India will not invite Pakistani PM Imran Khan to the swearing-in ceremony of Narendra Modi, who starts his second term as India’s prime minister. Instead of the SAARC leaders, PM Modi is set to invite BIMSTEC nations which excludes Pakistan.
Imran Khan Congratulates PM Modi Over Phone; Expresses Desire For Development
Any early warming in ties between India and Pakistan now seems unlikely in light of how the nuclear-armed neighbours came close to a fourth war following February’s Pulwama incident that left 40 Indian CRF personnel dead in Jammu and Kashmir. The two have fought three since both won independence from Britain in 1947.
An Indian government statement on Monday said the leaders of Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Bhutan — all members of Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) alongside India — have been invited to Modi’s swearing-in.
“This is in line with Government’s focus on its ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy,” a government spokesperson said. The leaders of Kyrgyzstan and Mauritius have also been invited but two sources in Indian’s foreign ministry said Pakistan will not be on the list, without providing further information.
For the swearing-in ceremony for Modi’s first term in 2014, all nations from the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) — which includes Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the Maldives — were invited.
In 2014, the then-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif attended the ceremony to the anger of some of Modi’s Hindu-nationalist allies.
Khan had consequently called Modi on Sunday to congratulate him on his win. The latter thanked the former for extending good wishes to him. In a message posted on his official Twitter account earlier, Khan had said he was looking forward to working with Modi for “peace, progress and prosperity in South Asia”.
“I congratulate Prime Minister Modi on the electoral victory of BJP and allies. Look forward to working with him for peace, progress and prosperity in South Asia,” the Pakistan premier had said.
In response to the tweet by his Pakistani counterpart, Modi had said, “Thank you PM. I warmly express my gratitude for your good wishes”. “I have always given primacy to peace and development in our region,” he had added.
Modi could still meet Khan at a Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Kyrgyzstan next month that both leaders may attend. A spokesperson for Pakistan’s embassy in New Delhi was not immediately available for comment.
