A spook reminisces

In a country full of self-styled Kashmir and Pakistan experts, former R&AW chief A S Dulat's memoir can genuinely claim to be an authoritative account of Indian politics, security, and intelligence

A life in the shadows: A memoir

Author: A S Dulat

Publisher:  Harper Collins

Pages: 255

Price: Rs 699
 

In countries like India, where archives remain classified and inaccessible for years, even decades; memoirs, biographies and autobiographies of decision-makers are often the only window into important events. Such publications, therefore, are to be welcomed, especially when the author has been the country’s top spy — the chief of the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) — at an important juncture; and an officer in the Intelligence Bureau for three decades preceding that. Sharpening A S Dulat’s professional perspective is a wicked sense of humour, which