Indian intelligence paid militants in Kashmir: Former RAW chief

Speaking to NDTV and other media like Hindustan Times, Dulat, whose book Kashmir - The Vajpayee Years has just been released, said: "Nobody is immune to bribes, not the militants, not politicians and not the separatists. Over the years, they have all been paid by intelligence agencies. We paid money to demonstrate that what the ISI can do, we can do better, except kill people.

Dulat was an Intelligence Bureau officer in Jammu and Kashmir in 1988.

"So what's wrong? What is there to be so shocked or scandalized by. It's done the world over," he told NDTV.

Dwelling on his book Dulat said "the Indian government had quite often paid for the air fares, medical treatment and general upkeep of even hardened pro-Pakistan separatists like Syed Ali Shah Geelani."

 Dulat told NDTV that India's most wanted terrorist Syed Salahuddin had been in touch with him and was ready to leave Pakistan and return to India. 

He defended use of money in the Kashmir valley to counter the ISI.

"Corrupting someone with money is more ethical and smarter than killing him,"  Dulat said.

He also embarrassed the BJP government saying that the operation to handle the Kandahar hijack (during Vajpayee regime) was "goofed up". 

He said no one wanted to take a decision fearing the loss of lives.

Dulat was a member of the Crisis Management Group handling the 1999 hijack of the Indian Airlines IC 814 plane.