100 South Asian leaders urged India, Pakistan to choose dialogue over hostility
New Delhi : Over one hundred prominent civil society representatives from Pakistan and India have jointly appealed to Prime Ministers Shehbaz Sharif and Narendra Modi to take meaningful steps towards restoring peace, dialogue and cooperation in South Asia.
According to Kashmir Media Service, in an open letter, the signatories stated that unrelenting hostility between the two countries is depriving millions of young people of opportunities, prosperity and a secure future. They emphasised that India and Pakistan, home to nearly one-fifth of humanity, deserve a future defined by peace, development and cooperation rather than perpetual mistrust and confrontation.
The appeal urged both governments to restore full diplomatic relations, resume structured bilateral dialogue on all outstanding issues including Jammu and Kashmir, reopen trade and transport links, and promote people-to-people contacts. The signatories called for reopening borders, resuming bus and train services, easing travel restrictions, and facilitating religious and cultural exchanges.
Prominent Pakistani signatories include Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri, Ashraf Jehangir Qazi, Pervez Hoodbhoy and Farhatullah Babar, while notable signatories from India and occupied Jammu and Kashmir include Dr Farooq Abdullah, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Mehbooba Mufti and Mani Shankar Aiyar.
The civil society representatives concluded that the leadership of both countries must choose engagement over isolation, dialogue over hostility, and cooperation over confrontation for the welfare of the people of South Asia.
