As the 1975 Kashmir Accord between him and Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was taking shape in the power corridors of New Delhi and travel restrictions on him were lifted, Sheikh Saheb’s visits to his home in Kashmir became more frequent. He had served a long period of externment /detention in Delhi where he was lodged in a government bungalow at Kotla Lane.
The Kashmir Accord was eventually concluded in 1974 winter ultimately leading to Sheikh Saheb’s formal re-installation on February 25, 1975 at Jammu.
All through this period, his unique style of interaction with the pressmen remained unchanged. It is not possible to sum it up in one go. So I will confine myself to a couple of illustrative instance.
It was sometime in the year 1974 when I accompanied my senior journalist-colleague, (the late) Jagan Nath Sathu, to Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah’s residence behind the Nedous Hotel in Srinagar for an interview. Sheikh Saheb, visibly in relaxed mood, asked us to accompany him to Ganderbal where he had to address a religious congregation. His faithful chauffeur ‘Amma’ took the wheels besides his master on the front seat while the two of us sat at the back. On the way, Sheikh Saheb regaled us with his jail-time jokes about Mirza Mohammad Afzal Beg and Kashyap Bandhu—all in good humour. He forewarned us that his host in Ganderbal, Maulana Mohammad Sayeed Massodi’s hospitality would not go beyond ‘namkeen chai and chuchwaroo’. But at the end of Sheikh Saheb’s public engagement when we were seated in the austere visiting room of Maulana’s humble dwelling we were treated to the rich fare of crisply fried chicken and kebabs. A surprised Sheikh Saheb looked at us and quizzed Maulana: ‘Maulana Saheb yeh sab kya hai’? Known for his ready wit and humour, Maulana said ‘yeh Tableeg-ul-Islam hai’. Maulana’s crisp though cryptic words aptly conveyed that he had not gone out of his way but that our host was someone else and that this out of the way courtesy was in fact their ‘promotional’ effort. On our way back, Sheikh Saheb shared with us some very interesting moments of his experience in relation to his contemporaries and we were richer in professional experience by the time we were home although the promised interview never took place.
That was the romance of being around when Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah was a living legend. ‘Covering’ Sheikh Saheb was an enviable privilege we all journalists enjoyed, irrespective of one’s colour, creed or persuasion. It used to be a heady experience to listen to his long winding public speeches directed at enthusiastic multitudes. That element is missing today from our professional engagement. Sheikh’s typical inimitable style of public speaking (to his home crowds) remained unchanged all through his turbulent life. He was an instant attraction, for the audience as much as for the press crowd. It is not possible to describe in words the thrill of seeing that huge man so passionately gesticulating while delivering his punchline.
Even though the content used to be repetitive to the extent of being boring but coming from him it was always packed with some unexpected surprise which journalists could not afford to miss. Just as we weary reporters would be going through our lengthy report to look for the day’s ‘intro’ Sheikh Saheb, as if on cue, would fire his last shot that would go to ring around the globe. He had the habit of delivering his punchline only at the fag end of his usually over two hours long address. We could not afford to walk away earlier; most of us had learnt it at our cost.
In one of his few speeches delivered at the Jamia Masjid Sheikh Saheb threatened ‘rivers of blood will flow in Kashmir’ if the state subject law was sought to be tampered with. A newly posted central intelligence man present there incognito later enquired from me how serious were the implications of the ‘threat’. I tried to put him at ease by saying that we Kashmiris have a habit of using such ghastly expressions as ‘khash kare, domb kaday’ without meaning it at all. But on a later occasion I too tripped while reporting Sheikh Saheb. It happened on the Martyrs Day (July 13). Addressing a late night public gathering at the then only Shaheed Mazar, Sheikh Saheb thundered ‘Hands off Kashmir, (prime minister) Indira Gandhi and (Pakistan president Zia-ul-Haq)’. Next day, there was an official get-together where Sheikh Saheb took me aside to remind me of the Lakshman Rekha in reporting his speeches: ‘By now you should have known what I say for local consumption only’. I got the hint and never again made the mistake.
As Sheikh Saheb’s Director of Information and Media advisor after 1975, I found him amenable to professional advice and, I must thankfully acknowledge, he had the grace to act upon on it after he was convinced. In one of his public speeches at Kokernag in South Kashmir, he named his predecessor Syed Mir Qasim while attacking Congress party’s behaviour in J&K. As we settled down for night halt at Duksum he asked for my expert comment. I strongly protested naming Qasim Saheb who had just vacated his seat for him even as I conceded justification for criticising the Congress. Sheikh Saheb graciously acknowledged the merit in my suggestion.
On another occasion Sheikh Saheb resorted to ‘friendly firing’ at Pahalgam when his ministerial colleague, Devi Das Thakur made the grave mistake of going public in offering his advice to his leader. Thakur in his public speech had asked Sheikh ‘not to ignore your obligations’ towards Congress and New Delhi in so far as maintaining cordial relationship with the local Congressmen was concerned. Mirza Mohammad Afzal Beg pressed my hand to caution me that the ‘Boss’ would not take it kindly. Sure enough, the Lion’s roar, in retaliation. had a visible terrifying effect on Thakur who chain smoked to ease tension. Thakur got it back right in his neck, as they say. Speech over, Sheikh Saheb was his usual self and asked me to escort ‘Thakur Saheb’ to nearby Pahalgam Club for tea. Sheikh Saheb calmed Thakur’s nerves pulling a vacant chair and asking him to take his seat.
During the national Emergency, I as the Director PR was also the state authority for press censorship. It was an odd job for a professional journalist which I personally did not relish. But Sheikh Saheb was strongly averse to letting New Delhi have its way in this matter. So I had to defend my position against my personal wish. Union I&B minister, VC Shukla landed in Srinagar, mainly to snatch the censorship authority from the state. Coincidentally, he sought my opinion while sounding me about his mission. After I cautioned him about Sheikh Saheb’s strong views in this matter and Governor LK Jha and chief secretary Sushital Bannerji also took the same line, Shukla backtracked. Weeks later, central government’s chief censor, D’Penha, wrote a letter of appreciation to me as being the state censoring authority. My good friend KL Dhar, deputy director Information with fairly longer administrative experience than I, advised me not to show it to the boss. He reminded me of Sheikh Saheb’s post-1953 suspicion about anyone from his camp ‘smelling of extra-loyalty to New Delhi’.