Fingers crossed

BS OPINION

 All too often in the past, the two have flattered only to deceive. The last fling began with a friendship bus journey by Prime Minister Vajpayee to Lahore in February 1999 and ended with the two countries almost going to war two years ago.

 In fact, they did fight a mini-war in the summer of 1999 at Kargil, barely three months after Mr Vajpayee had returned from Lahore.

 And in December 2001, there was the terrorist attack on Parliament as well, not to mention the one a few months earlier on the legislature building in Srinagar and scores of other terrorist atrocities.

 That such a recent history of bad blood is being so quickly reversed is at least a matter of some surprise, if not yet of hope.

 That said, only those with a vested interest in a state of permanent but undeclared war would fail to keep his or her fingers crossed. The nuclearisation of the two is reason enough for moving towards some semblance of normalcy.

 Thanks to intense pressure from the