India must continue dialogue with Pakistan: Left parties

India must continue dialogue process with Pakistan post Pathankot terror attack as any reversal of the same will only "cramp" New Delhi's strategic options and progress, Left parties said today.
"The BJP government must now stay on course and not let the extremist-jihadi groups call the shots. The time table drawn up for the talks must be adhered to with the terror issue getting due priority.
"Any reversal will only cramp India's strategic options and resumption of confrontation will debilitate India's economic recovery and progress," ex-CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat said.
Karat made the remark in the editorial of the party's mouthpiece 'People's Democracy'.

He further observed the attack, "in fact, strengthens Government's hand when it takes up terrorism on the agenda in the talks".
"It underlines the continuing failure of the Pakistani State to deal with those jihadi groups which have the patronage of sections of the intelligence and security establishment," he added.

Karat said that a review of the "muddled and unfocused" response to the attack was "urgently" required and expressed concerns over terrorists managing to sneak into the air base despite intelligence input about the same in advance.
He alleged there was "no proper" co-ordination between various agencies and forces in handling the incident and referred to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh first declaring on Twitter that the operation was successful and later withdrawing his post on January 2.

"This speaks of the inept way the whole operation has been conducted. The government should not stand on prestige and must acknowledge the shortcomings and conduct a proper probe so that such mistakes do not recur," Karat said.
The CPI seconded CPI(M) over continuing discussion with Pakistan and the way the operation was handled.
The party questioned Narendra Modi Government if it wants to mold its foreign policy to suit the "requirements of domestic politics" or someone else who is "dictating" terms.?
"People are in dark as to what the Modi government actually wants to do. Is foreign policy being molded to suit the "requirements of domestic politics" or someone else dictating terms to which we are obediently following?

"These and many more questions raised regarding the Pathankot episode and even earlier Gurdaspur event need to be answered by the government," it said.