Political storm in Pak, Kashmir over Zardari remark

CROSS-BORDER CONTROVERSY: Zardari's statement is a departure many in his country lashed out at.

Featured Blog

Rajdeep Sardesai

Maharaj or Dada, Ganguly's legacy lives on

Featured Slideshows

New Delhi: It's a bombshell dropped by the Pakistani President, one that has been welcomed in India, shocked many in Pakistan, and been condemned in kashmir.

In an interview to the Wall Street Journal President Asif Ali Zardari called the militant groups operating in Kashmir "terrorists".

He also said, "India has never been a threat to Pakistan. I, for one, and our democratic government is not scared of Indian influence abroad."

Zardari's statement certainly is a departure from Pakistani policy that calls Kashmir the core issue with India and which calls the insurgency backed by the Pakistan's ISI, rightful jehad. It's a departure many in his country lashed out at.

Chairman Pakistan Institute of Policy Studies, Professor Khursheed Ahmed said, "It is not a change in foreign policy. The nation stands by the stand of Qaeda-e-Azam and by Mr Bhutto. Mr Zardari has no right to change that. He is playing like a political playboy. He should act like a statesman."

In Srinagar, Zardari's effigies were burnt - the first time in decades that a Pakistani leader has been targetted in this way.

PDP President, Mehbooba Mufti said, "Mr Zardaari's statement seems to be out of tune with the present ground situation here in Jammu and Kashmir."

As expected, India is thrilled. Zardari's comments are seen by South Block as a positive signal coming just a few days after his meet with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New York.

Minister of State for External Affairs, Anand Sharma said, "We have been major victims of organised terrorism. We have always talked of cross-border terrorism."

With comments like these, Zardari has certainly embarked on a new path of conciliation with India. But as he reaches out across the border with one hand, he may soon find himself bound down by his own side as the new twist in Pakistan's foreign policy will certainly not go down well with its powerful establishment - the army and the ISI.