Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, one of the top seven leaders who now run the show in Taliban, was a part of the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in 1982 in Dehradun and was nicknamed ‘Sheru’ by his batchmates.
According to a report in Times of India, Stanikzai was “well-built, not too tall and never religiously inclined”. He was 20 years old when he joined one of the 45 foreign gentlemen cadets of the Bhagat Battalion’s Keren Company at the academy.
“He was a likeable guy who seemed a little older than the other cadets at the academy. He kept this striking moustache. He certainly had no radical views at the time. He was an average Afghan cadet who seemed to be enjoying his time here,” the report quoted Major General DA Chaturvedi (retired), his batchmate, as saying.
Another of batchmate his, Colonel (retd) Kesar Singh Shekhawat, recalled their weekend hikes and trips to the riverside.
“He was like the kid next door. I remember this one time we went to Rishikesh and bathed in the Ganga. There is a photograph of him in his swimming trunks from a day we had gone to the river in Rishikesh and bathed in the Ganga,” Col Shekhawat said.
By 1996, Stanikzai had left the army and joined the Taliban. He later went to Washington to persuade Clinton administration to give diplomatic recognition to the Taliban but the attempt was not successful.
He also acted as deputy negotiator for Abdul Hakim Haqqani, head of the Taliban’s negotiating team, on talks with Afghan government officials. Thanks to command over English and military training, with time he became one of Taliban’s key negotiators. In 2015, he was appointed the head of Taliban’s political office in Qatar.
Read all the Latest News, Breaking News and Assembly Elections Live Updates here.
Comments
0 comment