(A chronological account of their recent activities having a
bearing on the Kargil infiltration)
Gen. Pervez Musharraf was
commissioned in the Pakistan Artillery in 1964. As a Lt.Col., he had commanded two
self-propelled artillery regiments and, as a Brigadier, an armoured division, an artillery
and an infantry brigade. He had also commanded various commando battalions of the Special
Services Group (SSG) in two tenures lasting a total of seven years, an infantry division
and a strike corps.
The staff appointments held by him were
as Brigade Major in an infantry brigade, Deputy Director, Military Operations, Deputy
Military Secretary and Director-General, Military Operations.
He had done a training course in the
Command and Staff College, Quetta, and two courses in the UK. He had served on the
faculties of the Command and Staff College, Quetta, and the War Wing of the National
Defence College.
He was the Corps Commander ( Strike 1st
Corps) at Mangla at the time of his appointment as the Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) by
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on October 7,1998. He superseded Lt.Gen. Ali Kuli Khan of his
batch, who was then the Chief of the General Staff, and Lt.Gen. Khalid Nawaz, the then
Quarter-Master General.
Whenever his predecessor Gen.Jehangir
Karamat travelled abroad, Gen.Musharraf, as the seniormost Corps Commander, used to act as
the COAS.
Mr.Nawaz Sharif overlooked the claims of
Lt.Gen.Ali Kuli Khan and Lt.Gen.Khalid Nawaz as they were alleged to have criticised
Mr.Sharif's style of governance at a Corps Commanders' conference presided over by Gen.
Karamat.
Belonging to an Urdu-speaking family of
Karachi, Gen. Musharraf, after joining the service, shifted his permanent residence to
Gujranwala in the Punjab and declared it as his hometown.
He has always had the reputation of being
professional and apolitical, lucid in his thinking and decisive in his actions.
His first visit to a field formation
after taking over was to Siachen on October 21,1998. Addressing the Pakistani troops
there, he said: "We are aware of the motives of the adversary and have the capability
to effectively defend the territorial integrity of the country…It is costing the
enemy heavily to keep troops in Siachen. The induction of armour and air defence units in
infantry role by the Indian army in Kashmir indicates its ever-decreasing capability to
face the freedom struggle there."
Talking to Pressmen at the Turkish
National Day reception on October 29,1998, the General said that the Pakistani
Constitution did not envisage a political role for the army. Addressing Pakistani troops
of the Kharian and Mangla garrisons the same day, he said that the army would remain
apolitical and added: " The Pakistan army is conscious of its mission and is fully
prepared to defeat the nefarious designs of the enemy….Don't be carried away by the
rhetoric of the Indians whose armed forces are totally exhausted and whose morale is at
its lowest ebb."
The "Dawn" of Karachi (November
8,1998) and some Urdu newspapers of Pakistan reported that the Taliban had set up 28
secret training camps for training volunteers for fighting against the Indian army in
Kashmir and that 1,350 volunteers were under training in these camps.
They quoted one Maulana Mohammad
Qasim, who described himself as a Taliban commander and as leader of a new
organisation in Kashmir called Lashkar Hyder, as saying as follows: "The Taliban
troops are in Kashmir to give a steel frame to the insurgency. The Taliban does not have
any links with the all-parties Hurriyat Committee.The Kashmiri militants are not
considered good enough to take the battle to a new level in Kashmir. That is why the
Taliban is in Kashmir.We are here to give a final push to enable the Kashmiris conquer the
Kashmir valley."
However, in a statement issued from
Kandahar on November 9,1998, Mulla Mutawakil, a spokesman of the Taliban, denied
the involvement of Taliban volunteers in Kashmir and claimed that Maulana Qasim and his
Afghan volunteers did not belong to the Taliban.He pointed out that the Taliban was still
fighting against its enemies in Afghanistan to consolidate its control over the country
and that the question of its getting involved in Kashmir did not, therefore, arise. He
criticised the Maulana's statement as meant to discredit the Taliban.
Talking to Pressmen at Karachi on
November 14,1998, Gen. Musharraf referred to reports of Indian plans to construct a
road in Siachen and said it would not be easy to construct a road on a glacier. He added:
"The Indians are welcome to make an attempt. The Pakistan Army knows its obligations
and is prepared to handle any situation there."
Talking to Pressmen at the UAE National
Day reception at Islamabad on December 2,1998, he said: "Pakistan has been closely
monitoring Indian military exercises as these smack of an aggressive posture. In response,
we are carrying out our own exercises to show to India our preparedness."
He said that reports that India was
constructing a pipeline to carry kerosene to Siachen were not correct and added that the
Indians were, however, constructing a road in the Siachen area. He assured the journalists
that Pakistan had an upper hand over India at the Siachen glacier and was placed in a
better position.
He further said: " The Pakistan army
is not involved in politics. We are not being dragged into politics. Of course, we are
involved conceptually, but our manpower is not involved."
Addressing troops exercising in southern
Punjab and upper Sindh on December 4,1998, Gen.Musharraf said: "By giving a matching
nuclear response to India, Pakistan's strategic deterrence had strengthened manifold. The
balance of power of which our adversary boasted now stood corrected."
On the recommendation of Gen. Musharraf,
the Pakistan Government decided on December 22,1998, to construct bomb-proof bunkers all
along the Line of Control (LOC), ostensibly for the protection of the civilian inhabitants
of the areas adjoining the LOC. It was announced that the bunkers would be constructed on
the mountain slopes and that, while RS.7.6 million had already been sanctioned for the
construction of such bunkers in the Northern Areas (Gilgit and Baltistan), the army had
been asked to work out how much money would be needed for the rest of the LOC.
Since the last week of December,
1998, the Pakistani press started carrying reports that Gen. Musharraf was pressing
the Government for a reorganisation of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (JCSC) in order
to give it a key role in nuclear command and control and to provide that the Chairman
would always be from the army, a departure from the past practice of rotating it amongst
the three services.
It was also stated that Gen. Musharraf
pointed out that Gen. Karamat, who held additional charge as JCSC Chairman, could not
complete his term and that, therefore, the post should be held by the army till the
re-organisation was introduced, instead of appointing Admiral Fasih Bokhari, the
seniormost amongst the three chiefs, as the Chairman.
The press also reported that Mr. Nawaz
Sharif was in a dilemma as to whether he should give additional charge to Gen. Musharraf
as was done in the case of Gen. Karamat or appoint Gen. Musharraf as the full-time
Chairman and nominate another officer as the COAS.
After taking over the responsibility for
the running of the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA), Gen. Musharraf said on
January 26,1999, that the threat faced by the country was internal and not external and
that this internal threat affected the economy. That was why the army agreed to take over
the responsibility for running the WAPDA.
He accompanied Mr.Nawaz Sharif on a visit
to Siachen on January 29,1999. Talking to accompanying Pressmen, the General said:
" There is zero chance of a war between India and Pakistan. We are not talking of
winning a war. We are talking of the degree of difficulties we can create for the other
side. Winning the battle means winning Kashmir."
Addressing a press conference at
Muzzafarabad in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK) on March 2,1999, Zafar Iqbal of the
Lashkar-e-Toiba, the militant wing of the Markaz Dawa Al Irshad, said that the Lashkar had
invited Osama bin Laden, who had been asked by the Taliban to leave Afghanistan, to join
the "freedom struggle" in Kashmir.He said that his organisation would welcome
bin Laden if he joined its struggle against the Indian army in Kashmir.
He added: "Osama is our erstwhile
colleague and we had fought jointly against the Soviet troops in Afghanistan. "
Talking to Pressmen in the lobby of the
National Assembly on March 11,1999, after President Mohammad Rafique Tarar's address to
the joint session of Parliament, Gen. Musharraf said: "Unless India is serious, talks
on Kashmir are useless. The Indians are only interested in verbosity. There will be no
separate agreement on Siachen with India.The Siachen dispute cannot be separated from the
Kashmir issue."
On March 12,1999, Gen. Musharraf called
on Mr.Nawaz Sharif for discussions on the security situation, following which Mr.Sharif
visited the headquarters of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) for discussions with the
ISI Director-General and his officers.
The "Dawn" of Karachi reported
the next day that Mr.Sharif briefed the army chief on his talks with Indian Prime Minister
A.B.Vajpayee at Lahore. According to the "Dawn", Mr.Sharif told the army chief
that he foresaw a breakthrough in the bilateral relations as India had, for the first
time, agreed to discuss the Kashmir issue. However, Mr.Sharif reportedly assured the army
chief that he would not compromise on principles and that, without the resolution of the
Kashmir issue, there could be no improvement in bilateral relations. He also reportedly
ruled out the normalisation of trade relations till the Kashmir issue was resolved.
During his discussions with the ISI
officers, Mr.Sharif reportedly assured them that his Government would continue to provide
political and moral support to the Kashmiris despite the Lahore Declaration.
Talking to Pressmen after an investiture
ceremony at the President's House on March 23,1999, Gen. Musharraf said: " There is
nothing wrong in talks and in the launch of a bus service to India. The Kashmir problem
should not be linked to other issues. It must not be construed from the talks that
Pakistan has changed its position on Kashmir. There is no harm in starting trade with
India. In my view, our position on Kashmir will continue to be the same even if we
establish trade relations with India."
The "Frontier Post" of Peshawar
reported on March 29,1999, that Mr.Nawaz Sharif was holding discussions with his father,
Mr.Mohammad Sharif, and senior members of his Cabinet on the advisability of replacing
Gen. Musharraf as the COAS, as the latter was opposing any compromise with India on the
Kashmir issue. This was, however, not corroborated by other sections of the media.
The Pakistan Government announced on
March 31,1999, the postponement of the 10-day official visit of Gen. Musharraf to China,
which was to have started on April 5,1999, to the second half of May. The visit of Mr. Li
Peng, Chairman of China's National People's Congress, to Pakistan from April 8 was given
as the reason. It was stated that since the Chinese Military Attache in Pakistan would be
required to stay in Pakistan during Mr. Li Peng's visit, it would not have been possible
for him to accompany Gen. Musharraf.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visited the
Army Headquarters at Rawalpindi for eight hours on April 2,1999. It was stated that he
held detailed discussions with the army chief and his officers on the proposed
re-organisation of the JCSC and the setting-up of a nuclear command and control
authority.
The Government announced on April
9,1999, that Gen. Musharraf would hold additional charge as the Chairman of the JCSC for
one year. It was stated that he would also act as the Strategic Commander of Pakistan's
nuclear force. The Pakistani Press reported that during this period, Gen. Musharraf would
prepare detailed proposals for the JCSC re-organisation, get them approved by the
Government and have them implemented.
In an interview to "The Nation"
(April 9,1999) from Muzzafarabad, Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, the Amir of the
Lashkar-e-Toiba, said: "We are extending our network in India and carried out attacks
on Indian installations successfully in Himachal Pradesh last year. To set up Mujahideen
networks across India is our target. We are preparing the Muslims of India against India
and when they are ready, it will be the start of the disintegration of India."
He also said that the Lashkar volunteers
in Kashmir had been given the task of attacking Indian artillery positions along the
LOC.
Speaking on the "Security
Environment of Pakistan" at the English-Speaking Union of Pakistan at Karachi on
April 13,1999, Gen. Musharraf made the following points:
(a). There seemed to be a school of
thought in Pakistan which held that Pakistan should not support the Taliban because of its
ultraconservative orientation. But, Pakistan had little choice in the matter. The fall of
the Taliban could lead to the disintegration of Afghanistan. It would, therefore, be
better to support it and to bring it around to a more liberal orientation.
(b). The Army took up civilian tasks to
save Pakistan's economy. It would not have done so if there had been a civilian outfit
capable of performing these tasks.
©. Despite India's acquisition of a huge
arms stockpile, there was no danger of a conventional war because, firstly, India had only
a two to one superiority over Pakistan whereas a three to one superiority was needed for a
conventional attack and, secondly, Pakistan, even with its current limitations, could
cause serious damage to India in a conventional war.
(d). Even if the Kashmir issue was
resolved, "our problems with India may not end because India wanted to keep Pakistan
weak and, towards that end, would continue to wage a low-intensity war against Pakistan.
This is because Pakistan is a thorn in India's side, constantly thwarting India's ambition
to become a world power."
Addressing a ceremonial parade at the
Pakistan Military Academy at Kakul on April 17,1999, the General said: " The army is
committed to ideals of democracy and firmly believes in its political
neutrality."
The following questions have arisen after
the large-scale infiltration of mercenaries, backed by Pakistan army regulars, in the
Kargil-Dras sector and their attacks on the Indian army and civilian population of the
area:
(a). Who are these infiltrators?
(b). What has been the role of the
Pakistan army and the ISI?
(c) Are there
differences between Mr.Nawaz Sharif and Gen.Musharraf and was Mr. Sharif in the
picture?
Western correspondents based in New Delhi and Islamabad,
quoting Western intelligence officers based in these countries, have reported as
follows:
(a). The infiltrators are a mixed
force of Pakistanis, Afghans, Kashmiris and even British Muslims. Some of them are
linked to bin Laden.
(b). The infiltration has all the
hallmarks of an ISI operation.
(c) An operation of this
nature could not have been launched without the knowledge of Mr.Nawaz Sharif.
Mr.Julian West of the "Electronic Telegraph" (May
30,1999) reports as follows:
(a). "A group of British Islamic
fundamentalists are reported to be among the insurgents …According to Western
intelligence sources, six Britons are reported to have recently received training in
mountain techniques and high-altitude warfare."
(b)."The British Muslims are among a
number of Islamic guerillas being trained in remote valleys near Skardu, in Pakistani
Kashmir, just north of the LOC from Kargil…. Their instructor reportedly claimed that
he was being paid Pound Sterling 30 a day---probably by Pakistan's military intelligence
agency ISI."
©.The preparation of a mixed force of
Afghan, Kashmiri, Pakistani and even British Muslim guerillas, trained to fight at high
altitudes, reinforces India's contention that the current conflict was well planned. It
also further confirms long-standing reports that Pakistan employs a loose network of
international terrorists as well as Pakistani army regulars and Kashmiri militants-- not
only for operations in Afghanistan, but also for intrusions into Indian Kashmir.
(d). "Western intelligence has long
believed that various Muslim dissident groups in Britain are front organisations for
Islamic extremism, funded by an international network of wealthy Muslims and often
sponsored by Pakistani and Arab intelligence agencies."
(e)."Although the Indian army claims
that these are Pakistani army regulars in disguise, Western intelligence believes that
many are Afghan, Pakistani and even international Muslim militants backed by Pakistan's
ISI.. Principal amongst these is Al Badr, a terrorist group linked to Osama bin
Laden…."
(f). An intelligence source, who believes
about 3,000 to 5,000 militants are currently being trained in various camps run by
Pakistani intelligence in Pakistan and possibly in Afghanistan, said: "This current
operation (in Kargil) has all the hallmarks of the ISI."
(g). "The operation almost certainly
has the backing of the ISI and could not have been launched without the knowledge of Prime
Minister Nawaz Sharif."
Apart from Al Badr of bin Laden mentioned
by Western intelligence sources, other organisations which have claimed responsibility for
the occupation of the ridges in the Kargil-Dras sector are:
(a). The Lashkar-e-Toiba. "The
Times" of UK correspondent in Islamabad (May 31) has quoted Abdullah Muntazir of the
Lashkar as saying as follows: " We have Muslim volunteers from all over the world
coming to join the jihad….A large number of our fighters have come from the Afghan
province of Nuristan. " The correspondent also reported that at least four other
Pakistan-backed militant groups were recruiting people to fight in Kashmir.
(b). The United Jihad Council of
Muzzafarabad , which claims to be a united front of 14 unnamed organisations. It is headed
by Syed Salahuddin belonging to one faction of the Hizbul Mujahideen. The Hizbul
Mujahideen works in close concert with the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HUM), the Jammat-e-Islami
of Pakistan and the Hizb-e-Islami of Gulbuddin Heckmatyar of Afghanistan.Since the US
declared the HUM as an international terrorist organisation in October, 1997, its
volunteers operating in Kashmir use the cover of the Hizbul Mujahideen.
The indications are that the infiltration
is an operation conceived, planned and executed by the ISI under the over-all direction of
Lt.Gen. (Retd) Javed Nasir, Principal Adviser to Mr.Sharif on intelligence matters,
with the logistic and firepower support of the Pakistan army. Since Lt.Gen. Nasir works
from the residential office of Mr.Sharif and has been a close personal friend of Mr.Sharif
for nearly a decade, he would not have undertaken such an operation without the approval
of Mr.Sharif.
A study of the statements and actions of
Gen. Musharraf does not bear out reports of any serious differences between him and
Mr.Sharif.
B.Raman
2.6.99
(The writer is Additional Secretary (Retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of
India, and presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai.
E-Mail: corde@vsnl.com )
