New Delhi, July 1 (IANS) With over 100 prominent citizens from India and Pakistan writing a joint letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistani counterpart, Shehbaz Sharif, urging an end to continued hostility between the two countries, RJD MP Manoj Kumar Jha, who is among the signatories, on Wednesday said the objective was to strengthen people-to-people contact.

Talking to IANS, Jha said: “Our intention has always been consistent, and I have both written and spoken about it clearly. There is a difference between the state and the citizen. Music does not need a visa, films do not need a visa, and in the digital age, even cartoons do not need a visa.”

“What I mean is that music, poetry and stories transcend borders. This distinction has been explained ever since the time of Partition by Mahatma Gandhi. In that context, we want people to understand the difference between citizens and the state. Engagement with the state is a matter between our government and their government, whether it concerns water-sharing, terrorism or other bilateral issues.”

Jha also referred to recent developments following the Pahalgam terror attack and questioned certain diplomatic engagements.

“We are still disturbed that after the Pahalgam incident, cricket was played in Dubai. Was the entire country not in pain? At the same time, track-two diplomacy is taking place in Colombo,” he said.

Referring to recent statements by the RSS, Jha said: “When we hear statements from the RSS, don’t we understand what they mean? We are simply urging better people-to-people contact between India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh to improve understanding, while core irritants should be addressed gradually.”

On reports of track-two diplomacy in Colombo, Jha said: “Is this track-two diplomacy in Colombo taking place without the government’s consent? Everyone knows under whose influence such decisions are being shaped. Gradually, everything will come out in the open. We are only saying that people-to-people contact should be made barrier-free, while more complex issues can be discussed separately.”

A year after Operation Sindoor, over 100 prominent personalities from India and Pakistan, including politicians, former diplomats and public figures, jointly appealed to Prime Ministers Modi and Sharif to take concrete and sustained steps towards restoring peace, dialogue and normal bilateral relations between the two countries.

The appeal, issued by the Centre for Peace and Progress and signed by 117 individuals — 61 from India and 56 from Pakistan — urged both governments to end the prolonged hostility, saying it was depriving millions of young people of opportunities, prosperity and a secure future.

The Indian signatories, apart from Jha, include National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah, separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, and AJUP leader and former Bengal minister Humayun Kabir.

Among the Pakistani signatories were former Foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri, former diplomat Ashraf Jehangir Qazi, National Assembly member Isphanyar Bhandara, and nuclear physicist and author Pervez Hoodbhoy.

–IANS

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