We have some good news from Pakistani politics and current Indian politics. The bilateral talk between Pakistan and India is going ahead after visit of Indian foreign Secretary S Jaishankar on 3 March 2015. The two countries have been in the deadlock for the last 9 months over the issue of judicial trial of culprits involved in 26/11 attack. The relations further got strained when both countries involved in cross-border firing that claimed many lives.

If we go by the current affairs then relations between Pakistan and India are going through resurgence after a long hiatus. The relations between the two arch rivals took a new turn as senior diplomats of both countries sit on table for bilateral talks. The recent developments in the peace process have inserted a new wave of hope among people of Pakistan and India who want peace between the two nations.

BiWi sheds light on this hot news in India and Pakistan in this interesting post. Read on to get insights on this interesting news on Indo-Pak relations:

Background of Indo-Pak Relations
Pakistan and India have a history of strained relations since the partition in 1947. The two countries have even fought two full-scale wars of 1965 and 1971. The leadership of the two countries has taken initiatives in the past to alleviate tension between the two nations. Unfortunately but those initiatives were met with terrorist acts. First, it was in 2001 when terrorist activists attacked Indian Parliament on 15 December 2001 that killed 14 and then it was torching of Samjhota Express that resulted in the death of 68 people. The 26/11 Mumbai attack in the recent past proved as the final nail in the coffin of already strained relation between Pakistan and India.

Kashmir Dispute
Kashmir dispute has been subject to widespread media attention and got international limelight for its sensitive nature. There is a history of contention on the issue of Kashmir Dispute. Indian maintains that Kashmir is its integral part, while Pakistan sees referendum as the only solution of Kashmir dispute. The disputed state of Kashmir is divided by LOC, the border that separates Pakistani-dominated and India-dominated territory of Kashmir.

Kashmir has been the core issue of conflict between Pakistan and India. Although, the two countries have showed serious efforts in the past regarding the Kashmir dispute but they have failed to reach a consensus on the issue. Kashmir dispute has even brought Pakistan and India into armed confrontation in 1947, 1965 and 1999 that resulted in thousands of civilian and army casualties.

26/11 Mumbai Attacks and Indo-Pak Relations
India took a radical change of course in its foreign policy towards Pakistan after 26/11 Mumbai attacks. The country blamed Pakistan for the attack and boycotted all diplomatic and political talks with Pakistan. The government of India claimed the role of Lashkar-e-Tayyaba behind the attacks and forces Pakistani to extradite the culprits involved in the event. Pakistan, however, denied the charges and hold Indian authorities responsible for the incident. The two countries have been in a state of cold war since 26/11 Mumbai attack in 2008.

Recent Developments in Indo-Pak Relations
The hostile relations between Pakistan and India reached boiling point in recent times when both countries were involved in cross-border firing. The exchange of firing has killed hundreds of people on both side of the border. The tense situation got further deteriorated after transition of government in India.

However, the relations between the two nations seems promising in recent times when Indian foreign secretary S Jaishankar visited Pakistan on March 3, 2015 to discuss SAARC. International fraternity saw this as a good gesture to pacify ongoing conflicts between the two nations. As leadership of the both countries are showing maturity in resolving strained relations, we can hope that the peace talks would contribute to betterment of strained relations between Pakistan and India.