Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif: Regardless of what George Fernandes says Sharif was well aware of the plan to take Kargil. His visit to Skardu to oversee arrangements before it was launched is proof enough. Sharif's critics nickname him ``meetha choori'', as Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee has found out. It was only when the Pakistani foreign office, the likes of Sartaj Aziz and gang, complained of the adverse diplomatic fallout and international response to the misadventure, that Sharif, in typical style, tried to play the innocent and said that he had been informed after the operation had commenced.

General Pervez Musharraf: Replaced Jehangir Karamat as Chief of Army Staff in October 1998. Till then he was the Corps Commander (Strike 1st Corps) at Mangla. While appointing him to the position Sharif thought that he was bringing in a malleable Armyman (one who wouldn't dream of staging a coup against the civilian Government, quite an oddity in Pakistan). In fact, Musharraf superseded Lt.Gen. Ali Kuli Khan, then the Chief of the General Staff, and Lt.Gen. Khalid Nawaz, the then QuarterMaster General. These two were supposed to be unhappy with Sharif's style of functioning. But if Sharif thought he had his personal puppet, he may have to think again. Musharraf is a megalomaniac who wants to ``save'' Pakistan. In his ``efforts'' to do so, he has already apportioned civilian responsibilities like water and power supply. Given this attitude, he may still do unto Sharif what a certain Zia-ul-Huq did unto Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.

Lt. Gen. (retd.) Javed Nasir: Is the Principal Advisor to Sharif on intelligence matters. He works from the residential office of the Pakistan PM a la Brajesh Mishra in India and is a close personal friend. More or less masterminded the Kargil operation, making it even more clear that Sharif was definitely in the know.

Lt. Gen. Ziauddin: Chief of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), that very diabolical organisation. He is the seniormost Lt-gen to occupy the post after Hamid Gul, appointed by Zia and removed by Benazir Bhutto after the Jalalabad fiasco. Was the Adjutant General and retires on February 2, 2000. But there's good news for those hoping the ISI will get its comeuppance. The Pakistan Government is already worried about the Frankenstein it has reared in the form of the Taliban, and the ISI seems to be losing its grasp over those goons with each passing day.

Maj.Gen. Muhammad Aziz Khan: A Director in the ISI in charge of Afghan operations including overseeing the activities of the Taliban, the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (formerly Harkat-ul-Ansar) and Arab mercenaries, posted as Lt-Gen. Basically, he will be holding charge of the Directorate General of Military Intelligence. That's reward for the cosy relationship that he has built up for the Pakis with international mass murderer and terrorist Osama bin Laden.

Maulana Mohammad Qasim: Taliban commander and leader of a new organisation in Kashmir called Lashkar Hyder. Does not consider the indigenous Kashmiris as having the balls to fight for their ``freedom''. Therefore, has severed links from the Hurriyat Committee and wants the Talibanese to take over.

Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi: The Amir of the Lashkar-e-Toiba. Is part of the cross-militant effort to extend their network in India. Trying to get the Mujahideen (aka mercenaries), into India. A large number of the intruders are recruits brought in from Nuristan, a province of Afghanistan.