‘Friendship exists despite everything’

Jan 25, 2013 |

Protests against their participation following the LoC tension notwithstanding, two Pakistani authors struck an emotional chord at the Jaipur Literature Festival saying friendship exists between the neighbours “despite everything”.

“What happened was a tragic event. Human life is sacred. There is nothing more important than it. If there is a feeling in India that the Pakistani authors should not participate in the festival, I completely understand this sentiment,” M.A. Farooqui, author of Between Clay and Dust said. He was participating in a session along with countryman Jamil Ahmed. They were in conversation with Ameena Saiyid, managing director of Oxford University Press in Pakistan. Though fellow writer Mohammad Hanif was also scheduled to participate, he could not make it to the session due to unstated reasons.

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