Pakistan and the 'Art of crafting a clever ploy and then ruining it'

Full credit must go to whoever in Pakistan thought of agreeing to the meeting of arrested Indian Kulbhushan Jadhav with his mother and wife. The decision to allow the family of Jadhav to travel to Islamabad and meet with on “humanitarian” grounds was a clever ploy by Pakistan to showcase that they are large-hearted and to once again play the Jadhav card to try and defame India.

Pakistan had already got a drubbing at the International Court of Justice after India dragged them to Hague over the issue of consular access. The ICJ has put a stay on his execution till a decision is taken by it. And hence this meeting was to act like a trump card. But what Pakistan did not expect was that its overzealousness will ultimately ruin its cleverly crafted ploy.

Even though the Pakistan Foreign Office was in the front, multiple sources across the border told me that the whole show was being handled by the security establishment, the real power in Pakistan.

Pakistan Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif was the first to shoot off his mouth when he claimed that Pakistan had given consular access to Jadhav, a claim instantly rejected by India. At the end, he came out as a lying Foreign Minister or as someone with zero knowledge of the meaning of the word consular access. His blatant lie was caught, not just by the Indian media but also by Pakistani media itself. It snowballed into such a controversy that Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson had to clarify that no consular access has been given, in turn, a rejection of words uttered by his own boss who cut a sorry figure.

The second mistake that Pakistan did was to try and make it into a media spectacle. The Foreign Office, which is shy of live coverages of its weekly press conference, allowed live coverage and gave out special passes to over 140 journalists.

India was wise enough to see through the game of Pakistan when it insisted on a press interaction with Jadhav’s mother and wife. India rejected the proposal out rightly leaving Pakistani establishment looking for an alternate way to somehow hassle and pressurize the family into uttering something that can be a propaganda tool.

Understandably, prior to the meeting, the two Governments were in touch through diplomatic channels to work out its modalities and format. India’s Ministry of External Affairs said there were clear understandings between the two sides and the Indian side scrupulously abided by all its commitments.

The Pakistani press was allowed on multiple occasions to approach family members closely, harass and heckle them and hurl false and motivated accusations about Jadhav. This was despite what the MEA termed as "a clear" agreement that the media would not be allowed close access.

One reporter screamed how Jadhav’s mother felt “being a parent to a terrorist?” Another one asked the wife if she supported her husband who was “a killer of hundreds of Pakistanis?” Another one asked if the women “felt ashamed of his activities?”

And not surprisingly, when the Jadhav family exited the Foreign Office along with Deputy High Commissioner J P Singh, the Pakistani government vehicle they were travelling in was nowhere to be seen, giving time for the Pakistani journalists to hurl questions and taunts at the mother and wife of Jadhav. Singh let his disgust show right there with his hand gestures and facial expression.

As the car finally arrived, one Pakistani journalist shouted “Pakistan Zindabad” and he was soon joined by many others. Interestingly, the Foreign Office later sent out a WhatsApp message to all the journalists thanking them for being “responsible”. But the mistakes were not limited to just the media. The Pakistani establishment went into an overdrive in their zeal to heckle the family and make them commit a mistake.

Credit must go to both mother and wife of Jadhav for keeping their being rock solid amid a wave of humiliation and bullying. Under the pretext of security precautions, the cultural and religious sensibilities of family members were disregarded. This included removal of mangal sutra, bangles and bindi, as well as a change in attire.

Pakistan Foreign Office said all these were to ensure Jadhav’s security. One wonders what threat would have Jadhav’s own mother or wife posed?

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said that when Jadhav first saw his mother like that, without her mangal sutra and bindi, he thought something might have happened to his father. 

"Baba kaise hain?" was the first thing Jadhav asked his mother, said Swaraj.

The bullying and humiliation did not end with this. Jadhav’s mother was prevented from talking in their mother tongue. She was repeatedly interrupted while doing so and eventually prevented from proceeding further in this regard.

Deputy High Commissioner Singh was initially separated from family members who were taken to the meeting without informing him. The meeting was started without his presence and he could join only after pressing the matter with concerned officials. Even then, he was kept behind an additional partition that did not allow him access to the meeting as agreed.

Sushma said the meeting was started in absence of Singh and that if he had seen how their clothes were changed, he would have registered a protest then and there.

The MEA said that from the feedback they have received from the meeting, it appears that  Jadhav was under considerable stress and speaking in an atmosphere of coercion. Most of his remarks were clearly tutored and designed to perpetuate the false narrative of his alleged activities in Pakistan. His appearance also raises questions of his health and well being, the MEA added.

I am sure Pakistan, in hindsight, would want the pages to turn over again and try and make the meeting more purposeful for itself. Because with this meeting, Pakistan’s real intention has been exposed before the world. The talk of “humanitarian” gesture was nothing but humbug.