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Musharraf resigns,
Sikhs will remember him for opening
dialogue between two Punjabs
WSN Bureau
 ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, who was facing the threat of
impeachment and during whose helmsmanship a major Pakistani Punjab
to Indian Punjab bonhomie discourse took roots and thrived,
announced his resignation on Monday after robustly defending his
record.
The Sikh nation will
remember Musharraf with mixed feelings but it is true that he
continuously engaged with the Punjabis on both sides of the border
and his interactions with the Sikh groups from time to time gave
hope that should come from an understanding figure.
The coalition
government led by the party of the assassinated former prime
minister Benazir Bhutto had planned to impeach him. Musharraf
addressed the nation on TV and defended his decision to impose
emergency rule late last year.
"May God save this
nation from conspirators," he said, adding his priority has always
been and always will be Pakistan.
"People have said my
policies over the past nine years have been wrong - they were
wrong," said Musharraf. "My critics must not make things worse for
Pakistan.
"Some elements
acting for vested interests have made false allegations against me.
Everything I have done will have long-term benefits for Pakistan."
Musharraf, who
seized power in a 1999 coup but has been largely sidelined since his
rivals won parliamentary elections in February, had for months
resisted calls on him to resign.
It was under
Musharraf's rule that the visits of Indian politicians, traders,
businessmen, lawyers, scholars etc became possible. Similar visits
from Pakistani delegations also took place. Though he was much
reviled in India for the Kargil battle, the fact remained that
Musharraf encouraged the people to people discourse and was more
often than not sympathetic to the Sikh causes, including the issue
of upkeep of gurdwaras in Pakistan and the Kartarpur Sahib corridor.
18 August, 2008
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