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| Copies of Musharraf's book leaked | | Pak President blames India for Kargil conflict | |
B L KAK
NEW DELHI, SEPT. 24: Gen. Parvez Musharraf has squarely blamed India for the 1999 Kargil conflict. Hisa forthcoming autobiography titled 'In Line of Fire' has claimed that the conflict took place because of India's attempts to find a casus belli by reporting 'make-belief attacks' from the Pakistani side. Meaning of casus belli is an event or politcal occurrence that brings about a declaration of war.
Gen. Musharraf's book is slated to be launched in New York on Monday, September 25, by the UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan. Copies of the book have been leaked. It was reported on Sunday that the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) in New Delhi has got excess to excerpts of the book on chapters dealing with Kashmir, including Kargil standoff. The book says: "The Indian forces have been creeping forward since and despite the Shimla Agreement and it was because of this that the Pakistan Army decided to reinforce Pakistan's forward positions along the Line of Control".
Gen. Musharraf has lket it be known that Pakistani maneuvers were conducted flawlessly with the "Indians being completely oblivious of Pakistan's new strength". He adds: "India's response was a steady build-up throughout the month of May 1998." "In international fora, India exploited the situation, which had a demoralising effect on Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif", Gen. Musharraf states.
He describes Kargil as "a landmark in the history of the Pakistan Army" as just five units "in support of freedom fighters" compelled the Indians to employ more than four divisions. He describes the withdrawal 'as no negotiation at all', but a capitulation by Nawaz Sharif to demands made by US President, Bill Clinton.
In a sensational revelation, Gen. Musharraf claims that Nawaz Sharif was, in fact, involved throughout the planning and execution of the plan, adding that it was because of his (Musharraf's) personal foresight that the 'Indian plan of an offensive was pre-empted'. "I would like to state emphatically that whatever movement has taken place so far in the direction of finding a solution to Kashmir is owed considerably to the Kargil conflict," Gen Musharraf claims.
On the Agra Summit, Gen Musharraf squarely blames Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's advisers for the failure of the talks. "I met Prime Minister Vajpayee at 11 o'clock that night in an extremely sombre mood. I told him very bluntly that there seemed to be someone above the two of us who had the power to overrule us. I also said that both of us had been humiliated. He just sat there speechless ..." Gen Musharraf says. Gen. Musharraf, however, describes Vajpayee as "positive and genuine," adding that the initial flexibility displayed by Vajpayee had diminished later. "I think the Indian establishment - the bureaucrats, diplomats and the intelligence agencies and perhaps even the military -- has had the better of him", Gen. Musharraf writes.
In another chapter, Gen Musharraf conceded that it has become difficult for Pakistan to sustain its position on Kashmir when the Mujahideen in "Held Kashmir are found guilty of terrorist activities in other parts of India and around the world... My efforts towards rapprochement with India and the significant thaw in our relations have saved Pakistan to a large extent from the blame of abetting what the world calls terrorism and what we call freedom struggle in Indian-held Kashmir".
In his book, divided into six sections, Gen Musharraf also dwells on the December 2003 attack on him, on the former Prime Ministers of Pakistan, his childhood, his family's move from Delhi to Karachi and the future General's antics as a naughty and irrepressible schoolboy. Through much of the book Gen Musharraf is strongly critical of former Premiers, Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif. |
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