Chronicling the Life in Shadows of a Spymaster

By Mushtaq Ul Haq Ahmad Sikander, New Age Islam 6 July 2023 Every country cultivates and nurtures spies. They are essential for securing the national and security interests of a state. They work in oblivion, away from any limelight and most of the times their dedication and sacrifices remain unsung. Many times, a spy working in a hostile, enemy country if trapped is disowned by the parent country and discarded like trash. This is the fate of most spies who are used, exploited and then disowned by their countries, for diplomatic, trade and other policies. The spies are expendables for most nations, as they sign up for a life full of risk and retribution. There are various pull factors that drive youth to opt for a world full of risk, adventure and false glamour created by spy novels and movies. But the situation is not so gloomy and full of risk for all spies. If one is at a senior level, making decisions, close to power, involved in policy making and later on heading the spy churning institution, then the common risks are minimized. After retirement, most government servants enjoy a good life. They now have the time to nurture their hobbies. A.S Dulat, ex Director of premier intelligence agency of India RAW, has wielded pen and published three books as an author, and in collaboration with others. The newest addition is a memoir, titled as A Life in the Shadows. His first work, Kashmir: The Vajpayee Years, ruffled many feathers, and exposed a lot of separatist leaders of Kashmir, about whom he alleged that a lot of money was being paid clandestinely by the Indian state to keep them in loop. Although, before public they had maintained the stance, that they were espousing the cause of Islam and Kashmir Conflict, whereas in reality they were doing everything to fill their coffers. This new book a memoir, details his life, early childhood, how his parents treated him and his half-brother. As any child, school life is memorable for Dulat, so is his love life and journey of qualifying the prestigious IPS exam. The reader is made aware about how the world of spying and espionage is paved with betrayal and treachery, while intelligence gathering is a waiting game of patience. His role as an intelligence officer was tested to its zenith, during his stint in Kashmir, as he replaced brute force with dialogue. This talking and conversation with enemies in Kashmir tested his nerves, while his obsession with Pakistan is evident, like any other intelligence cadre. Both Indian and Pakistani security and intelligence agencies are obsessed with each other, whereas other countries are their enemies too, but they have prioritized each other when it comes to animosity. Hence, Kashmir conflict for the intelligence agencies and spy’s like Dulat is a sponsored project of Pakistan, so there is huge emphasis to defeat Pakistan, by corrupting the Pakistan sponsored leadership. Shabbir Ahmad Shah, seems to be in cahoots with Dulat, who once was known as Nelson Mandela of Kashmir, as being the longest incarcerated separatist leader. His fall from grace is depicted in this and the early work of Dulat. Dulat describes his career transaction from I.B to RAW, but it is a sad reality that no woman till now made it to the top in RAW. Intelligence gathering and leadership in national security agencies still is a men’s domain and bastion. Dulat also served in Nepal. Nepal is small country, bordering India, given its insignificance both strategically and economically it is usually considered as a satellite or backwaters of India. But Dulat laments at the fact that India has failed to nurture Nepal as a friend. His observations are pragmatic as he had a stint there. Dulat’s travels and times with President Giani Zail Singh, are insightful about his personality and help us to understand the various facets of his public and personal life. Dulat was present and aware about the decisive and tragic moments in the contemporary India, be it the Bhopal gas tragedy, emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi, the operation Blue Star, and the numerous deaths of Sikhs in communal riots. He details the first-hand experience of Bhopal gas tragedy. Dulat concludes that Sikhs of India will not forget horrors of 1984 (P-159), whereas discarding the same yardstick for Muslims and Kashmiris, who continue to suffer and are marginalized through planned and orchestrated communal riots. Kashmir, its politics, political players and complex conflict has witnessed involvement of Dulat at different stages, as is evident from his books. He has always been advocating for the role of Dr Farooq Abdullah in Kashmir politics. He considers him the most important key player for any future political development in Kashmir. Similar is his love for his son Omar Abdullah and even for head of one faction of Hurriyat Conference, Umar Farooq. Like double Farooq accord of 1986, he wants double Omar-Umar accord, as he thinks that Umar too wants to leave separatism behind and join the mainstream. In any dispensation, he advises the centre that Farooq Abdullah should be kept on India’s right side (P-174), which translates in the fact that Indian state still does not trust a person like Farooq Abdullah. The National Conference, headed by Farooq Abdullah, has suffered immensely at the hands of insurgents and hundreds of its cadres and members were gunned down, but the regime at centre is unbothered about it. The fact that Farooq along with other political leaders of N.C were detained for months by BJP in the aftermath of abrogation of Article 370 is a valid manifestation of the distrust, enjoyed by the N.C leadership. Dulat, time and again wants the reader to believe that Farooq Abdullah is invincible and a big leader, but the factual reality is that he was never popular with the masses. Even now he is not trusted either by Delhi or the masses in Kashmir. Now according to Dulat, Farooq has sought refugee in religion after abrogation, particularly after the humiliation he suffered at the hands of BJP. Dulat, again has a great obsession with the concocted concept that is supposed to define Kashmir and its people, wrongly termed as Kashmiriyat. This term was invented post 1975, to engage the masses as Sheikh Abdullah renegaded from his movement of right to self-determination. Defining Kashmir still is very complex and these journalistic, civil society and imposed terms do not help in analysing and explaining Kashmir. The Pandit migration at the initiation of armed insurgency in Kashmir in early 1990s is a blot on the face of syncretic and plural culture of Kashmir. Dulat is candid in acknowledging that I.B had no idea about what was happening on ground in 1990s (P-179), this candid admission is quite true because all Kashmiris together had rose against the Indian state. However, like other Indians he too has given a clean chit to the then right-wing Governor Jagmohan, who is responsible for facilitating the Pandit migration, instead of providing them security. Dulat, further does not admit the fact that state and security apparatus had collapsed, during 1990s and insurgents were ruling the roost. Now, he is concerned about the growing radicalization in Kashmir and failure of the India’s Kashmir policy (P-71). The memoir is a nice read, however not as explosive as his first work on Kashmir was, still it helps understand various facets of Indian State’s dealings between triumphs and tragedies. ------ Mushtaq Ul Haq Ahmad Sikander is a Writer-Activist based in Srinagar, Kashmir URL: https://newageislam.com/books-documents/chronicling-life-shadows-spymaster/d/130145 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism