Bilawal visit brings hope

The presence of the 23- year- old Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the chief of the Pakistan People’s Party, in the presidential entourage from across the border can be a sign of hope. It might do India- Pakistan relations some good if young leaders from both sides devise ways to meet one another on a regular basis. The father- and- son visit is a throwback to the Shimla Summit of 40 years ago when Bilawal’s mother, Benazir, then a student, had accompanied her father, Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, to India.

To include Rahul Gandhi in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s lunch for President Asif Ali Zardari on Sunday will be an appropriate gesture. Young guns from other parties may also be invited. This will give the younger Zardari an opportunity to interact with top Indian politicians of the young generation. A greater appreciation of facts on the ground can be fostered if new generation leaders of diverse persuasion, not shackled by the past, are able to meet frequently.

Regardless of the complexity of India- Pakistan relations, it is useful to keep civil society exchanges going at all levels — such as the visits of students, artists, journalists, politicians, and tourists. The presence of Zardari junior, who was a student at Oxford until just the other day, is likely to keep the edge off the public projection of some of the sharper issues that may be on the table when Prime Minister Singh and Mr Zardari discuss matters of state.