Aiyar lauds TOI's Aman ki Asha' campaign

VADODARA: Former Union minister and senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar on Monday praised the TOI's Aman ki Asha' campaign and said that such efforts will help in establishing peace between the two countries.
"I even delivered a lecture during the TOI's Indo-Pak peace conference. Big artistes from Pakistan performed in India for Aman ki Asha initiative. Such efforts will help improve relations with our neighbouring country," Aiyar said.
"India will have to maintain relations with Pakistan if it wants peace in the region," said Aiyar adding that he likes Pakistan and its citizens very much. "I have stayed in Pakistan and I have many friends there. It's a nice place," he said.
"We will have to keep relations with Pakistan if we want to solve the issues. Hating Pakistan and making it an enemy will not help. We have to accept that they are our neighbours," he added.
"I was born in Lahore. People in Pakistan don't hate Indians and in fact they want peace with our country. As far as terror attacks are concerned, we should put pressure on their government to arrest and punish the accused. A ruling party has to be responsible and decide foreign policies with maturity," Aiyar said.
The senior Congress leader is also planning to visit Pakistan on January 23 to meet his friends. "Congress government has said it won't start any composite dialogue with Pakistan till the cross-border terrorism ends, but that doesn't mean that all relations with them should be severed," Aiyar said.