New Redlines

India is writing a new rulebook for its Pakistan policy.

- Barkha Dutt

There has always been an element of shock and awe in Narendra Modi’s Pakistan policy. This flamboyant unconventionality makes a distinct break from the much more studied, quiet and conformist approach of his predecessor, Manmohan Singh. It also applies equally to both peace and conflict. What defines Modi’s Pakistan doctrine is the willingness to take a risk. The government gambled audaciously on better relations with Islamabad when the prime minister visited his counterpart in Lahore, without any announced scheduling of a bilateral meeting. Or when he invited Nawaz Sharif to be part of his swearing in. And also in the unusual choice of using a steel baron (Sajjan Jindal) as an informal channel of communication, bypassing the maze of mandarins in the foreign ministry.

Despite a hawkish mocking of Congress feebleness on Pakistan when Modi was an opposition leader and Gujarat chief minister, the truth is that Modi as prime minister has not always been ideologically hyper-nationalist on Pakistan. Instead, initially, he took unprecedented chances at building peace, including allowing a Pakistani team of investigators selective access to an Indian Air Force base in Pathankot as part of a terror attack probe. Like most prime ministers, Modi, too, has discovered that consistency is impossible in dealings with Pakistan. The constantly shifting power dynamics inside Pakistan, and the terrorism faucet that is turned on and off at will by Pakistan’s deep state, means that New Delhi has to be constantly ready to adapt. Modi has done that. The national security advisers have met on the quiet when necessary. In the past, the Jindal channel has allowed the two prime ministers to communicate without the encumbrance of summits and bilaterals and joint statements that are designed to fail.