Pak ex-army chief arrives, presses for bilateral talks

Pak ex-army chief arrives, presses for bilateral talks
SONIA TRIKHA

NEW DELHI, JAN 27: A General from Pakistan was in New Delhi today looking for ``a message of reassurance from its (India's) position of strength''. He wanted the dialogue between the two nations to start and insisted that the Hurriyat must be allowed to go to Pakistan.

His reasons: If the Hurriyat is not exposed to dialogue, the political face of the Kashmir dispute will die and the only face of the Valley will be one of violence.

But this general was not Pervez Musharraf. It was Jahangir Karamat, the man who was deposed by Nawaz Sharif to make way for Musharraf. The extent of attention that he received, however, made him ask in wonder if people in India had confused him for Musharraf. His message too made it hard to tell him apart from the general in-charge in the neighbouring country.

The ex-Army chief is in New Delhi for the 3rd Asian Security Conference but spent virtually the entire day fielding questions on Indo-Pak relations and Pakistan's involvement with terrorist groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed.

After much persuasion when The Indian Express finally spoke to him, Karamat did not deny Pakistan's involvement in ``jehadi'' groups or commitment to their support, but his refrain was ``there must be a dialogue between the two states''.

While insisting that he was not speaking in any official capacity, Karamat's response to the apparently intractable position that Pakistan wants a dialogue but India wants Pakistan to rein in the militant groups, was that ``the political face of the struggle in Kashmir, which is seeking recognition, must be allowed to speak and travel and that may give them reason to put violence on the backburner''.

Karamat conceded the recipocity in overtures between the two states following the Ramzan ceasefire but there is clearly no understanding of the fact that ``conflict may no longer be the winning strategy''.

Bringing up the issue of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's bus visit, Karamat suggests the reason for their failure lies squarely with the Indian side. ``That opportunity was lost because enough homework and preparation had not preceded that visit.'' According to the general, India failed to register the ground realities and the eroding power base of Nawaz Sharif before arriving in Lahore.

Justifying his own position as a spokesperson for peace after having been a general in the hostile Pakistani armed forces, Karamat said: ``When retired military people talk of dialogue and are asked why we did not do anything when we were in positions of influence, it is a justified question because the younger generation is getting quite impatient with the way things are being handled. I think the reason is that when you have a responsibility you only think of fulfilling it. It is when you have the benefit of hindsight that you see the situation more comprehensively''.

Speaking on the allegation that Pakistan is a failed State where religious fundamentalists run amok, Karamat was unequivocal. ``The internal situation in Pakistan is much misunderstood. There are no moulvis running on the streets. The financial institutions are working there.''

On the United States, Karamat's view was that the superpower's ``evolving bilateral relations should have a regional context''. In plainspeak, it means India-Pakistan relations must remain a factor in Indo-US relations. That this has not been the case in recent months is a matter for concern in Islamabad.

On nuclear deterrence, Karamat said the situation is complicated because India defines its deterrence ``perhaps'' in relation to China and Pakistan defines it in relation to India. But it is clear that Pakistan and India have to find a minimum deterrence in the context of their proximity and hostility. The past and the present conditions must not be allowed to jeopardise the future.