Relations between India and Pakistan have once again become tense after a rare militant attack in Indian Punjab. A gunfight ensued between the Indian security forces and three militants who went on the rampage in Dinanagar area of Gurdaspur District on July 27. The militants, who attacked a bus and a roadside eatery, finally holed up in an abandoned building after attacking a local police station, where they were killed after an exchange of fire that lasted about 11 hours. Four police officers including the local superintendent and three civilians died in the operation. The attack has once again endangered the start of any peace process between the two neighbouring states. It is another demonstration of the estranged relationship between the two nuclear armed neighbours. Every time they think of initiating high-level talks, spoilers come on the stage, bring all such efforts to a halt and derail the start of any peace process. It has happened more than once and there is no change in the responses of both states to such terrorist activities. Predictably, the Indian government has shown a knee-jerk reaction to the incident. Soon after the attack, New Delhi pointed the finger at Islamabad, claiming that these militants have infiltrated into Indian territory from Pakistan. So far, the terrorists seem successful in their agenda of perpetuating the rift in relations between both states. The attack has cast a shadow on India-Pakistan peace efforts. The incident has happened only weeks after Prime Minister Modi held talks with his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif to return to the negotiating table and take steps towards the normalisation of relations. After their meeting on the sidelines of the Ufa summit, there was a plan that top security officials from both countries will meet soon to defuse tensions on the border. But now all this could be put on hold as the Indian government has fallen into the trap of the spoilers. Till now, there are only speculations and the motive for the attack remains unclear in the absence of any claim of responsibility. There are unanswered questions: why Gurdaspur? Who were the attackers and what was the motive for the attack? All these questions can only be answered after a thorough investigation and probe into the incident. But the Indian media and top government officials have jumped to the conclusion that the terrorists belonged to Pakistan and they orchestrated violence at the behest of the Pakistani government. In the wake of this attack, the Indian chief minister has called off his scheduled meeting with the Pakistan high commissioner, which is regrettable. On its part, Pakistan’s foreign ministry has denied any involvement in the incident and condemned the attack in the strongest terms. Pakistan has extended sympathies to the government and people of India. The Indian government should have waited for the conclusion of the investigation or at least till someone claims responsibility for the attack. The governments of both states should be alert to the threat from peace process spoilers, whose sole agenda is to spread terror, put the fear of God in people and cause a rupture in relations between the two countries. Instead of indulging in mere speculations, the government of India should respond sensibly. The heads of both states should not let the opportunity provided by the Ufa summit to go waste after this terrorist attack. The peace process planned at Ufa should not be reversed. If the governments of India and Pakistan will not unite against the terrorists, there would be more chaos, tense relations and fierce fighting. Peace spoilers will not stop their activities. It is the responsibility of both states that they should not fall again and again into their trap. It is high time India and Pakistan resolve all outstanding issues including the core issue of Kashmir through a meaningful dialogue process. They should unite against the terrorists and foil their agenda of spoiling the peace process. Pakistan also needs to be more vigilant against terrorist outfits operating in the country while the Indian government should avoid knee-jerk reactions. Cross-border cooperation is the only solution to terrorism. *