FROM PAGE 3

The signatories called on both governments to ensure the ceasefire marks not just a temporary pause in violence but the beginning of a sustained diplomatic process.

They urged India and Pakistan to engage in direct and transparent communication -- or work through trusted intermediaries -- to reinforce the ceasefire and address the underlying causes of recurring tensions.

The civil society members also expressed deep concern at the recent escalation in hostilities between India and Pakistan following the deadly terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir.

“We mourn the loss of innocent lives and stand in solidarity with all victims of violence -- wherever they may be, whichever border they belong to,” the statement said.

It stressed that as two nuclear-armed states with a shared and turbulent history, India and Pakistan bear a heavy responsibility -- not only to their citizens but to the wider South Asian region, which remains densely populated and economically fragile. Any renewed conflict, they warned, would be catastrophic.

The statement categorically condemned all forms of terrorism and the deliberate targeting of civilians, calling for a full, impartial, and international investigation into the Pahalgam attack. “Justice must prevail -- but it must not come at the cost of more bloodshed,” it said.

The group also rejected the rise in dangerous rhetoric and communal hate speech being amplified via mainstream and social media, saying it heightens public tensions and puts religious minorities at risk.

They called on the international community to act with urgency and unity to prevent any breach of the ceasefire and urged Bangladesh -- alongside other SAARC nations -- to apply moral and political pressure on India and Pakistan to uphold peace.

Prominent signatories include human rights activists Hameeda Hossain and Sultana Kamal; senior lawyer ZI Khan Panna; Sara Hossain, honorary executive director of BLAST; Iftekharuzzaman, executive director of Transparency International Bangladesh; former ambassadors Tariq Karim and Farooq Sobhan; CAMPE Executive Director Rasheda K Chowdhury; photographer and writer Shahidul Alam; writer and activist Rahnuma Ahmed; eminent economist Anu Muhammad; Perween Hasan, vice-chancellor of Central Women’s University; Shaheen Anam, executive director of Manusher Jonno Foundation; Khushi Kabir, coordinator of Nijera Kori; as well as Dhaka University professors Gitiara Nasreen, Sumaiya Khair, and Samina Luthfa.