The Congress party is once again back at the helm of affairs in India. The less economically privileged and the minorities – especially the Muslim minorities in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh – have spoken loudly and unambiguously in India's 14th general elections throwing the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) out of power. The visible trend in the 2004 election was that national issues were completely surpassed by state and local issues and the latter played a decisive role in guiding the voters. These elections were won and lost on issues like good roads, clean drinking water, access to electricity and jobs. Indian foreign policy, did not figure prominently during the election campaign.

The change of guard in New Delhi will have implications for the India-Pakistan peace process. Vajpayee’s goodwill gesture from Srinagar was well received in Pakistan. Prime Minister Zafarullah Jamali responded positively not only in terms of rhetoric but in taking practical initiatives to repay the goodwill gesture. The return of the Congress to power and its dependence on the left parties could have a profound effect on the country's foreign policy. How does it affect Indo-Pak attempts to normalize relations? What would be the future of the ongoing peace process? Will the Congress continue the NDA’s policy towards Pakistan and pursue a composite dialogue that would tackle all issues, including Kashmir, for which a solution "satisfactory to both sides" would be found? It is too difficult to predict the exact impact of the Congress victory over the peace process at this time. But tentative assessments can be made.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in his first press conference on 20 May 2004 stated that, “My government will seek the most friendly relations with Pakistan. We will take all measures to ensure a solution to solve the India-Pakistan problem. We look to the future with hope. Who thought that the Berlin Wall would fall some 15 years back? It will be our effort, without sacrificing our national security, to carry out a dialogue with Pakistanâ€Â