Is India Quietly Preparing to Restart Talks with Pakistan?
News Desk
Islamabad: A year after the brief but dangerous 2025 war between India and Pakistan, the public rhetoric between the two nuclear-armed neighbours remains hostile.
Military warnings, diplomatic disputes and accusations of terrorism continue to dominate official statements.
Yet beneath the surface, subtle signals emerging from political, military and diplomatic circles suggest that both sides may be cautiously exploring whether limited engagement is once again possible.
The clearest indication came not from governments, but from within India’s ideological establishment.
Earlier this month, Dattatreya Hosabale, the general secretary of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), publicly called for dialogue with Pakistan, saying New Delhi should “not close the doors” to engagement.
The remarks were striking because the RSS is widely regarded as the ideological parent of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). For years, Modi’s government has maintained that “terror and talks cannot go together,” effectively freezing formal dialogue with Islamabad.
Hosabale’s comments therefore triggered immediate debate inside India, with opposition politicians questioning whether the RSS was signalling a potential policy rethink.
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The calls for engagement soon gained support from another influential voice. Former Indian Army chief Manoj Naravane backed dialogue efforts, arguing that ordinary citizens on both sides should not remain trapped by political hostility.
Analysts believe these voices may not be accidental.
According to Irfan Nooruddin, the Modi government’s years of aggressive anti-Pakistan rhetoric have left little political room for direct diplomatic overtures.
“For the government to suddenly restart dialogue on its own could appear politically costly,” Nooruddin observed. “Signals coming from the RSS and retired military figures provide political cover.”
While official diplomacy remains frozen, informal engagement appears to have quietly resumed.
Former Pakistani diplomat Jauhar Saleem revealed that several Track-2 and Track-1.5 meetings involving retired officials, former generals, intelligence representatives and parliamentarians from both countries have taken place over the past year in Muscat, Doha, Thailand and London.
Such backchannel mechanisms are often used to test diplomatic possibilities before formal negotiations begin.
“These meetings help prevent misunderstandings and keep communication alive even when formal channels are blocked,” Saleem said.
Pakistan’s Foreign Office has refused to publicly confirm the contacts, but officials have hinted that quiet diplomacy may already be underway. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi recently remarked that commenting openly on backchannel contacts would defeat their purpose.
The changing regional environment may also be pushing both sides toward reconsideration.
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Since the 2025 conflict, Pakistan has regained diplomatic relevance internationally, particularly through its role in regional mediation efforts involving Iran and the United States. Pakistan’s military leadership, particularly Field Marshal Asim Munir, has gained increased international visibility after facilitating indirect engagement between Washington and Tehran earlier this year.
At the same time, India’s traditionally close ties with Washington have faced strains over trade disputes and immigration-related disagreements.
Some analysts argue this shifting geopolitical balance may be encouraging sections within India’s strategic community to reconsider the long diplomatic freeze with Pakistan.
But despite these tentative signals, deep mistrust remains firmly intact.
Only days after calls for dialogue surfaced, Indian Army chief Upendra Dwivedi issued a sharp warning to Pakistan, accusing Islamabad of supporting militancy and questioning whether it wanted to remain “part of geography or history”.
Pakistan’s military media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), responded forcefully, condemning the remarks as “jingoistic” and warning against threats directed at a nuclear-armed state.
Meanwhile, another dispute continues to fuel tensions between the neighbours: the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty following the 2025 Pahalgam attack in Indian-administered Kashmir.
India recently rejected a ruling by an international arbitration court related to hydroelectric projects on the Indus river system, while Pakistan welcomed the decision. The treaty, long considered one of the few surviving pillars of cooperation between the rivals, remains effectively frozen.
For now, formal peace talks appear distant.
Yet the emergence of pro-engagement voices inside India, combined with renewed backchannel diplomacy and shifting regional realities, suggests both countries may be cautiously probing whether controlled communication is preferable to perpetual confrontation.
Whether these quiet signals eventually evolve into meaningful diplomacy, however, will depend on political will in both capitals, something analysts say remains uncertain. Additional input from Al Jazeera.
