Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday today congratulated Mr Shehbaz Sharif on being sworn in as the Prime Minister of Pakistan.

“Congratulations to Shehbaz Sharif on being sworn in as the Prime Minister of Pakistan,” Mr Modi posted on X.

Advertisement

Mr Sharif took oath as Pakistan’s PM for a second term on Monday, capping weeks of political uncertainty in the neighbouring country, which is battling an unprecedented economic crisis.

Soon after he was elected, Mr Sharif raised the Kashmir issue in the National Assembly, suggesting that there might not be much change in his country’s policy on Kashmir.

In any case, any possibility of the resumption of the stalled dialogue between the two countries any time soon is ruled out since India is scheduled to witness the Lok Sabha elections in April-May. In Pakistan too, Mr Sharif would first like to consolidate his position before taking a position on dialogue with India.

Mr Sharif’s elder brother, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, had established a good equation with PM Modi when he was at the helm. It was during his stewardship of Pakistan that Mr Modi paid a surprise visit to Lahore on 25 December, 2015, raising hopes of a new beginning in ties between the two nations.

However, within a week of the Indian leader’s visit to the neighbouring country, an IAF base at Pathankot was attacked by Pakistan-based terrorists, putting paid to any hopes of the revival of the dialogue. India conducted surgical strikes on terrorist camps in Pakistan in September 2016 and air strikes in Balakot in February 2019.

Things took a turn for the worse between the two nations when India abrogated Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, stripping it of its special status on August 5, 2019. An incensed Pakistan downgraded diplomatic ties with India, suspending the then-Indian High Commissioner.

New Delhi, however, made it clear to Pakistan and its supporters in the Islamic world that there was no question of reversing its decision on J & K. Since then, the bilateral relationship has been in deep freeze.

However, the return of a member of the Sharif family to the PM’s post has given rise to speculation that Pakistan may want to return to the negotiating table as that would be in its own larger interest to confront the economic and security challenges it is currently faced with.