It's the hottest ticket in town. With Mohali set to host the second semi-final of the ICC Cricket World Cup between arch rivals India and Pakistan on March 30, everybody who is somebody wants to get inside the stadium that day. On the last day of the Parliament’s Budget Session on Friday, Punjab Chief Minister Sukhbir SIngh Badal’s articulate MP-wife Harsimrat Badal was flooded with requests from fellow parliamentarians as well as VIPs from across the border for free passes. With Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart set to watch the match live, many VIP seats have become unavailable due to security concerns. Some egos are certainly going to be left bruised at the end of the match, irrespective of the outcome.
Raja’s ghost
The ghost of the Spectrum scandal is haunting the India-Pakistan talks as well. India has been insisting to Pakistan that this round of talks cannot be termed as “composite dialogue”. So, another nomenclature, “comprehensive dialogue” was coined, but that seems to have been dropped as well. The Pakistan establishment then came up with a new nomenclature, “full spectrum dialogue” with the hope that this one would stick, but they were gently and informally told that the word “spectrum” has a negative resonance in the India these days. While Pakistan continues to use “full spectrum talks” in some of its official communications, the Indian side is happy just calling it “sustained engagement”, “dialogue” or just “talks”.
Raja’s ghost
The ghost of the Spectrum scandal is haunting the India-Pakistan talks as well. India has been insisting to Pakistan that this round of talks cannot be termed as “composite dialogue”. So, another nomenclature, “comprehensive dialogue” was coined, but that seems to have been dropped as well. The Pakistan establishment then came up with a new nomenclature, “full spectrum dialogue” with the hope that this one would stick, but they were gently and informally told that the word “spectrum” has a negative resonance in the India these days. While Pakistan continues to use “full spectrum talks” in some of its official communications, the Indian side is happy just calling it “sustained engagement”, “dialogue” or just “talks”.
