Arif Jamal is a Pakistani journalist and South Asia expert based in America. His first book Shadow War analysed the Pakistan army's operations in Kashmir. Having researched the Lashkar-e-Taiba for his new book Call for Transnational Jihad, Jamal spoke with Aarti Tikoo Singh about challenges Pakistani politicians face in battling terror groups, dynamics between Nawaz Sharif and Narendra Modi, his view of the Pakistani military and why he's a harsh critic of Imran Khan:
After Nawaz Sharif became Pakistan's PM, there were hopes for stability. Yet, Pakistan's making news for terror strikes, blasphemy cases, persecuting journalists, etc why?
Well, i think Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif sincerely wants to create peace in Pakistan.
However, he cannot achieve this goal without reining in the Pakistani military . While Islamist proteges of the Pakistani military kill their opponents, the military itself is involved in the indiscriminate murders of nationalists and secularists in Balochistan and Sindh as well as of journalists.
The Sharif government is helpless before the military . On the one hand, the Pakistani military has unleashed Islamist organisations like the Jamat-ud-Dawa (JuD) to turn Baloch and Sindhi nationalists and secularists into jihadists. On the other hand, they kidnap, tor torture and kill those they consider incorrigible.
Recently , the Pakistani military unleashed forces against the Geo group. One of the allegations against the group is that Geo revealed the Pakistani identity of Ajmal Kasab, one of the 10 terrorists arrested during the November 2008 Mumbai attacks. Despite these strains, the first meeting between PM Sharif and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been termed positive.
Can the two make real progress on tough topics like Kashmir?
I think PM Sharif has a sincere desire for peace with India and inside Pakistan he understands this is the best thing that can happen to Pakistan. There is a tremendous desire among Pakistani politicians to resolve Kashmir and other conflicts with India Pakistani politicians understand that conflicts with India are bad for both Pakistan's democracy and economy .
However, the Pakistani military plays a disproportionate role in politics. The Pakistani military will never allow friendly relations with India because that means closing the jihad factory.
Now, i hope I'm proved wrong but it seems the Pakistani military would be eventually defeated by Muslim extremists. If that happens, it will spell disaster.
Given the limitations on Pakistani politicians, why are you such a harsh critic of Imran Khan and his party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI)? Isn't this a strong political alternative?
I am a harsh critic of Imran Khan for several reasons including how he supports introducing Islamic punishments in Pakistan but does not want us to talk about his life.
Imran Khan can also do anything for personal or political gains. Imran Khan was the only Pakistani politician who criticised a ban on the JuD in 2008 in the wake of the Mumbai attacks.
He's playing into the hands of the Pakistani military and jihadists just to be able to come to power. No wonder Imran Khan and Hafiz Saeed are leading the military's campaign against the Geo group.
It may come as a surprise that the political vocabulary , such as national ghariat and hameeyat, that Imran uses were terms introduced by Hafiz Saeed in the early 1990s the PTI is soft Taliban.
http://epaperbeta.timesofindia.com/index.aspx?eid=31807&dt=20140623
So there it is. Why should the Pakistan Army go after the LeT, JeM etc? According to the PA's doctrine, these terror groups would form the first line of defence against any future Indian attack. Secondly, they are the army's 'strategic assets' for their proxy wars against India and Afghanistan.
The main reason why the PA is loathe to solve the Kashmir issue is that if peace reigns and the issue is solved, of what use would the Pakistan Army be? Their stock would fall considerably. They would never want to be sidelined in Pakistani society. They need a raison d'etre not only for their very existence, but to remain the main power center in Pakistan permanently. And that means an unsolved Kashmir dispute! They need the Kashmir pot to keep boiling. Otherwise, why would Pakistan need an army of 600,000 and a huge nuke arsenal (which is nothing but a white elephant), and waste precious resources on maintaining them?
***********************
Letter from Maharaja Hari Singh
to Lord Mountbatten
on the eve of Pak invasion on J&K in 1947
My dear Lord Mountbatten,
I have to inform Your Excellency that a grave emergency has arisen in
my State and request the immediate assistance of your Government. As
Your Excellency is aware,the State of Jammu and Kashmir has not
acceded to either the Dominion of India or Pakistan. Geographically
my State is contiguous wit h both of them. Besides, my State has a
common boundary with the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and with
China. In their external relations the Dominion of India and Pakistan
cannot ignore this fact. I wanted to take time to decide to which
Dominion I should accede or whether it is not in the best interests
of both the Dominions and of my State to stand independent, of course
with friendly and cordial relations with both. I accordingly
approached the Dominions of India and Pakistan to enter into
standstill agreement with my State. The Pakistan Government accepted
this arrangement. The Dominion of India desired further discussion
with representatives of my Government. I could not arrange this in
view of the developments indicated below. ln fact the Pakistan
Goernment under the standstill agreement is operating the post and
telegraph system inside the State. Though we have got a standstill
agreement with the Pakistan Government, lhe Govemment permitted a
steady and increasing strangulation of supplies like food, salt and
petrol to my State.
Afridis, soldiers in plain clothes, and desperadoes wnh modern
weapons have been allowed to infiltrate into the State, at first in
the Poonch area, then from Sia1kot and finally in a mass in the area
adjoining-Hazara district on the Ramkote side. The result has been
that the limited number of troops at the disposal of the State had to be dispersed and thus had to face the enemy at several points
simultaneously, so that it has become difficult to stop the wanton
destruction of life ad property and the looting of the Mahura power
house, which supplies electric current to the whole of Srinagar and
which has been burnt. The number of women who have been kidnpped and
raped makes my heart bleed. The wild forces thus let loose on the
State are marching on with the aim of capturing Srinagar, the summer
capital of my government, as a first step to overrunning the whole
State.The mass infiltration of tribesman drawn from distant areas of
the North-West Frontier Province, coming regularly in motortrucks,
using the Manwehra-Mazaffarabad road and fully armed with up-to-date
weapons, cannot possibly be done without the knowledge of the
Provincial Govemment of the North-West Frontier Province and the
Government of Pakistan. Inspite of repeated appeals made by my
Government no attempt has been made to check these raiders or to stop
them from coming into my State. In fact, both radio and the Press of
Pakistan have reported these occurences. The Pakistan radio even put
out the story that a provisional government has been set up in
Kashmir. The people of my State, both Muslims and non-Muslims,
generally have taken no part at all.
With the conditions obtaining at present in my State and the great
emergency of the situation as it exists, I have no option but to ask
for help from the Indian Dominion. Naturally they cannot send the
help asked for by me without my State acceding to the Dominion of
India. I have accordingly decided to do so, and I attach the
instrument of accession for acceptance by your Government. The other
alternative is to leave my state and people to free booters. On this
basis no civilised government can exist or be maintained.
This alternative I will never allow to happen so long as I am the
ruler of the State and I have life to defend my country. I may also
inform your Excellency's Government that it is my intention at once
to set up an interim government and to ask Sheikh Abdullah to carry
the responsibilities in this emergency with my Prime Minister.
If my State is to be saved, immediate assistance must be available at
Srinagar. Mr. V.P. Menon is fully aware of the gravity of the
situation and will explain it to you, if further explanation is
needed.
In haste and with kindest regards,
Yours sincerely,
Hari Singh
October 26, 1947
Did you listen when the Oath of Prime Minister of India was taken by Modi? That oath says that he swears he will create Akhad Bharat
These people, like the author of this article, keep gonna run their mouth an spilling out their rotten brains.
