India and SAARC : ‘Same Bed, Different Dreams’?

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The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) was inaugurated with an aim to boost South Asian regionalism guaranteeing wider development in almost all sectors. The“neverending-rivalry”between Pakistan and India, mutual mistrust among actors involved and lack of statesmanship among the South Asian leaders, however, has jeopardized the entire mechanism of regional integration and cooperation. As the dominant stakeholder of the SAARC region, India was expected to take the lead in stimulating SAARC activities. But, in reality, a consensus regarding the role of India as the pivotal power within the grouping, and a consensus shared by the pivot itself could not be settled over the last three decades. Moreover, India claims that other South Asian nations led by Pakistan approaches to“ganging up”against India, forging a united front under the umbrella of SAARC. Although India has shown interest in SAARC on many occasions, its periodic reluctance towards the regional body is apparent in the guise of‛living together, but acting differently'.

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