Pakistan on Wednesday, 7 August, expelled Indian High Commissioner Ajay Bisaria, minutes after it decided to downgrade the diplomatic ties with India in the wake of New Delhi's “unilateral and illegal” move to effectively revoke Article 370 which gave a special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.
This was announced after Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan chaired a crucial meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC), attended by top civil and military leadership, during which it was also decided to suspend the bilateral trade and review “bilateral arrangements”.
“Our ambassadors will no longer be in New Delhi and their counterparts here will also be sent back,” Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said in televised comments soon after the NSC meeting.
Trade Suspension to Hit Pak More?
Pakistan's decision to suspend bilateral trade ties with India would hit the neighbouring country more as they import essential items like onion, tomotoes and chemicals, according to experts.
"The suspension of trade relations will hit Pakistan more badly as India is less dependent on Pakistan while the latter is more," Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) Director General Ajay Sahai said.
India's export basket to Pakistan consists of limited products as it has not given 'most favoured nation' status to New Delhi and such goods have ready market in South Asia and the Middle East, he said.
Professor Biswajit Dhar of Jawaharlal Nehru University too said that both in long and short term, Pakistan would be impacted from their decision as they also import basic agri commodities like onion and tomotoes, PTI reported.
Trade relations between India and Pakistan were already strained following the Pulwama terror attack in February as India imposed 200 per cent customs duty on all goods imported from the neighbouring nation.
While India's exports to Pakistan stood at USD 2 billion, imports were about USD 500 million per year. Imports from Pakistan declined by 92 per cent to USD 2.84 million in March this year compared to USD 34.61 million in March 2018, according to the commerce ministry data.
‘Short-Sighted Decision by Pak’
Congress leader Salman Khurshid called Pakistan’s move a short-sighted one.
“What benefit will they get from it? These are short-sighted decisions. It's only they who'll suffer losses. But if they want to take a symbolic decision, it's their choice.”
TCA Raghavan, former Indian High Commissioner to Pakistan said “trade between India and Pakistan unfortunately has never been of a large volume. Steps they have taken are to show their political constituencies that they are dealing with the matter. In any case, not having diplomatic contact is not a good development.”
BJP leader Ram Madhav said “Pakistan has no locus standi on this issue. Indian Parliament had taken a decision about Article 370 in J&K and that is an internal matter. No other nation has locus standi to react on this.”
India on Monday, 5 August, effectively revoked Article 370 of the Constitution to withdraw the special status given to Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcated the state into two Union Territories -- Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
A statement issued after the NSC meeting read that the Committee discussed situation "arising out of unilateral and illegal actions" by the Indian government, situation inside Jammu and Kashmir and along the Line of Control.
(With inputs from PTI)
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