Despite their visas being cleared well on time to ensure physical attendance in the Shanghai Cooperation (SCO) that began in the Uttar Pradesh capital on Monday, the Pakistani delegation of government auditors could not make it to the meet but connected online.
On being asked for the reason for their physical absence, Tahir Rizwan, Pakistan’s additional auditor general (AAG) told THE WEEK: “Please speak to the Indian government officials on this. I cannot speak for the Indian government.”
Asked if lack of flight connectivity could have been part of the issue, Rizwan answered in the affirmative.
Rizwan was to be part of the two-member Pakistani delegation besides Syed Sajjad Haider, AAG, Pakistan.
While sources in the Indian government could not elaborate on the reasons as to why the Pakistani delegation did not make it, they said flight connectivity issues could be among the problems.
There are no direct flights between India and Pakistan at the moment.
Air and rail links between the two neigbours were suspended following the abrogation of the Article 370 of the Indian Constitution in 2019 that had earlier granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir.
There is also speculation that the financial crisis now engulfing Pakistan may have also prompted Islamabad to curtail international visits that involve high costs. A flight to India would have to take a long detour through connecting flights to other countries in the neighbourhood before making it to India.
In the absence of direct connecting flights, a special plane could also have been requisitioned—as is the standard practice is such cases—but that also would have entailed huge costs sending a very bad signal to the domestic constituency that is reeling under financial woes.
On Sunday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has asked Pakistan to declare the assets of top government officials and of their family members as part of the conditions to bring in a bailout for the economy that is in dire straits.
Pakistan adopting “austerity measures” in the backdrop of an economy deep-dive is nothing new.
In July 2019, the then Pakistan PM Imran Khan had taken a Qatar Airlines commercial aeroplane to fly to Washington on an official visit besides expressing wish to stay at the home of the Pakistani ambassador to the US in order to save money.
Having fought two major wars since 1947 besides the Kargil war in the summer of 1999, India and Pakistan find themselves to be unlikely members under the SCO platform.
With aims for political, economic, military cooperation, coordination and solidarity in Eurasia, SCO was formed in 2001 by China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan. Now SCO has eight full members including India and Pakistan.
