Mapping Farooq’s mental firmament

Col Satish Singh Lalotra

Review of any kind involving a range of products, events or books afford a raft of views that either run in favour of that product or counteract the very essence on which these items are based. In case of books the reviews have an altogether different hue and purpose; which is primarily to provide a critical evaluation of a writer’s work helping potential readers decide if it’s worth their time and effort. Review of a particular book that delves upon an area as contentious as Jammu & Kashmir with an equally mercurial leader (Farooq Abdullah) puts it in the domain of a challenging terrain with the readers trying to grasp the essence of the review in its totality. That’s what the present book review is all about —The chief minister & the Spy. The icing on the cake over in this case is that the said book has been penned by no less than the top ‘Spook’ of the country during the tumultuous days of late 1990s I.e Amarjeet Singh Dulat an ex IB( Intelligence bureau) man who later on took the mantle of heading India’s external intelligence agency, the RAW (Research & Analysis wing). Dulat is the same man who had been heading for a long time the so called ‘K-group'( Kashmir group) in the IB and all along credited with bringing Kashmir back from the brink in the 1990s-a very much contentious claim from the people who knew the precipice on which Kashmir stood tottering .
This seminal book by AS Dulat, with the main title as ‘The chief minister & the spy’ and the sub title as ‘An unlikely friendship’ in my view should be in the reverse order with the sub title becoming the main title and the main title being relegated to the secondary position. For the simple reason that it was indeed an unlikely friendship between the ex CM Dr Farooq Abdullah, known for his imperious ways of temper and functioning of the state government under his command that always pandered to his idiosyncrasies and AS Dulat who was always ready to placate his political boss( read DrFarooq Abdullah) in Srinagar despite going against the grain of teachings (of IB) and the tug of caution so very often relayed to him from Delhi. The literary work starts with a foreword from India’s top most security advisor i.e ex NSA ( National security advisor) to the government of India and Dulat’s boss MK Narayanan eulogizing the work of his junior for handling such a complex subject on which many of the countrymen may not agree in toto. Credit ought to be bestowed upon one of the most workaholic and no non sense NSA( MK Narayanan) India has ever produced to admit with a sense of sangfroid calmness to say in his foreword the centrality that DrFarooq occupied in the corridors of Raisina hills and the efforts down the line from PMs like Mrs Gandhi right till date to keep him in good humour.
The preface of the book starting by the author quoting the famous couplet of Ghalib – “Main bhi mooh mein zuban rakhta hun, Koi pooche ki muddakya hai”sets the tone of baring his thoughts that lie hidden for so many decades in the innermost recesses of his brain regarding his association with one of India’s top most CMs during the tumultuous days of Kashmir’s descent into destruction. In a nutshell the preface of the book lifts the veil of secrecy of his getting posted to Srinagar as the desk in charge of the IB (intelligence bureau) from a faraway Bhopal. The contents part of this book catalogues various chapters numbering from one (1) to ten (10) with a foreword and a preface in the beginning and an acknowledgement section plus notes at the end of this masterpiece work. The book opens up the author’s gingerly attempts in getting to know the colossus of this man going by the name of DrFarooq Abdullah whose fame and name was an appendage to his family’s legacy that could be an envy of many a mortal.This work by one of the top most spooks of India goes around in a logical flow of the events as they unfolded in front of him and marked by chapters like -‘Getting to know the chief minister, the making of Farooq Abdullah, 1984 : the coup, conversations & confidences, 1996: A pivotal election and so on.
Written in a conversational style, laced with full empathy and sympathy this piece of work is a sympathetic portrayal of DrFarooq Abdullah as a colossus who rode and dominated the Kashmir’s destiny when the dangers to its existence were the most from forces inimical since 1947. The initial chapters numbering from one to four set the stage for mutual exploration of each other’s ‘persona’ (author & the chief minister) as with passing days, weeks and months, events put both of them under the rigors of their professional and personal expose; with the masses of Jammu and Kashmir as the final arbitrator. As the mutual relationship between the author and Dr Farooq transcended the initial hiccups of awkwardness imposed due to the unique posts that both of them held, the former realised the anchor role which DrFarooq’s wife Mrs Mollie exerted on the entire household giving a sobering effect to the Abdullah family at Gupkar road. The spook that he was, MrDulat to his chagrin discovered the change of guard at the governor house in Srinagar with MrJagmohan as the new player , the unfolding of January 1990 crisis and the attendant Kashmiri pandit exodus coupled with random killings in the capital city too much for his handling. He admits albeit with a rare candour , the flight of the chief minister to London during the above period when his commanding presence was most required in the state. It showed the complexity of Dr Abdullah’s personality that was difficult to handle and comprehend even by the best of statecraft employed by the center at Delhi. Strangely the same complexity is what today defines him even after decades of hiatus. No change at all.
The literary work of Amarjeet Singh Dulat has a dose of repetitive instances of his chance meetings as well as planned ones in the capacity of IB station director at Srinagar with the then CM of J&K ; that focuses on the sheer candour cum directness not observed by him with other CMs of the country. The way Dr Abdullah meets cum interacts for the first time with MrDulat not in his office but while driving his car, with the latter being a co-driver sends a lasting impression of freshness, spontaneity disregarding all protocols that would last a life time with both of them. In one of the episodes from the book ‘The chief minister and the spy, a stage comes in the relationship between the two personalities wherein Dr Abdullah says in so many words to his IB director-‘You are like my younger brother’. Thus portraying a humane side of his persona that was reserved only for those people who enamoured him by their sterling qualities of head and heart. The chapters like ‘Father and son’ talks about the relationship between Farooq and the current CM , his only son Omar. They both are poles apart in temperament and their political depth. The said book is full of such expositions which a normal person may not be privy to as had been our man of IB ( Dulat) in Srinagar during the fading days of 1999. Be that as it may ‘Dulat detractors’ may bay for his blood for presiding over the ‘policy of appeasement’ that had been prophesized in later years by countless of such experts sent routinely by the mandarins of power at Delhi. Actually this book is neither a biography nor a memoir, but a stream of reminiscences that collectively do a fantastic job of mapping Farooq’s mental firmament, based on whatever Dulat saw and heard first hand. Such empirical evidence is compelling in its very being. The Doctor understood Kashmir like nobody else, even his own legendry father Sheikh Abdullah , the founder of national conference and certainly far more than the flash-in -the – pan separatists and terrorists that have been the bane of J&K. Published by ‘Juggeranut books’ , New Delhi in hardcover and paperback version with the former priced at Rs 799/-, it’s a must buy book when seen under the lens of current geopolitical rough and tumble the ex-state of J&K is going through. The notes section of the book at the end has been meticulously planned as a ready reference. A must keep for those interested in the goings on in J&K.
(The writer is a retired Army Officer)

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