THAR EXPRESS: A DELICIOUS IRONY Author - VT Joshi

ALL IS WELL THAT ENDS WELL. It is an old Shakespearean dictum fit for every happy occasion in human affairs. One such occasion is the recent introduction of the Thar Express between Manabao and Khokrapar providing yet another link between the friendly people of two warring nations. Behind it hangs a tale. A tale of a soured dream that has belatedly come true – thanks to the gradually maturing leadership of India and Pakistan.

The story begins in the mid 1980s' when the scourge of martial law came to an end towards the closing years of the wily General Zia ul Haq's 11 year long military dictatorship. Mr. Mohammad Khan Junejo was the hand picked prime minister of Pakistan. Somehow Junejo had convinced himself and was at pains to demonstrate that he – and not his mentor Zia — had brought democracy back to beleaguered Pakistan. He made the introduction of Khokrapar rail link with India a "prestige" issue. At every public meeting that Junejo addressed all over Pakistan he pledged his resolve to bring it about for the benefit of his Sindhi compatriots. The traditionally trade oriented Sindhis (like Gujeratis) hailed the prospects of cheaper travel and renewed trade and commerce with India enthusiastically, almost hysterically.

PRESS FREEDOM WITH VENGEANCE

The Pakistani press which had come into its own after years of suppression during the military regime shot back into form and exercised its newly acquired freedom with vengeance after the revocation of martial law. The press lapped up all the claims, real and imaginary, of Junejo if only to demonstrate its freedom from the trials and tribulations suffered during the previous regime. Much to the chagrin of its arch adversary and still the real of boss of Pakistan, General Zia ul Haq, who never took kindly to the public perception of absolute freedom in a make-believe democracy.

The army top brass, never very enthusiastic about public opinion, had to bid time and keep up the façade of respecting it. It feigned lip sympathy for all the popular demands articulated by Junejo, including the Khokrapar rail project. The rail-link proposal moved back and forth between the two power centres. That of Zia ul Haq, the de-facto ruler, and the seemingly emerging but fragile, weak kneed power centre of Junejo. The two rarely lost an opportunity to berate each other, often not very subtly.

Before long however the rail project seemed to be taking off. Indian and Pakistani railway engineers began visiting each other frequently in the capitals of the two countries and jointly at the sites of Munabao and Khokrapar. They fervently set out to prepare the ground for it. New rail tracks were laid and a provisional date was announced to start the new service. The prospect of its restoration after a gap of over 25 years since its closure after the 1965 war appeared bright and was widely welcomed. The happiest man was prime minister Mohammad Khan Junejo. His Sindhi pride reached its peak. The press was full of praise for his untiring efforts and perseverance in the face of Pak army's known reservations. Even then things appeared to be a bit too good to be true.

HILARIOUS

A meeting was scheduled between the high level delegations of the two sides to give "finishing touches" to the arrangements and confirm the date of inauguration of the service. And lo and behold! Ironically, the leader of the Indian side suddenly fell ill and the meeting was postponed. Before he could "recover" the leader of the Pak delegation followed suit and fell ill. It was a hilarious scene at the press conference in Islamabad where the obvious excuses were announced for the postponement of their proclaimed "finishing-touch-meeting". And that was the end of the grand Thar Express project, conceived and almost executed some 18 years ago. The nagging doubts and haggling on both sides in the matrix of the appalling gaps in bilateral relations could hardly be concealed.

For a bewildering variety of reasons, the rift between Zia and Junejo never stopped widening, And eventually the President dismissed the Prime Minister in yet another bloodless "constitutional coup" on May 29, 1988. Lonely and forlorn, Junejo lived to see his tormentor die in a mysterious air crash barely three months later -- on August 17. Mr. Junejo died a long while later but not before the general elections that pitch-forked Ms. Benazir Bhutto as the first ever woman prime minister of an Islamic country in history. It proved to be a short-lived reprieve, though, for fledgling democracy of Pakistan.

Much water has since flowed and there is a sea change in Indo-Pak relations. Kudos to the contemporary leadership of the two countries, Manmohan Singh and Musharraf, that the long awaited Thar Express has at last actually started rolling on the rails. It marks yet another milestone after Srinagar--Muzaffarabad, and Amritsar--Lahore bus services in the re-invigorated peace process, Notwithstanding the K-problem. Restive Mohammad Khan Junejo must be supremely happy in his grave or wherever he is in the high heavens. May Allah bless his soul!

VT Joshi
6 March 2006

VT JOSHI (1925-2008) worked for more than fifty years as a journalist. He retired from THE TIMES OF INDIA in 1989. During 1985-89 he was the Special Correspondent of THE TIMES OF INDIA in Pakistan. His books "PAKISTAN: ZIA TO BENAZIR" and "INDIA AT CROSS ROADS" (co-author GG Puri) were widely reviewed in both India and Pakistan.

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