The announcement of a ceasefire between India and Pakistan often evokes cautious optimism across the subcontinent. The phrase sounds comforting, almost like a lullaby to a fatigued region. Yet for Kashmir, these proclamations have become ritualistic preludes to fresh funerals. The Line of Control may fall silent for a few weeks or months, but the violence finds new routes – through infiltration, proxy terrorism, and ideological subversion. And thus, even as diplomats trade pleasantries, Kashmir builds more rows in its cemeteries.

The challenge lies in the very nature of the India-Pakistan dynamic: a theatre of perpetual mistrust where gestures of goodwill are often laced with strategic deceit. History bears witness. From the Simla Agreement to the Lahore Declaration, from backchannel diplomacy to Track-II initiatives, each moment of reconciliation has sooner or later been overtaken by bullets and bloodshed. The Kargil intrusion followed the Lahore bus ride. The Pulwama attack preceded the Kartarpur corridor initiative. And now, the recent Pahalgam incident threatens to cast a long shadow over the latest diplomatic overtures.

At the core of this cyclical betrayal is Pakistan’s carefully calibrated ambiguity. While its political leadership mouths peace, its military-intelligence complex engineers conflict. The duality is not........

© Kashmir Images