It is easy to think the worst of the other, but it does not make us safer, Navjot Singh Sidhu said. (Photo: Getty)

Punjab minister and Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu on Thursday advocated talks with Pakistan and said that the solution to the tensions between the two countries is peace. In a letter, titled "We have a choice", Navjot Sidhu said the belief that only in thinking the worst "they can protect and defend" is a "mirage".

Navjot Singh Sidhu said, "On both sides of the border, tacticians are planning for the worst. They must think the worst of one another, because only in thinking the worst do they believe that they can protect and defend. But this belief is a mirage."

"I have seen the pain of our nation etched on the faces of the families of our martyrs. Fear breeds fear. Fear of dialogue, fear of new conversation, fear of thinking differently, fears of ideas that challenge those at the top. Fear if the dark room in which negatives are developed," he said.

"It is easy to think the worst of the other, but it does not make us safer."

Asserting that "a community cannot be blamed for the actions of a few", he said, "A sentiment of our prime minister echoed, when he said: Our fight is against terrorism and enemies of humanity. Our fight is for Kashmir not against Kashmir, not against Kashmiris."

"I stand by my conviction that dialogue and diplomatic pressure will count for a great deal in seeking a long-term solution to the presence and practice of terror outfits that operate within and across the border. The solution is peace, development and progress. Not unemployment hatred and fear," he said.