PAF could have downed more Indian planes in Pulwama crisis: ex-air chief

LAHORE: Former Air Chief Marshall Sohail Aman Sunday said Pakistan could have taught India even a bigger lesson during the Pulwama crisis but it displayed restraint as an escalation of the tension was not an objective.

He was delivering a lecture at the Nazriya Pakistan Trust which was the first of a series of “Quaid e Azam Leadership Lectures” launched by the trust devoted to promoting the vision and philosophy of the founding fathers of the nation. Sohail Aman spoke of passion and determination as key elements of leadership and added that the Quaid-e-Azam proved through creation of Pakistan that “nothing is impossible”. He said Pakistan’s superior strategy and decisive leadership had humbled India during the ‘post-Pulwama crisis’ in February 2019, when “we had eight Indian aircraft within our range, with electronic warfare tracking their every move and we could have taught them a bigger lesson, but we didn’t want to escalate.”

Terming ex-ACM Sohail Aman an authentic Pakistani hero, Senator Mushahid Hussain, Vice Chairman of Nazriya Pakistan Trust (NPT), said the Quaid-e-Azam through his leadership based on character, courage and commitment had set a unique example which inspired Muslims and led to the struggle which created Pakistan. “Thanks to the Quaid-e-Azam and the founding fathers, we are today living as free citizens of a free country,” Mushahid Hussain said, underlining that the nation must honour its heroes who are role models for the people of Pakistan. He said the people of Pakistan had guts and the spirit but they were let down by a weak leadership.

He lauded Sohail Aman for building a modern fighting force in the form of the Pakistan Air Force, which gave a befitting reply to Indian aggression in Balakot in February 2019, which was Pakistan’s finest hour, along with the nuclear tests in May 1998.

Presiding over the meeting, NPT Senior Vice Chairman Mian Farooq Altaf talked about various attributes of the Quaid-e-Azam’s leadership, his impeccable integrity and honesty, and uncompromising stand on Pakistan, adding, “the Quaid gave all his property to educational institutions and his family derived no benefit from the creation of Pakistan.” Conversely, today he warned against “worshipping power and money”, as character is more important than these worldly material possessions. Other speakers said Quaid’s leadership based on character, courage and commitment is the key to Pakistan’s turnaround in the future.