One really wonders how a man of Dr Manmohan Singhs calibre and political maturity should be wishing to achieve something while, in actual practice, doing everything he can to push it out of reach Answering a journalists question aboard the plane on his way back from Kazakhstan, he is reported to have said that he would think his job well done, if by the time he left office he had succeeded in normalising his countrys relations with Pakistan, seeing them live side by side as two well disposed neighbours. If the Indian Prime Minster were serious about putting Indo-Pak relations on an even keel, he should first have asked himself the reason for making no progress towards that end during the seven years he has been holding the office of the countrys Chief Executive. Rather, he has been responsible for introducing new irritants into the existing bone of contention Jammu & Kashmir and making the task of resolving the dispute more difficult. Wishing to Normalise relations with Pakistan without settling this issue would be a mere pipedream; for Kashmir lies at the root of all hostility and tension between the two countries. There are other issues as well, but they are either linked to Kashmir or relatively far easier to resolve. It is Kashmir that has driven the two countries to three wars. It is not only an emotional issue but also a question of the birthright, acknowledged by India through its commitment under the relevant UNSC resolutions, of the people of Kashmir. Indias treacherous slogan of atoot ang has not dampened their yearning for freedom. Then, their brutal suppression by the Indian security forces, stationed at every nook and cranny of the occupied Valley, has added another dimension to the dispute: the massive abuse of human rights mostly cruelly committed, not sparing the elderly, the young, men or women. Yet another complication to the other otherwise simple matter of holding a plebiscite under UN auspices for the Kashmiris to decide whether they want to join Pakistan or India, has been stealing Pakistans share of water. In the process, New Delhi is also blatantly violating another international accord, the Indus Waters Treaty. Under the Manmohan government, Pakistans sincere efforts to come to grips with the Kashmir issue have come to nought. The host of CBMs have been of little value. Whenever Pakistan tried to initiate discussion on Kashmir under the composite dialogue, India put up one excuse or another to sidetrack it. The Mumbai incidents were played up to scuttle the entire process of dialogue, with baseless charges against Islamabad. The fresh round of talks do not hold any promise, as India is focussing its energies on suppressing Kashmiris, diverting river water to turn Pakistan into a vast desert and fomenting trouble in Balochistan and FATA to destabilise the country. The international community would have to play its due role in bringing peace to the nuclear-armed subcontinent. The Indo-Pak talks, as they are now, are no more than a trap to keep Pakistan engaged, while the Indian machinations against it continue.