Kargil – today is the 20th anniversary of the victory. How time flies. We all have personal memories of such monumental events, gathered from the comfort of our homes.

What I remember the most are a few things:

– the Pakistani Foreign Minister, Sartaj Aziz visiting India in the middle of the conflict and denying deadpan that Pak Army had any role in the infiltration attempt by some militants. He used to look a bit sheepish, but he had a sense of gentlemanliness in him. He would stand in front of TV cameras and totally deny that even one Pak army soldier was up there. One thing about our generation, in those days no Indian even for a second doubted the Indian government’s stand that it was Paki regular army involved in the operations. A decade later, Musharraf wrote a book where he owned and agreed to every transgression, even boasting of it. If there is a lesson in it for Indians – it is this – never ever trust any Pakistani PR stunt. They deny through their teeth, and they turn it into a fine art. Trust our own government’s theories when it comes to Pakistan. And so after 20 years, when the Pakistani IPR General denied the Balakot strikes, I totally understood the denial and I totally dismissed their lies 100%. I believe my government, I believe my Air Chief Marshal.. Time has told me that in history, Indian official narratives of Indo-Pak conflicts have generally come out on top with truth. even if it takes a decade to clear the fog,

– I remember during the war, chatting with an unknown Pakistani over MSN messenger in a chatroom (remember that ancient tradition of going to chatrooms on all topics under the sun, where one would meet strangers). He laughed at me, when I discussed the intrusion – he said there was no intrusion and my government was making up ‘rhetoric’. Now, me being an Engineer had only read Fiction till then (Except Ayn Rand and Marx Engels) – firstly, I had to look up the dictionary for the meaning of the word ‘rhetoric’, secondly, I was surprised that a Pakistani knew more English than me (I had grown up on ‘rhetoric’ that they were cavemen); thirdly, I was flabbergasted at his denial and that he looked convinced of official Paki propaganda.. And now after 20 years, having seen a lot more articulate Pak gentleman/ladies over FB and Twitter, I see that while some of them have a strongly independent view; many of them are still victims of their sarkari propaganda machine and are willing to believe all lies being fed to them by their army IPR officers. Some things never change.

– I remember our internal fault-lines coming out for the first time openly. One of my Dad’s best friends and colleagues was a Haji – a Khan. He was like family, standing in support with us in pretty difficult times. They presumably believed themselves to be descendantsof Pakhtoon tribes- his son was like an elder brother to me. I remember his son – as news of the Afghani Mujahideen incursion was first revealed – enjoying the news and boasting of it. “See”, he said “500 of ‘us’ and the whole Indian army can’t remove ‘us'”, as he laughed and boasted. I was shocked into silence, I did not react. But it is a scar I carry on my nationalist psyche, especially because Rajasthan based Khans had never faced any discrimination in Rajasthan. They were infact quite pampered, and into a fluorishing marble trade. It was a revelation to me that day, that secularism can’t easily heal our faultlines. Even the most innocuous businessmen, born in India for generations, had divided loyalties because of their religion. Even 20 years hence, I can’t forget that one statement by my brotherly friend. It has forever changed the way I look at India’s faultlines. Even as I firmly stand my secular ground; I never let go of the need to address a religous divide. We can’t brush it under the carpet. We need to look the religious monsters in the eye and shoo them down. Join debates, don’t dig your head in the sand, see both sides, stand middle ground; but call a spade a spade. And so, when I curse the Hindutva forces, I curse the Islamic forces (and Khalistani forces too) with equal vehemance. Herein lies the seed of that thought. Twenty years is a long time and we have only seen the faultlines growing, with leading parties playing the games of majoritarianism and minority appeasement. Whitherto, national interest!! Mend fences but don’t appease…

– I remember vividly the NDTV coverage of the war as visuals of war came into our rooms. I remember seeing Vikram Batra saying ‘Ye dil maange more’, after capturing a peak; and the next day, I remember news of his death. I remember then the coverage from the bunkers, and visuals of Bofors Gun pounding the Tiger Hill. The credibility over Kargi gave TV News a centre-stage for two decades thereafter and they held tall and reliable for two decades, before Arnab, Sudhir Chaudhary and Choubey killed TV News with their grovelling snoots and boot-licking tongues. Kargil was the shining moment; we are still indebted to them for bringing the horrors home and transmitting the cost of war. Twenty years hence, I rue the death of TV News; it has left a void. RIP TV News, you have killed yourself.

– Indian Army did not back off and martyrs kept piling up. I remember George Fernandes, as Defence Minister for the first time realising that the bodies needed to reach the martyrs’ homes. Earlier, the army for want of good coffins used to cremate the bodies in the field and just used to send a telegram to the homes, and a messenger with the clothes and belongings of the soldier. So, Fernandes bought 500 coffins bypassing lengthy procedures (and by invoking emergency provisions) and all hell broke lose for him after that. For three years after the event, every time he stood up in the Lok Sabha, the Opposition Congress would walk off. Poor guy, he was forced to resign for giving honour to martyrs. That was the day, the Congressman should have realised that an Italian Mama can never have an Indian Soul. She played politics over dead-bodies of martyrs. If Congress party leaders had realised that day of the lack of soul in their leadership, the Grand Old Party would not have died and India would still have had a credible opposition. Kargil started the slide of the grand old congress party in a way that they set national interests aside in pursuit of their political interests; they paid a price. George Fernandes was pushed to the sidelines, he died a lonely death – for what! for standing up for the Kargil Martyrs!. I pay homage to the man who led us to that victory..

– Victory!. Twenty years down the line, India has changed. India has changed so much that naysayers (and even erstwhile yes-sayers) doubt all government narratives. The society has fragmented farther down the road. Pakistan has turned further rogue. Kashmir is worse off with a generation alienated. A Bakharwal shepherd, loyal to India, had alerted Indian forces to the presence of intruders. I remember the loyalty of those Kashmiri Muslims to the Indian cause those days. They were couriers and in the absence of detailed maps, they were the ones who showed the trekking routes up the peaks, to the liberating armies. Twenty years down the line, there exists a constituency in India that defends rapists of a daughter of the Bakharwals. We see a constituency that seeks to alienate the heroes of Kargil and to badmouth the entire population of Kashmir. Whereto the healing touch of 1990s, that had saved the day!

– And then, I remember an Italian telling me on a visit abroad during the war, that India can’t be defeated by Pakistan as long as Sikhs fight for India. He talked from experiences of his father from World War-II. I blogged the story and it went viral thirteen years later and it sill has over 100 hits a day on my blog. So, as Kargil happened, I kept an eye for Sikh soliders who played stellar roles in the victory (Oh yes, I did, blame me for tribalism but only a minority knows where the shoe pinches). A list of the martyrs reveals the truth. For example, 8 Sikh regiment died by the scores on Tiger Hill in the first push, the most difficult hill, later they provided cover to the Grenadiers. Sikhs didn’t let India down but then twenty years down the line, I see Sikhs again being doubted for their patriotism when a random Pakistani Sikh called Chawla stands behind Navjot Sidhu for a photo opportunity. How often do Sikhs have to prove their patriotism! I feel a lump in the throat.

Twenty years have passed ahead of Kargil; and for twenty years Indian society has regressed from its united polity, united society, united press to a fragmented world.

Sigh! Enough of ramblings. Let us celebrate the twentieth annivessary of the victory but remember the lessons of the victory too.. and remember the most important lesson, never trust Pakistani Sartaj Aziz’s successors. Duh!