The Pakistan Cricket Board used to be insisting that the Indian cricket crew consult with Pakistan for a series as in lately, the Pakistan Cricket Board always supported the Board of Cricket Council in India (BCCI) in World Cricket Council (ICC) issues. Jagmohan Dalmia, the then head of the BCCI, additionally wished the Indian cricket crew to focus on with Pakistan for a series. Within the interim, the Ministry of Home Affairs in India used to be now no longer in favour of the root.
Apprehensive about the protection of the gamers following the terrorist attack on President Musharraf’s convoy in Pakistan, the ministry made up our minds to intervene. Today the Indian cricket crew used to be on a tour of Australia. I would fetch mobile phone calls from many senior gamers asking for to homicide the Pakistan tour since their household bear been timid for their security. Our gamers clearly and justifiably pointed out that if there bear been loopholes within the protection of Long-established Musharraf, then it used to be very stressful to depend on any other form of security. BCCI head Jagmohan Dalmia used to be rather upset about this incident however used to be now no longer ready to assist out of the series. He appointed me to salvage permission from the authorities for this series, preserving in thoughts the fact that the minister of house affairs, L.Ok. Advani, used to be now no longer in favour of giving his consent.
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Atal Bihari Vajpayee used to be serving because the head of the authorities then, with whom I was on lawful terms. I spoke in the present day to him and supplied my level of note. I told him that there used to be a probability that the series would abet to diminish tension and manufacture a sturdy relationship between the two countries. Vajpayee always dreamt of sure kinfolk between India and Pakistan. With the enhance prolonged by Cabinet Minister Arun Jaitley, Foreign Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha, along with the Basic Secretary to the Prime Minister Brajesh Mishra, I succeeded in convincing him. Sometime before that, I met President Long-established Pervez Musharraf in Islamabad, who assured me that he would offer security comparable to that of a president to the Indian cricket crew. He acknowledged he would additionally reach out to the supporters of the Pakistani cricket crew within the stadium and drag them to cheer for and welcome the Indian crew with begin hands.
The preparations for the India–Pakistan cricket series bear been in plump swing. Dalmia monitored the growth day-after-day. The Indian cricket crew flew down to Delhi. Stalwarts like Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble bear been phase of the crew for the series. On the eve of their departure to Pakistan, I organized a gathering of house ministry officials with the total cricket crew at Taj Mansingh Resort in Delhi to short and reassure them about the protection arrangements being adopted in Pakistan. The assurance that the crew would possibly maybe well be supplied with ample security used to be the first level within the meeting. The gamers bear been requested now to no longer anxiety about their security because it’d be regarded after by the Pakistani authorities itself. Earlier than flying to Pakistan, the total gamers bear been invited for tea at the prime minister’s map, the set Vajpayee told Sourav Ganguly, the then crew captain, that his wish used to be to settle the hearts of the Pakistani of us and now no longer handiest the suits through this match.
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Initially, it used to be speculated that Prime Minister Vajpayee would himself consult with Pakistan to assist a match. But later, Arun Jaitley came to Karachi as a change. The prime minister’s main secretary, Brajesh Mishra, along with Vajpayee’s son-in-legislation, Ranjan Bhattacharya, flew to Lahore as guests for one other match. One dazzling day, I obtained an unexpected call from Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (daughter of Rajiv Gandhi and granddaughter of Indira Gandhi) that she, along with her brother Rahul Gandhi, would put off to be half of us for a match in Karachi. I in the present day suggested the Pakistan Cricket Board about their arrival.
The very subsequent day, I obtained a message from Pakistan’s prime minister, Zafarullah Khan Jamali, which acknowledged that high-stage security would possibly maybe well be arranged for the contributors of the Gandhi household. A Pakistan Airways airplane equipped with first-class cabins used to be made to cruise the Mumbai–Karachi path to carry over the Gandhis. When Rahul, Priyanka and her husband, Robert Vadra, along with my wife, Anurradha, and I landed at Karachi airport, we bear been very very a lot stunned to look for the in depth security arrangements in map.
Of us had gathered in trim numbers outside the airport in Karachi correct to salvage a seek of the contributors of the Gandhi household. Shahryar Khan, who used to be serving because the chairman of the host cricket board, used to be recent along with his wife to fetch us at the airport. To my amazement, the chase along with the circulation of traffic used to be blocked on the boulevard to guarantee tender motion of the total autos in our convoy. Preparations for our stop had been made at indubitably one of Karachi’s new authorities customer houses that once used to be the map of the aged prime minister Liaquat Ali Khan. The customer house used to be meant to accommodate the stay brass of the authorities just like the president or the prime minister.
The match being played in Karachi turned out to be a typical suspense-thriller India–Pakistan match; all people used to be pressured about the tip consequence. There used to be nail-biting excitement. Amidst this highly demanding downside, the Karachi police commissioner came to our box at the stadium and warned us about the probability of some violence on the roads if the consequences spelt a loss for Pakistan. As a security measure, he knowledgeable the instantaneous departure of the Gandhis and requested them to chase assist to the consumer house. Priyanka adversarial it. She along with Jaitley refused to chase anywhere before the match used to be over. Ashish Nehra bowled the final over that resulted in India’s historical settle within the match. Each and each Priyanka and Jaitley stood up in excitement and began to clap for India.
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All cameras turned their focal level on the elated Priyanka as she came out of the VIP box and began celebrating within the everyday public stands. When Priyanka and Rahul wished to meet the teams after the match, I conveyed the seek files from to Sourav Ganguly. He in the present day requested the teams to salvage dressed and both the teams clicked memorable pictures with them. To our amazement, on our approach assist to the consumer house, rather then any form of violence, of us bear been waving at us happily and warmly. Yet one more match used to be scheduled to be played in Lahore in a number of days. I was all map to assist it. Gautam Singhania, the chairman and managing director of the Raymond Neighborhood, and Bollywood actor Suniel Shetty additionally joined us. The Indian target audience within the stadium used to be warmly welcomed by the Pakistani nationals. Taxi drivers refused to price fares from Team India supporters; shopkeepers bear been giving items to them free of payment. Such gestures weren’t even remotely possible till this time. The atmosphere in both the countries used to be stuffed with warmth.
Within the box with us used to be Dina Wadia, the daughter of Pakistan’s Quaid-e-Azam (‘Astronomical Leader’), Muhammad Ali Jinnah. She used to be accompanied by her son, Nusli Wadia, and grandsons, Ness and Jahangir. The total nation used to be in dismay of her and her uncanny resemblance to her father. This used to be her first consult with after her father’s death in 1948 when she had come to pay her final tribute to the Quaid-e-Azam and had visited Jinnah’s mausoleum ‘Mazar-e-Quaid’, his final resting map, in Karachi. The consult with of Quaid-e-Azam’s daughter used to be broadly covered by the media in each place in the nation and bear change into a historical match; it used to be a 2d of sizable pleasure for all people in Pakistan. The sure vitality and enhance amongst the spectators of the suits showed that Long-established Musharraf had succeeded in preserving his promise. Every boundary hit by an Indian batsman drew cheers from the total crowd.
We bear been warmly welcomed by a band upon reaching the resort Pearl Continental, the set our crew used to be staying. The gamers comparable to Tendulkar, Ganguly and Dravid met me day-after-day and appeared tickled. There used to be no dismay of security lapses in their minds. They acknowledged they weren’t facing any problems or inconveniences and bear been ecstatic the series had labored out. This series ended up taking half in a crucial position in bridging the outlet between the two countries.
This excerpt from ‘Scars of 1947: Trusty Partition Reviews’ by Rajeev Shukla has been printed with permission from Penguin Random Home India.