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Indian officials skip Pakistan National Day reception in New Delhi: Reports
Pakistan commemorated its National Day at its High Commission last week in New Delhi.
The Indian government did not send any official representative to Pakistan's National Day reception hosted at its mission in New Delhi on Thursday, according to multiple reports. Pakistan's Chargé d'Affaires Saad Ahmad Warraich reportedly stood alone when the national anthems of both countries were played during the event. This is the first time since 2019 when Indian officials skipped the function in the aftermath of the terror attack in Pulwama and retaliatory strikes in Balakot.
Speaking on the occasion, Pakistan’s charge d’affaires Saad Ahmad Warraich asserted that the goal of peace and stability hinges on "enhancing mutual understanding," "addressing shared concerns," and “resolving long-standing disputes, including the Jammu and Kashmir issue.”
Warraich claimed that Pakistan has made important strides in “strengthening pluralism, deepening democracy, promoting a free media and nurturing a vibrant civil society.”
“The dynamic and enterprising youth of Pakistan are a repository of the nation’s enduring faith in a bright and prosperous future,” the official X handle of the Pakistan High Commission in India quoted Warraich as saying.
Addressing the diplomatic community, Warraich said, “The founding fathers of Pakistan in India envisioned an amicable relationship between the two countries. Unfortunately, the history of our bilateral relationship has remained challenged for the most part.”
“We can emerge from the shadows of the past and script a future of hope for our two peoples, based on peaceful coexistence, sovereign equality and mutual respect. The goal of peace and stability can be achieved by enhancing mutual understanding, addressing shared concerns, and resolving long standing disputes, including the Jammu and Kashmir dispute,” he was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
India has in the past firmly told Pakistan that Jammu and Kashmir will always be an integral and inalienable part of the country.
Pakistan commemorated its National Day at its High Commission on Saturday. The day marks the adoption of the historic Lahore Resolution on March 23, 1940 which provided a framework for the realisation of the goal of a separate homeland for Muslims of South Asia.
