The R&AW Diaries

A retired RAW spy R.K Yadav recently wrote a book by the name Mission R&AW, these Yadav diaries have literally hit home, interestingly the motto of his publishers is ‘We Convert Fighters into Writers’.

R K Yadav left the Research & Analysis Wing in 1989, he had the reputation of being one of the toughest spies there, he had served on the China desk as well as in Rajasthan and Punjab. In the true tradition of whistle-blowers, Yadav has let the cat out of the bag, understandably the book on espionage is unavailable for sale in India. Even the CIA reveals some  secrets every twenty years so maybe RAW has followed suit except that the book hasn’t been taken too kindly on home ground, he has given explicit details on classified matters and vanishing spies that had defected to join CIA.

This book must serve some pattern in Yadav’s mind as his aim is to show RAW from a heroism angle, very self congratulatory, almost mythical.  Mainly he has blown his own trumpet, glorifying R&AW achievements, Indian army, Indian government and surprisingly, even Indira Gandhi.

RAW must be unhappy with the way he has recounted about its misappropriation of funds meant for various tasks sanctioned by Indian government. He has misrepresented facts pertaining to the 1965 Indo-Pak war and has made wild claims of success, likewise about the 1971 war. Boasting about how it came through he has inadvertently given out the techniques of his  ex- agency, it is also a damning confession of heinous activities.

The book reads like a mystery novel as he narrates historical incidents amid the murky office atmosphere.  Yadav describes Indian efforts behind the fake East Pakistan liberation movement, in the very preface of the book he mentions the founder of RAW in glowing terms and remarks that it is a remiss on the part of the Bangladesh government not to have acknowledged RAW chief R.N Kao as the brain behind their so-called war of liberation in 1971.

Kao created the Mukti Bahini guerrilla force from 1 lakh Bangladeshi refugees in India and he engineered the series of events which led to the formation of a new country, advantage was taken from the political crisis brewing between East and West Pakistan. K.S Nair RAW chief in 1977, has admitted that all those involved in the Agartala conspiracy were Indian agents. Nair was working under the cover of Col.Menon and had succeeded in buying some Bangladeshi Navy employees as well as activists of the Awami League. These agents tried to raid the Pakistan Army armory in haste even though Nair had promised them arms, subsequently they were arrested and this sedition case was named the Agartala conspiracy by the Pakistan government.

Details are provided of how RAW got a Fokker Friendship Indian Airlines plane hijacked by their own agent to Lahore in 1971 so that it could be blamed on the Pakistan government. This also gave India the chance to ban Pakistani flights from using its airspace, hampering military transport to East Pakistan, Yadav boasts of it as a ‘masterstroke’.

Commandos of Special Frontier Force, paramilitary branch of RAW, trained the Mukti Bahini, a technical network was prepared and East Pakistan was encircled at all strategically important vantage points.  Initially hit and run raids, ambushes and attacks were done by Mukti Bahini, occupying territory along with backing of Indian army, more than 25,000 soldiers of Pakistan Army were killed in this initial phase. In the second phase, Mukti Bahini received Indian army and guided them to the interior so that formations could move in.

Youth wings of Awami League were organized into a new mercenary force, the Mujeeb Bahini, again trained by RAW,s SFF commandos. These Mujeeb Bahini were used for the frontal assault against Pakistan army. The book also mentions the presence of RAW operatives in Peshawar who alerted Indian army about any Pakistan army troops movement towards the western sector. Pakistan was never fighting Bangladeshis but in reality the Indian army, which had the advantage of being joined by land with East Pakistan.

Pakistan Army was made a target of false accusations and lies helped by RAW paid journalists and writers, today Dr. Sarmila Bose’s book Dead Reckoning: Memories of the 1971 Bangladesh War vindicates Pakistan of all the false claims and accusations by RAW paid news media. After getting the plan of formation of Bangladesh complete, Yadav mentions that Mujib was assassinated by RAW as India wanted a weak government, easy to dictate terms to.

This secession of East Pakistan executed by India gives Pakistan every right to support the Kashmir independence movement, history has left us a score to settle. There is mention of a meeting between Kao and Indira Gandhi where a blueprint was decided to be prepared for insurgency activities inside East Pakistan. It was Indira Gandhi’s plan to make East Pakistan secede according to the book.

Reading the book, it becomes quite evident how RAW trains, funds and facilitates present day terrorist outfits like TTP, BRA and BLA. Old habits die hard and RAW is still busy at work, we have seen all this happen before our eyes. Journalists are bought, used to create chaos and an artificial aura of instability, then they are asked to quietly take the background exactly as it was done to break away East Pakistan, at that time some were silenced forever and some sent to Europe etc.  Could the attempt on Hamid Mir’s life have been planned by R&AW, seeing all these confessions from a RAW source?.

Rumors are generated under psy-ops planning on television media nowadays, Pakistan has to keep close watch on what each TV channel is up to. East Pakistan secession was planned and Bangladesh became a secular country where today Islamists are hounded at the Indian behest. The country is not even a nuclear power and its government works in tango with the Indian government like an associate state.  In today’s India, Bangladeshi refugees are looked down upon in cities like Calcutta etc where they go to find employment, which is a bitter irony.

In Bangladesh’s 2004 elections, 132 crore were to be given to the future lady PM from RAW,s secret fund, but she received only Rs.32 crore, rest were misappropriated by RAW functionaries according to Yadav. This makes one wonder whether R&AW has at any time paid Pakistani politicians as well, there is a special fund for all this kind of thing according to Yadav.

Kao also provided support for Wali Khan at that time and clandestine meetings with RAW operatives were arranged for the NWFP leader who was trying for a new country with India’s encouragement up till 1977 and then the book says ISI got wind of it and it was swept under the carpet. Wali Khan supported the Six point demand of Sheikh Mujib and proceeded to be an impediment towards any peaceful settlement, he has been a ‘revolutionary’ leader all his life on RAW funding.

Yadav has enumerated exploits by his agency in Pakistan and exposed RAW activities here, he has disclosed the way RAW bought its way in to infiltrate. The U.S has always influenced Pakistani political dynamics but nowadays RAW has found the Sharif brothers very compliant, they at various junctures since coming into power in 2013, have taken a very RAW-friendly stance. Nawaz Sharif made sure Geo TV channel’s license was not terminated, BJP openly conveyed him their concerns and he made sure Geo makes a comeback even though it had content full of treason and blasphemy.

Mian Mansha‘s efforts to establish Indian media holdings in Pakistan were assisted by Hasan Nawaz, Nawaz Sharif’s son and they tried their best to let Indians own TV channels here while not a single Pakistani channel is allowed on air in India. Before elections Nawaz Sharif had even called for an inquiry against ISI, the country’s premier intelligence agency over the 26/11 Mumbai case to show India what a loyal friend he is to them.

And last but not the least, Nawaz let the local Mukti Bahini/TTP have a complete one year respite to re-in force and re-group under the pretext of dialogue. Also, no wonder political forces are not bothered about water shortage due to India having usurped Pakistan’s water supply, these sold politicos are not bothered to make any dams to preserve water for future generations. Neither are they raising the Kashmir issue or discussing Siachin on visits to India, in fact they are refusing to meet Kashmiri leaders.

This literary explosion by Yadav has removed the mask our political parties wear and underlines the need to reject those that conspire against the state and misuse the vote entrusted by the people. Yadav also claims that RAW has deteriorated to a level which needs drastic reforms otherwise it can only think of its past glories. That would be good news for the region as the Research & Analysis Wing is responsible for many crimes against humanity.

By: Sabena Siddiqi
Note:  Al-Rasub is not responsible for Writer personal opinion.

Tags: article, Awami League, Hamid Mir’s assassination, Indira Gandhi, K.S Nair, Mujeeb Bahini, Mukti Bahini guerrilla, opinion, RAW chief in 1977, RAW spy  R.K Yadav, Sheikh Mujib, The R&AW Diaries, Wali Khan

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