‘We should try again’: Pakistan Punjab Assembly Speaker on failed peace talks with New Delhi

“Even though the chance was missed, we should try again,” said Punjab Assembly Speaker Malik Ahmad Khan when asked about Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s 1999 ‘bus yatra’, a bold attempt by the then Indian prime minister to put India-Pakistan relations on the peace track.

Vajpayee took a bus ride to Lahore on February 19, 1999. He and Pakistan premier Nawaz Sharif signed the Lahore Declaration after a historic summit here. The agreement signalled a breakthrough, but just months later a Pakistani intrusion led to the Kargil War.

Wednesday is Vajpayee’s 100th birth anniversary.

“Vajpayee’s visit to Lahore in 1999 was a defining moment. Even though the chance was missed, we should try again. With Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who follows Vajpayee’s vision, leading India, and Shehbaz Sharif, Nawaz’s brother, in charge in Pakistan, there is a real possibility of restarting the peace process,” says Khan, who is a senior member of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

Khan says the future of the region depends on free trade and unrestricted movement between countries.

“Peace in the region is not just a good idea – it is necessary for growth and prosperity,” the Punjab Speaker adds.

Another senior PML-N leader, Mohammad Mehdi, describes Vajpayee’s Lahore visit as historic. He believes the visit could have led to lasting peace if the Kargil conflict had not happened. Mehdi said Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) held protests during Vajpayee’s visit, which many believe were organised by the military led by General Musharraf.