused to my participation in the conference saying the Speaker of J&K Legislative Assembly can’t be part of the conference (in Pakistan) as per UN resolutions.”
Deciding a response
The London-based 53-member CPA organises this annual conference in different Commonwealth countries. This is the first time that Pakistan is hosting the event. The Speakers of all the national Parliaments and the presiding officers of the state legislatures of Commonwealth countries are normally invited to participate in the deliberations.
However, first-time hosts of this year’s conference have chosen to deviate from this practice. Pakistan has taken a deliberate decision not to invite the Jammu and Kashmir Speaker ironically when the theme of the coming meet is to renew commitment to pluralism and inclusive democracy in Commonwealth nations.
While she is still waiting to hear from the Ministry of External Affairs on this issue, the Lok Sabha Speaker has called a meeting of the presiding officers of all state legislatures on Friday to ascertain their views on the various options they can exercise, including a possible boycott. According to officials in the Lok Sabha secretariat, the upcoming CPA annual conference constitutes the single-point agenda of this meeting.
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance will have to take a considered view on this issue. The CPA conference is being held at a time when relations between New Delhi and Islamabad have taken a turn for the worse following the last two terrorist attacks in Punjab and Jammu which, according to India, were masterminded by Pakistan. India’s charge has been further buttressed with the capture of a self-confessed Pakistani militant who attacked a security convoy in Udhampur on Wednesday. Islamabad has denied he is a Pakistani national.
Caught in a dilemma
Despite the recent two terror strikes, the word from the External Affairs Ministry is that the scheduled talks between the national security advisors of India and Pakistan, slated for August 23 and 24, will not be affected. While New Delhi has proposed the dates for the dialogue, it has yet to receive a response from Pakistan.
The decision to hold NSA-level talks was taken jointly by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif when they met recently in Ufa, Russia, where both leaders pledged to resume the stalled dialogue between the two countries.
Given that New Delhi is going ahead with the NSA-level talks, it will be odd if the External Affairs Ministry was to advise a boycott of the CPA conference, which is primarily an apolitical forum where bilateral issues are not discussed. Instead, the deliberations focus on larger issues like terrorism, gender equality, disaster management and Parliamentary practices.
At the same time, it will be difficult for the ruling alliance to ignore Islamabad’s decision as the Jammu and Kashmir assembly Speaker belongs to the BJP. It cannot overlook the fact that for the first time, the BJP has formed a government in Jammu and Kashmir in partnership with the People’s Democratic Party. The ruling alliance will have to factor in the sensitivities of the PDP and its own party before it takes a decision on its participation.
