Villain of Kargil war Pervez Musharraf dies in exile

Musharraf, who passed away in Dubai on February 5th, has been the subject of many headlines and op-eds across the Indian subcontinent. The General’s tryst with the limelight started in October 1999, when he overthrew the elected PM Nawaz Sharif, and declared himself the President of Pakistan in 2001.General Musharraf continued in power till August 2008, when he was finally ousted. Overseeing several meetings with Indian prime ministers – from Atal Bihari Vajpayee to Manmohan Singh, the General continued to be known as the engineer of the Kargil War in India however.Times Special talks about the General and his influence on the Indian subcontinent with Omer Farooq, the Times of India Islamabad correspondent.Musharraf, a former special forces commando, became president with the help of a bloodless military coup. Less than two years after Musharraf seized power, Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan drew the US’s attention as Al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden launched the September 11, 2001, attacks from Afghanistan.Next day, then American Secretary of State Colin Powell told Musharraf that Pakistan would either be “with us or against us.” Musharraf chose to side with the US. Pakistan became a crucial transit point for NATO supplies headed to landlocked Afghanistan.It was however, the Kargil misadventure that Indians remember General Pervez Musharraf the most for. As the army chief, Musharaff was held responsible for the Kargil war, which had far reaching consequences.It escalated tensions between India and Pakistan, and halted a rare opportunity for peace that had flourished when Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee came to Lahore in February 1999 in the cross-border friendship bus.The Kargil war also starkly highlighted the tension between the civil and military leadership. It culminated in Nawaz Sharif’s decision to sack General Musharraf while he was on a flight back from Colombo to Pakistan. This triggered the military takeover and the overthrow of the elected government of Sharif in October 1999.Interestingly though, despite his reputation as the person responsible for the Kargil War, he advocated for peace with India. It was during his tenure that Pakistan and India reportedly came the closest to a settlement on the Kashmir issue.General Pervez Musharraf leaves behind a legacy that is visible even today. His decision to ally with the United States following the 9/11 terror attacks may have got him global recognition but it also spawned the Pakistan Taliban, which is wreaking havoc at present.His time in power was marred with controversy and he was accused of widespread human rights abuses and oppression.His term was punctuated by two failed assassination attempts in 2003. In November 2007, he declared a state of emergency, suspended Pakistan’s constitution, replaced the chief judge and blacked out independent TV outlets. Audio Production: Anil Chauhan