A books launching ceremony was held recently for a collection of articles compiled in seven books written from 1987 to 2007 by noted political and defence analyst Ikram Sehgal. Air Marshal Asghar Khan (Retd) was the chief guest. The podium was also shared by Ardeshir Cowasjee, former Justice Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui, General Ali Kuli Khan Khattak (Retd) and Ameena Saiyid, MD of Oxford University Press.
Ameena Saiyid acknowledged the contribution of Sehgal over the years through his weekly articles, she said the collection of books could be invaluable as these were not written in hindsight since that can at times blur vision.
These are a rendition of events by a journalist as they occurred weekly over a period of 20 long years. Former Justice Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui commended Sehgal for courage and tenacity for writing boldly and without fear. He quoted some paragraphs from Sehgal's books that aptly demonstrated that he never worried about the consequences of blunt truth.
Lieutenant General All Kuli Khan Khattak (Retd) went down memory lane and shared Sehgal's personal life, his parents, his life in the Army and how the two had met. He dwelt at length about Sehgal's love and passion for Pakistan despite being traumatised because of a Punjabi father and a Bengali mother by the dismemberment of Pakistan in 1971, how he was kept as a Prisoner of War in India and how he was the first PW to escape, taking part in the 1971 War with distinction, overcoming all odds with perseverance and his unstinted belief in the country.
Ardeshir Cowasjee congratulated Sehgal for announcing that the set of seven books were not intended for sale but would be gifted/donated to various libraries, colleges, universities, academics, think tanks, etc who would require critical facts for reference purposes over the last 20 years.
He felt this would be a source of inspiration and guidance for them. The chief guest, Air Marshal Asghar Khan (Retd) said Ikram Sehgal had always boldly expressed himself and that is why his major constituency, the Armed Forces, identified themselves with his work, and were greatly influenced by what he wrote.
Addressing the gathering Ikram Sehgal said that very few people actually get to meet their heroes but he was among the few lucky ones as he had three of his lifetime heroes sitting on the podium with him viz Air Marshal Asghar Khan (Retd), General Ali Kuli Khan Khattak (Retd) and Ardeshir Cowasjee. He said that he had always looked up to the Air Marshal and wanted to be a pilot in the Pakistan Air Force.-PR
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