PAF pilot says he did not apologise, only shared the grief

Islamabad: Former Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Flying Officer Qais Hussain, who fought for Pakistan in the 1965 war, has made it clear that while writing a condolence letter to the daughter of an Indian pilot whose plane he had downed 46 years ago, he neither apologised nor expressed remorse for his act which was carried in the line of duty.
In an exclusive interview with The News, Qais Hussain said he did not intend to apologise to the daughter of the Indian pilot and his only intention was to share the grief of her family members. “The Indian media has interpreted my goodwill gesture as an apology and repentance despite the fact that there is no such thing in my letter. I have clearly stated in my letter that I did not play foul and that I carried out my orders in the line of duty. I have further stated, ‘I feel sorry for you, your family and the other seven families who lost their dearest ones in September 1965’. It does not mean that I am apologising. It only means that I am trying to share their grief as a human being, which is their due.”
“The reason for writing the letter/email was only to tell them the true and actual circumstances under which their dear ones lost their lives because the Indian media and the Government of India Inquiry Committee at that time had not been able to present the true picture either due to lack of credible witnesses considering where it happened or due to malice which is an essential part of the psyche during a war situation.”
The incident took place on September 19, 1965 in the Rann of Kutch during the Indo-Pak war when Qais Hussain, a rookie, who had completed his conversion on F-86s from US only four months earlier, shot down an Indian Beech craft which was carrying eight people including Chief Minister of Gujarat State Balwantrai Mehta. Also on board were the chief minister’s wife, Mrs Sarojben Mehta, three members of the CM’s personal staff and a reporter from the daily Gujarat Samachar.
15/08/11 Amir Mir/The News

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Categories: Foreign Aug 2011