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The government, it seems, is again divided on whether to continue the trade normalisation dialogue with Pakistan, with the commerce and external affairs ministries at loggerheads over the issue. This, even as Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma is expected to hold a meeting with Pakistan's minister of state for commerce and textile Khurram Dastagir Khan on the sidelines of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation business leaders conclave on Thursday.
On Wednesday, commerce secretary-level talks were held on the road ahead and on Pakistan granting India the controversial 'most favoured nation' (MFN) trade status. It is learnt the meeting between Commerce Secretary SR Rao and his Pakistani counterpart Qasim M Niaz lasted about three hours. However, both sides didn't arrive at any specific outcome, sources told Business Standard.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has been saying the meeting is a "resumption of the trade dialogue" that started in April 2011 but has since hit several hurdles due to the age-old political and military tensions between the two neighbours. However, it is learnt the Ministry of External Affairs has asked the commerce ministry to underplay the matter and not project the meeting as a resumption of the dialogue, resulting in a war of words of sorts.
The commerce ministry, on its part, isn't leaving any stone unturned to ensure the dialogue is successful. Sharma, it is learnt, is fighting against all odds to secure MFN status. But the external affairs ministry believes trade talks cannot proceed without a "peaceful environment in the background of a series of ceasefire violations across the Line of Control (LoC)", sources said.
Trade talks have seen a pause since early 2013, when incidents of a military-standoff across the LoC started coming to light. It seems matters worsened after the recent emergence of a mysterious video that allegedly showed the beheading of an Indian soldier by the Pakistan Army in January 2013.
Earlier this week, Indian Army chief Bikram Singh said India wouldn't shy away from taking retaliatory steps if Pakistan broke ceasefire norms across the border. He even referred to these violations as a "mini war".
Recently, Syed Akbaruddin, joint secretary and spokesperson, Ministry of External Affairs, said the meeting between both sides "cannot be construed as a resumption of the India-Pakistan dialogue process". He added the government was waiting for Pakistan to implement the commitment made on September 2012, when both commerce secretaries last met, on allowing greater flow of goods along the Attari-Wagah border.
Last month, the director generals of military operations of the two countries met, after a gap of 14 years, at Wagah to ensure peace along the LoC.
India and Pakistan had set a target of $6 billion of bilateral trade by 2014. Now, that target seems a far cry. In 2012-13, trade between the two nations stood at $2.5 billion.
