Musharraf to leave for India tomorrow

Islamabad, Mar 5 (PTI) Pakistan's former President
Pervez Musharraf will leave for India tomorrow to participate
in the India Today Conclave.

The former president will be the first high profile
Pakistani to visit India after last year's Mumbai terrorist
attacks, which strained ties between the two countries and
resulted in New Delhi halting the composite dialogue process.

During the conclave, Musharraf will share the dais
with several prominent figures including the Dalai Lama, Jammu
and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, External Affairs
Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan.

A close aide of the former general told Dawn newspaper
that Musharraf "would keep his tone aggressive during his
lectures, interviews and meetings in India" which will focus
on "Challenges of Change".

Musharraf is also expected to visit the prestigious
Aligarh Muslim University for a lecture.

The former president had vowed to take on Indians in
their own homeland last month.

Musharraf, who was on a two-week lecture tour to the
US, had said on his return, "I love this life. I am relaxed
and satisfied. And I am enjoying my lecture tours. Next month
I am going to India for the same purpose. Let's counter the
Indians on their own home ground."

Musharraf, who still occupies the well-guarded Army
House, the official residence of the army chief in Rawalpindi,
now spends time in his favourite room with glass windows that
overlook a sprawling lawn, and also loves playing with his new
pet – a German Shepherd.

The room also has expensive furniture, a collection of
antiques and a LCD television with a sound system.

"It's an interesting transition from cuddly Russian
poodles to the ferocious German Shepherd that signifies the
change Musharraf underwent from a reluctant coup-maker to an
all-powerful dictator," the report said. PTI