The Hindu Business Line : Delhi’s dilemma as ISI chief refuses visit

New Delhi, Nov 29 Following the refusal of the ISI chief to come to India, the Union Government is faced with a difficult choice. If it agrees to a lower level officer coming in his place, it will be seen as an insult to the Prime Minister, Mr Manmohan Singh, who requested Pakistan to send the ISI chief here. If it says no to a visit from a lower level functionary, as it well might, considering it was Mr Singh who had extended the invitation, the process of intelligence sharing will be stillborn.

According to reliable sources, the Prime Minister’s rather unorthodox request has kicked up a major storm within the Pakistani establishment. Partly, it is being said, the problem is because the invitation has been misinterpreted as a summons. This is because of the way the Indian TV channels reported the invitation.

DOMESTIC RESISTANCE

India has been at pains to convince Pakistani officials to see how such a visit, aimed at sharing intelligence, would benefit both countries. But thanks to domestic resistance to the idea, nothing much is expected to come of it now.

In general, however, the “peace” process is expected to receive only a temporary setback. The US is pushing both countries to keep talking to each other. Attacks by terrorists notwithstanding, India also has a huge vested interest in the ‘civilianisation’ of Pakistan.

The ISI, which is essentially an army outfit, is not pleased at the prospect.

“That is the crux of the current Pakistani dilemma,” says a retired IFS official who has served in Pakistan. “The ISI is manned by the military, does war-like things but has a major say on the civilian side of the governance of Pakistan.”

Many observers of the Pakistani scene are aware of the fact that the Pakistan Government’s real powers are severely circumscribed by the ISI. “It is almost a parallel government that the ISI runs in matters relating to foreign policy and certain aspects of domestic politics,” says another expert.

DETERMINED GOVT

The new Zardari Government appears determined to run Pakistan on its own but has to face up to the reality of the ISI.

The US too has been expressing concern and has put the ISI on notice by revealing to India that the ISI had had a hand in the attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul.

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