Kathmandu: Nav Jot Singh Siddhu, former Indian Cricketer who is currently a minister in Punjab cabinet (India) and a close friend of Imran Khan-the incumbent Prime Minister of Pakistan-was invited by Immy to Pakistan to witness his swearing in ceremony as new Prime Minister of Pakistan which was to be held in Islamabad August 18, 2018.

Imran had also invited his former Indian friends like Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar and Siddhu to attend to his swearing in ceremony, however, except Siddhu the rest of the friends from India preferred not to attend the ceremony in Pakistan for some understandable reasons. Siddhu made it but he have had to pay a very heavy price from his own countrymen who tentatively took him as a traitor for having visited a country whose army each day slaughters Indian army men at the Kashmir border.

The average Indian mindset over Siddhu’s Pakistan visit is that he must not have taken this adventure at a time when Indian nation was mourning the death of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Bajpayee.

However, since Siddhu had already decided to visit Pakistan and honor Imran’s invite so he went and witnessed the entire oath taking ceremony of new Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi.

Minister Siddhu was taken in Pakistan as the Ambassador of Peace from India.

What pained the Indian nationals most was Siddhu’s embrace with the Pakistan Army Chief Qamar Javed Bajwa who according to the Indian nationals including the media, is the key political man in Pakistan who swings the country’s politics.

Siddhu and Qamar Bajwa embraced each other at time of the swearing in ceremony and had talked for a few minutes.

The talks had centered on Pakistan-India relations wherein General Bajwa reportedly told Nav Jot Singh Siddhu that “We want peace with India”.

Siddhu was taken to task by his own countrymen for having seated close to President of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir. However, it was not a fault of Nav Jot Siddhu because he took the seat where he was told to seat by his Pakistani hosts.

Commenting on the sudden embrace of Siddhu and General Bajwa, Siddhu clarified that both of them belonged to the Jatt community and thus such an embrace was common in their community immaterial of the fact that they belonged to two different countries.

While Siddhu has already returned to his home country but yet he is being targeted by various sections of the Indian society. The sick mindset.
Siddhu remains though undeterred.

He is in jolly mood as ever.

Reacting to the attack being made on Siddhu in India, the Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan too has made some relevant comments which says in part, “I want to thank Nav Jot Singh Siddhu for coming to Pakistan for my oath taking ceremony. He was an Ambassador of Peace and was given amazing love and affection by the people of Pakistan. Those in India who targeted him are doing a great disservice to peace in the sub-continent. Without peace our people cannot progress”.

In the meanwhile, with Siddhu being the prime target in India-Pakistan estranged relations, yet some seasoned diplomatic brains secretly have been working to bring in the India-Pak relations back on the track.

Prime Minister Modi has formally written to Pakistan Prime Minister to talk and collectively work for the establishment of peace in between the two countries.

Shah Mehmood Qureshi, the new Pakistani foreign minister is all set to meet his Indian counterpart Sushama Swaraj, the BJP Iron lady, next month on the sidelines of the 73rd United Nations general Assembly in New York and the date tentatively has been set for September 18, 2018.

Qureshi further said in Multan that Peace with India is the only solution to problems faced by both the countries. He said that we have no option but to engage in dialogue because the option of any adventure can’t be afforded by either of the neighbors, so says Radio Pakistan in a twitter message dated August 21.

This is a good news, however, one more ear pleasing news is that US and Pakistan both have expressed their inner desire to bring their original relations back on the diplomatic rails which had been derailed somehow or the other for a while from the track.

The US Secretary of State Mike Richard Pompeo, 54, is expected in Islamabad on September 5, 2018 to meet the newly elected Prime Minister Imran Khan seeking for Pakistan’s support to jump-start the Afghanistan Peace process in order to revive the ties between the two States.

To a question on relations with the United States Foreign Minister Qureshi told that “we have spent good time in the past and we have to move forward keeping in view the importance of relations between the two countries.

Qureshi was talking in Multan with media men.

Having said all this, the somewhat tarnished Pakistan of the yesterday is regaining its former prestige with the emergence of Imran Khan as the new Captain of Pakistan.

Back in Nepal, Imran Khan’s televised maiden speech has been taken in good taste here. People have begun saying that it was time that Nepali leaders too should work for the people as Imran Khan has vowed for his people.

Meanwhile, the Indian Congress has said that Siddhu’s hug with the Pak Army chief was a non-issue and that the BJP has been attacking Siddhu because the party lacks clear policies on Pakistan.