FORMER President and Army Chief General (Retd) Pervez Musharraf, who left deep imprints on the overall landscape of the country, passed away after protracted illness. Musharraf, who left Pakistan on 18 March 2016, for medical treatment after a travel ban on him was lifted, breathed his last in a Dubai hospital at the age of 79.
General Pervez Musharraf ruled the country for about a decade and it is understood that one achieves successes as well as commits mistakes during governance and, therefore, mixed reaction over his death is quite natural. No doubt, supra-constitutional intervention is never welcomed and one tends to indulge in controversial acts to strengthen and prolong his rule and that is what Musharraf also did.
Apart from dismissal of an elected government, the former President/COAS undertook ventures like the Lal Masjid operation, action against superior judiciary and derogatory attitude towards our great hero and founder of Pakistan’s nuclear bomb late Dr A Q Khan, which cannot be approved by a truthful and honest historian. Otherwise, the country saw relative political and economic stability during the entire rule of the former President and it is on record that the majority of the people were well off because of the sound economic policies pursued by the duo of Musharraf-Shaukat Aziz.
Musharraf was an interlocutor of par-excellence and never let the country down during table talks with the world leaders and he proved this beyond any doubt during his famous 2001 visit to India where he dominated the parleys and even Indian media was full of praise for him. He also upheld the dignity and honour of the country during talks with the United States and had a clear vision about the Kashmir dispute with India.
