n Tell me of your experience in dealing with (Bill) Clinton.

My visit took place in his first term. I did request him to visit India but in his first term that wasn’t possible. So Mrs Clinton came here. I think we were quite happy with the visit. And I believe she was also happy. After that...

• Will you tell me how intense was the pressure on you at that time? Kashmir erupting; crises in Babri Masjid, Charar-e-Sharief; pressure on human rights and proliferation.

The pressure on human rights is very interesting. We used to get a missive every day or every three days from Amnesty International. The answer to that was we had our own human rights commission. And after that Amnesty International just forgot about India.

• But the pressure from America? Don’t test, don’t test?

They have been saying it since Panditji’s time and what is new about it? We didn’t quite oblige, that’s also not new.

• But that is also something on which history has raised a question mark. Is it true that we came close to testing but did not under American pressure?

This is something I have answered several times — this secret will perish along with me. It will never come out of my mouth. Lots of books have been written — all off the mark. Some were written less off, some very much off...You take a decision, you don’t take it in the air. And those characteristics which led to that decision are very important in statecraft. You don’t go about bragging about them or publicising them. I am a believer in confidentiality in politics at a particular level.

... contd.