NSA Ajit Doval tells authors Pakistan’s ISI is the ‘forever enemy’. According to the authors, ISI officials disclaimed all knowledge of the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) attack in Pulwama within hours of the incident, which was apparently planned in Afghanistan’s Helmand, and not Pakistan. Mr. Doval and Deputy NSA Rajinder Khanna disbelieved the Pakistani messages, however, and carried out the Balakot air strikes to “humiliate the Pakistan military”, the book recounts. India’s official policy has been that India-Pakistan issues can only be resolved bilaterally, and there is no role for “third parties” in talks, something the Levy-Scott-Clark book appears to overturn. The authors travelled between Rawalpindi and Delhi on the same day on occasion, collecting and disseminating information on both sides, the book says.

Source: The Hindu August 11, 2021 15:11 UTC