Playing with fire: Pakistan must crack down on terrorism for its own sake

indiatimes.com The recent border skirmishes and cross-LoC exchange of fire between Indian and Pakistani troops have posed yet another challenge to the bilateral engagement process between the two countries. This comes at a time when the two-way dialogue - suspended in the wake of the 26/11 terror attack on Mumbai - was showing signs of recovery. The recently inked liberalised visa regime and gains made in bilateral trade exemplify this point. Having said that, renewed border tensions show that elements inimical to the peace process continue to operate with impunity to the detriment of both countries. It's no secret that Pakistan's intelligence agency, the ISI, remains a state within a state and continues to patronise known anti-India terrorists such as Lashkar-e-Taiba chief Hafiz Saeed. Despite New Delhi handing over several dossiers to Islamabad on Saeed's involvement in the 26/11 attack, the latter remains a free Pakistani citizen. That Saeed has recently warned that things could turn ugly in Kashmir highlights the immunity he enjoys as a key collaborator of anti-India sections of Pakistan's security establishment. Tellingly, Saeed's warning comes at a crucial juncture for Pakistan and the larger subcontinent. With the clock ticking on the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan in 2014, Islamabad has an important choice to make. It can either go back to its tactic of treating Afghanistan as affording strategic depth against India and continue using terrorism as an instrument of state policy. Or it could genuinely crack down on all terrorist groups operating from its soil. Pertinently, Islamabad's policy of running with the hare and hunting with the hounds has only brought the scourge of terrorism on its own citizens. As highlighted by last week's string of bombings across that country that left at least 140 dead, Pakistan itself is in a state of crisis. For durable peace to prevail in the region, it's imperative that Pakistani society wages a war against extremism that is eating away at the innards of the Pakistani state. For this the political class in Pakistan must unite against all jihadi groups threatening to turn that country into an Islamic caliphate. With general elections in Pakistan just around the corner, Pakistani political parties would do well to shun their Machiavellian intrigues of the past and present a modern vision of Pakistan, strengthening democratic institutions there. This would not only unleash the tremendous potential in Pakistani people but also have a transformational impact on South Asia as a whole.