An Open Letter To Pervez Musharraf

My dear General,

What were you thinking?

What were you thinking when you tacitly intruded into Kargil in 1999?
What were you thinking when you pulled off your coup in Pakistan?
What were you thinking when you subverted your country's constitution and imposed yourself as the 'president'?
What were you thinking when you declared 'War on Terror' while supporting the very same terror infrastructure?
What were you thinking when you wrote your so called 'memoirs'?

Was it the $1 Million advance from Simon & Schuster? Or was it the impending elections in Pakistan that prompted you to write that book? Whatever it be, you sure seem to have a penchant for controversy and a panache for adapting to vicissitudes. Congratulations on selecting the name for your book - In The Line Of Fire. It sure is self fulfilling, General, it definitely puts you directly in the line of fire all over again...

With elections barely a year away, and Uncle Sam breathing down your neck, cajoling you to 'restore democracy', this certainly is the best thing you could do. All the while, bandying about your so-called efforts at contributing in the war against terror. Is it mere coincidence that you suggested all those schemes and plans to Dr.Manmohan Singh a week before you actually launched the book? You go to extreme lengths to provoke the Indian Govt. so you can turn around and blame India of high-handedness in case the talks fail.

I can't decide whether you are an imbecile or an ignoramus. Or maybe just a shrewd political manipulator. Those allegations of India's buildup in the Northern Sector pre-Kargil '99 are not only preposterous, baseless and unsubstantiated; they are downright subversive and insulting. It's not worth commenting on, to be honest.

You say that you won a tactical victory, General Musharraf. I hope you say that to yourself in front of the mirror each day to boost your political libido. You certainly need it. Sometimes the only way one can survive is by living in self-denial. Point proven in your case.

I hate to break this to you General, but you have failed. You failed as the leader of Pakistan's armed forces, you failed as a 'President' and now you have failed as a writer as well.

Good luck General. You need it. I sincerely hope that you don't indulge in any military adventurism with India again. I was at the border recently and had occasion to meet our troops there. They can't wait to teach you a lesson once again.

Cheers!

P.S. I hope you have the money stashed away in a Swiss bank account. You're gonna need it.

Footnote to Dr. Manmohan Singh:
My dear PM,

I have tremendous respect for you, your integrity and your ability. To be honest, I wasn't sure you were best suited to lead our country back in 2004. I am still not convinced, but you certainly are leagues ahead of the 'competition'. It's refreshing to have someone like you at the post of PM.

That said, I hope you have no plans whatsoever of reneging control over J & K to some pseudo-joint control mechanism. You will be insulting the sacrifice of every jawan and the sensibility of every Indian if you do so. Fighting on is a bitter pill and it's not everyone's cup of tea. I do hope you have the gumption to carry on and not undo what has been built up slowly and with great pain in the past.

Best wishes.