Few public intellectuals in the country command attention across ideological lines the way Shashi Tharoor does. Whether one agrees with him or not, his writing compels engagement, and his arguments invite reflection. That is why his recent article on Pakistan in a national newspaper is particularly disappointing. Not because it lacks goodwill or rhetorical finesse, but because it rests on false, make-believe assumptions. Tharoor begins by stating that for more than two decades, “the trajectory of India-Pakistan relations has followed a grimly familiar pattern: cautious overtures, hopeful summits, and then, inevitably, a terrorist attack that derails the process”. This seems...