'It Couldn't Be Orchestrated'

On his five-day visit to Punjab, the chief minister of Pakistani Punjab, Pervaiz Elahi, was publicly quite circumspect, smiling politely and extremely conscious of what he spoke. Away from the media glare, he was the quintessential Punjabi: earthy, guffawing at remarks and shooting straight from the heart. Chander Suta Dogra met Elahi at a dinner hosted by Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh at the Moti Bagh Palace in Patiala. Excerpts from the interview:

The people-to-people exchanges of the last few months have opened a floodgate of emotions on both sides. How do you view this?
This is a natural response of the people towards their own kind. It's a reflection of the spirit of Punjabiyat that binds the two Punjabs. The ripples from these meetings will reach the powers-that-be in both countries, because it shows the direction the people want to take.

Many people have begun talking of dismantling the borders and becoming one again. Is it realistic? Do you think Punjabi dosti could hold the key to better relations between the two countries?
The two Punjabs have a lot in common with each other and this commonality has enough potential to bridge many other gaps which can eventually lead to the betterment of both the states. We have the same language, the same customs and same traditions. It wouldn't be nice to let this shared culture survive in isolation.

What next?
Inshallah, we will build upon the exchange (the sports meet). The only way to go now is forward. I have proposed that research scholars from the Punjab agricultural universities in Ludhiana and Faisalabad should meet and learn from each other. Similarly, we are inviting the PHD chamber of commerce and industry to Lahore to explore trade possibilities. But more than anything else, I'm keen on more joint research on the Punjabi language. We are also going to prepare a software to transliterate Punjabi books written in Gurmukhi to Shahmukhi (the script used to write Punjabi in Pakistan) so that our people can read the literature written in your Punjab.

What memories are you taking back with you?
It's a matter of great satisfaction for me that what all Amarinder Singh and I had planned during Amarinder's visit to Lahore earlier this year has come true. Games are the best way to bring people close together. This is a great beginning and we have decided to make it an annual affair. The next Indo-Pak Punjab Games will be held in Lahore. The aim is to promote Punjab-specific games like kabaddi and wrestling. I'm going home with memories of overwhelming affection showered on me by my Punjabi brethren on this side of the border. The manner in which the people tumbled out of the villages to welcome us, lining the roads in Amritsar on both sides, all of this could not be orchestrated. I felt very comfortable in this milieu.