For first time in three years, Pak’s foreign minister invites Indian diplomat for Iftar party

Pakistan foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari invited a senior Indian diplomat to the Iftar dinner (the breaking of the fast during the holy month of Ramadan)—a move that is being watched very keenly.

Notably, this is the first time that Pakistan’s Foreign Office has invited an Indian envoy to Iftar party since August 2019—when India revoked the special status of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state.

According to the Express Tribune newspaper, Bilawal extended the invitation to the Indian chargé d’affaires along with the diplomats based in the capital Islamabad.

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It is said that India accepted the invitation and its senior diplomat attended the dinner at the Foreign Office since the chargé d’affaires was not in Pakistan.

Indian sources confirmed toWION that the Indian diplomat paid a courtesy visit to the event.

Indian and Pakistan officials have usually avoided inviting each other to such functions due to their acrimonious relationship—a trend that has only spiralled downwards after Delhi revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

However, the presence of an Indian diplomat suggested a break from that policy. It comes at a time when India invited Pakistan’s foreign minister for the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meet that will be held in southern Goa city in May. However, Pakistan has not sent its confirmation yet.

For three years, Indian envoy wasn’t invited to the Iftar parties by the Pakistan government.

In 2020, Pakistan didn’t send invitationdue to the Covid pandemic. In the following year, Pakistan’s then-foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi didn’t invite the Indian diplomat. And in 2022, the political chaos which led to the ouster of Imran Khan saw no Iftar parties being held.

2019 iftar party controversy

In 2019, a major controversy erupted after guests at the Iftar party at Indian High Commission in Islamabad were harassed by Pakistan security agencies.

According to reports, the Pakistani officials surrounded Hotel Serena, the venue of the Iftar party, and forced hundreds of guests to turn back.

India registered strong protests back then for the “gross intimidation”.

Following this, the guests of the Pakistani high commission at Iftarin New Delhi received somewhat similar treatment in a repeat of what happened during the Pakistan National Day celebrations in March.

(With inputs from agencies)

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