Collection of Ikram Sehgal’s articles termed gift for coming generations

Islamabad : A galaxy of dignitaries from politics, bureaucracy, diplomatic community, intelligentsia, academia, and media gathered to celebrate the launching of 12 volumes of “A Personal Chronicle of Pakistan” by the analyst, writer and researcher Ikram Sehgal on Thursday.

The books are a collection of articles written by the writer for different media outlets recording the 40 years of the history of Pakistan. The books contain around 2000 articles and have 7571 pages.

The speakers termed the books a gift for coming generations. They highly recommended the books for those who want to learn about the ups and downs faced by Pakistan in the last 40 years from the perspective of a Pakistani. They said that most of the literature available about Pakistan looks at Pakistan from an external lens. These books are a great contribution as they provide a Pakistani account of Pakistan’s history.

“It’s a very valuable addition in the literature that is available on Pakistan history, its politics, its wars, its conflicts, its social evolution, its economy,” said famous anchor, Moeed Pirzada who moderated the session. The event also featured messages from the intellectuals, writers, journalists and politicians around the world who expressed their views about the writer’s contribution to Pakistan and the importance of the books that record the history of Pakistan.

Speaking on this occasion, former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said that Ikram Sehgal has done a great service to the nation by putting together all articles in the form of books. He said that the reality of history always remains invisible until it is revealed through such articles and writings. “Though I often disagree with his political views and analysis, I think that it requires great courage to write around such issues. That’s how we all learn and progress,” he added.

Senator Mushahid Hussain Syed said that Ikram Sehgal has always been close to power corridors but he never joined power which is why his pen always remained powerful. He praised the diplomatic services of Sehgal especially when he approached UAE royalty for support before Pakistan’s nuclear test. He also shared memories when the writer landed into trouble for his ability to speak the truth before the powerful.

He said that it was Ikram Sehgal who advised Nawaz Sharif to ‘mend fences with President Laghari’ and warned Prime Minster Imran Khan against the absence of a good solid team. “Maybe it is time to once again go to London and give advice to Mian Nawaz Sharif,” he said.

Syed praised the analytical powers of the writer and quoted his articles in which he made accurate predictions regarding the future. “Sehgal predicted repercussions of Modi’s legislative measures in Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) and we saw that happening on India China border. He informed us much before time about the Indian plans of turning the majority of Muslims in IIOJK into a minority by issuing domicile to 25,000 Hindus. Today 3.8 million domiciles have been issued,” he added.

Lieutenant General (r) Ali Kuli Khan shared his memories with the writer. He talked about the situation in 1971, his observations as a young army man posted in East Pakistan at that time and how frustrated he felt about the lies written about what actually happened there unless Sharmila Bose, an Indian journalist, exposed the truth through her research based book. He said that “it was a huge international conspiracy led by India but still, I would not blame any other county but our decision-makers” who could not take the right decisions at the right time.

Inspector General Motorway Police Syed Kaleem Imam termed Ikram Sehgal his mentor and read quotes from his favourite articles. He greatly appreciated the writer for his fair and critical analysis.

Air Marshal Masood Akhtar highly recommended the book for those who want to know about the securities and insecurities faced by Pakistan. He especially commended the writer’s articles around economic development and human equality. He said that without human equality, there can be no unity or development

Former Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs and Finance Sartaj Aziz said that the books are a great service to the country. He appreciated the title of the books and said that the fascinating titles attract the readers to find out more about the book. He said the books are a valuable resource for researchers, historians, policymakers, and students.

In his video message, Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, the Minister for Culture, Youth, and Social Development of the UAE, praised the writer for his dedication, commitment, and patriotism. Dr. Frederick Starr, the president American Foreign Policy Council, Washington, termed Sehgal a true and said that 12 volumes of collected articles deserve celebration.

Dr Marc H Seigel, president and CEO of M Seigal Associate LLC, said the beauty of the chronicles is that these are written from the perspective of a person who truly loves Pakistan. Yves Manville, the Deputy Mission of Mission, Embassy of France in Pakistan, Owen Bennett Jones, a former journalist for BBC, Dr Iftikhar Ahmed Chaudhry, a former foreign minister of Bangladesh, Borge Brende, the president World Economic Forum and former minister of foreign affairs of Norway, also spoke on the occasion.

In the end, writer Ikram Sehgal thanked all the speakers and participants for supporting him especially his family and friends for believing in him. He said that he is a firm believer in the people’s power. “People of Pakistan have amazing capabilities. We are the second largest country in copper reserves, third in gold, fourth in cotton production, fifth in milk production, and seventh in wheat production yet our country feels, it is difficult to feed and clothe its people. The only problem is lack of right leadership,” he said. He appreciated the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan.