When 'Kargil episode' set Musharraf and Sharif on track of collision

The former Pakistan president and military ruler, Parvez Musharraf, passed away on Sunday, February 5, 2023, in Dubai after a long illness. Musharraf wrote extensively about the Kargil operation in his book, 'In the Line of Fire: A Memoir,' which was first published on September 25, 2006, and contains a collection of his memories.

According to the book written by the deceased ex-military ruler, the 'Kargil episode' of 1999 was the greatest rift between then Pakistan president Parvez Musharraf and then prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who denied any knowledge of it to make himself look clean.

"I had only been Army Chief for a year when the army was forced to react against Nawaz Sharif. My working relationship with him was initially excellent, with only a few minor disagreements over the dismissal of two major generals, the appointment of two lieutenant generals, and his request to court-martial a journalist for treason," Musharraf wrote. Adding that, his working style amused him. 

"I never saw him write anything or read anything," he said. "The Kargil incident caused the biggest division. We both wanted to put Kashmir firmly on the political and military radar of the world. The Kargil initiative was successful in this way," the book read, adding when external political pressure forced Sharif to accept a ceasefire, he broke down.

"Rather than deriving strength from national solidarity, he (Sharif) blamed the Army and attempted to clear his name," Musharraf wrote in the book. 

"He thought that denying any knowledge of the Kargil operation would make him more secure. All sorts of carefully placed articles appeared, including a one-page advertisement in a US newspaper that maligned the army and created a divide between it and the government," Musharraf penned.

Sharif exposed his mediocrity in dealing with Kargil and set himself up for a collision course with the Army and him, said Musharraf. 

"On July 4, President Bill Clinton and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif negotiated a ceasefire. International pressure was intense for a ceasefire. President Clinton was the only world leader who had influence in both, Pakistan and India. In reality, there was no negotiation at all. Sharif agreed to withdraw unconditionally. To make matters worse, misinformation about the military situation was rampant," he claimed. 

Musharraf was the main architect of the Kargil War, which occurred just months after then-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif signed a historic peace treaty in Lahore with his Indian counterpart, Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Following his failed misadventure in Kargil, Musharraf deposed then-Prime Minister Sharif in a bloodless coup in 1999 and ruled Pakistan in various capacities from 1999 to 2008, first as Chief Executive of Pakistan and later as President.

(With inputs from PTI)

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• Atal Bihari Vajpayee
• Bill Clinton
• Delhi
• India
• Kargil War
• Nawaz Sharif
• Pakistan
• Pervez Musharraf