Time to stop blame game: Bokhari

Pakistan Senate chairman Syed Nayyar Hussain Bokhari has said here that there is a wrong notion in India that relations with the neighbouring country improve only when a dictator is in power.
Bukhari is leading a delegation of seven Pakistani senators,three of them Hindus, to India at the invitation of vice president Hamid Ansari on a goodwill visit aimed to “create better understanding” of each other.
“There is this misconception that only under a Pakistani dictator or military can relations improve with India,” said Bokhari, shortly after his visit to both Houses of Parliament here. “It is under people’s representatives accountable and answerable to the people that Pakistan and India have embarked on a reengagement process,” he added.
“The democratic constitution of Pakistan had been polluted at times by dictators but the power now lies with Parliament and it shows the commitment of Pakistani leadership to strengthening parliamentary democracy,” said Bokhari, adding that the civilian government is keen on having better ties with India.
Bokhari said that despite the “very unfortunate” Mumbai attacks; it was time for the two countries to stop making allegations and counter-allegations against each other to facilitate the ongoing process of reengagement between them.
“Allegations are not going to help; even in our country people talk about what India is doing in Balochistan or Kashmir or alleged violation of the Indus Water Treaty but it is not enough to merely agitate and not find solutions to issues,” said Bokhari adding that Parliament in Pakistan had to “play the role of an oversight” in the functioning of the government.