Don't go to Gah for some wah-wah

Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh travels to Tehran today to attend the NAM Summit where he is likely to meet Pakistani President Zardari lsquoon the sidelines of the summitrsquo During this meeting Zardari is expected to renew his invitation tou00a0Dr Singh to visit Pakistan during the Guru Nanak Jayanti celebrations in November Extending a formal invitation last month Zardari wrote that the visit could also provide Dr Singh an opportunity to go to his ancestral place of Gah in Pakistanrsquos Punjab province Dr Singh was born in Gah and studied there from Class I to IV Buddies PM Manmohan Singh meets his childhood friend Raja Ali Mohammad from his ancestral village Gah in Pakistan on May 30 2008 in New Delhi PicAFP Dr Singh was earlier invited by Pakistanrsquos thenmilitary ruler Pervez Musharraf but those plans didnrsquot fructify due to the political turmoil in Pakistan in 2007 Gah which had been declared a lsquomodel villagersquo under Musharraf again joined the ranks of other impoverished villages in Pakistan Foreign minister SM Krishna has described Zardarirsquos invitation to Dr Singh as ldquoa touching invitationrdquo Many Indian commentators mdash especially the regulars of IndiaPakistan Track2 jamborees mdash have joined the chorus that Dr Singh should accept Zardarirsquos invitation They vociferously argue that such a visit ldquowill have huge symbolic value and provide political direction to the dialogue processrdquo Others have called upon Dr Singh to leave his legacy by undertaking this visit to Pakistan Dr Singhrsquos public stance on visiting Pakistan has been clear While he would love to visit Pakistan he has linked such a visit to a grand moment in bilateral ties Pressed by Pakistani government and Indian commentators Indian government many fear may announce at Tehran plans foru00a0Dr Singhrsquos visit to Pakistan With little progress on bilateral issues it would mean a reversal of Prime Ministerrsquos longstanding commitment of not undertaking a symbolic visit to Pakistan Pakistan remains unwilling to bring the perpetrators of 2611 Mumbai terror attacks to justice It tried its best to stop Saudi Arabia from handing over Abu Jundal a 2611 coconspirator to India The Pakistani court conducting the trial of seven 2611 suspects recently ruled that the evidence collected by the judicial commission was inadmissible because no crossexamination was allowed The trial which has already seen change of five judges is being delayed on frivolous grounds Meanwhile Hafiz Saeed the founder of LashkareTaiba continues to openly incite hatred against India Not only has Islamabad done little to rein in terrorism it has violated the ceasefire on the Line of Control LoC in JampK with impunity in recent weeks Moreover the cyberjehad from Pakistan continues unabated Indiarsquos Home Secretary accused Pakistan of inciting communal strife in India by posting doctored images and hateful messages on the internet Popular Pakistani TV anchors analysts and columnists especially in the Urdu media openly spew venom on India The situation isnrsquot better in other fields Despite Indiarsquos best efforts the agreement on trade is yet to be implemented Indiarsquos proposals for improving trade across the LoC mdash expansion of trade list and provision of banking facilities mdash have been stalled by Pakistan Pakistanrsquos foreign ministry as per media reports has told its commerce ministry to not move further on any traderelated issue with India unless there is progress on other issues Progress on other issues mdash whether it be Kashmir Siachen or Sir Creek mdash is impossible when even a previously agreed upon signing of a visa liberalisation agreement was put off at the last moment due to Pakistanrsquos strange insistence that Indiarsquos Home Minister was needed to sign it While Pakistanrsquos civilian government is up for elections in 2013 there is political uncertainty after the Supreme Court disqualified Prime Minister Gilani from office and seems on course to oust his successor too General Kayanirsquos extension as army chief also ends next year NATO forces are amidst a pullout from Afghanistan US presidential elections are due this November With so much uncertainty around November would be the worst time for the Indian Prime Minister to visit Pakistan It is not Manmohan Singh visiting Gah in a personal capacity It is a visit by the head of the Indian government to Pakistan An Indian Prime Minister visiting his birthplace in Pakistan may make for a great media story but it canrsquot be at the cost of Indiarsquos national interest Dr Singh moreover would be free to visit Gah once he relinquishes the office of the Prime Minister whether in 2014 or earlier Rather than fritter it away on a symbolic visit Dr Singh should instead use his rapidly depleting political capital to overcome the economic challenges at home Sushant K Singh is Fellow for National Security at the Takshashila Institution and editor of PragatiThe Indian NationalInterest Reviewu00a0