Two days before book launch, ISI ex-chief waits for visa to India

NEW DELHI: With two days to go for the India launch of his book, ISI ex-chief Asad Durrani is yet to get a visa. If it does not come through, Durrani will have to miss the May 23 launch of his book The Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace co-authored with former RAW chief A S Dulat and journalist Aditya Sinha.
In an email response, Durrani said, "I applied over a month ago; never heard from the "authorities" (except for the Indian High Commission here that they were pursuing the case)."
Durrani has visited India on two previous occasions, but he said the visa was given at the last minute."Since I was member of a group invited by its counterpart in Delhi, I too got the visa -- at the eleventh hour," he said.
Harper Collins, publisher of the book, said they did not know if Durrani would be able to attend his own book launch. ‘’We expect a speech read out in his absence if he is not able to come. But it promises to be an interesting event,’’ Krishan Chopra, publisher said.
The book which has been styled as a conversation between two spymasters covers a wide range of subjects including NSA Ajit Doval’s way of functioning, the Kashmir issue and several thorny issues between India and Pakistan including Kulbhushan Jadhav, Balochistan and surgical strikes.
The former Pakistan intelligence chief has Durrani has been vocal in his opinion of NSA Ajit Doval describing him as ‘’quiet, observing and difficult to read.’’
Referring to Doval Durrani says, ‘’He hasn’t changed policy. He’s just a little more hardline but it’s still what I believe has been Indian policy for a long time. He shouts more, like Trump does, a lot of hot air. He provides that masala… The upshot is he’s just doing what his boss wants done. Maybe more muscularly, more vocally.’’
In his view, Dulat said that for the Pakistanis Doval was "devil incarnate."