Fifth Person: May I know why we are having this gathering? Why are we wasting time on a subject we can’t do anything about? To hell with this book and the related paraphernalia...! Who cares what B wrote? Who was he and who is he? He was a servant of the State and the Government just like all of us. He crossed certain limits alright. But why should he be given so much importance to begin with? I have a hundred incidents to quote from my career, incidents that would gravely hurt the former leadership including that of the Foreign Office. But I won’t. And I assure you I could come up with a much better written book than his. Under any circumstances, I will not disgrace my department or those under whom I served.
Sixth Person: I think he had a nod from somewhere to write and say whatever he has written and spoken. I know him from his college days. He would not even dare lampposts and trees, let alone a former Prime Minister. There is more to it than meets the eye.
Fifth Person: Here comes the conspiracy theory.
Seventh Person: I think B wrote it now because due to Service constraints, he could not say what he wanted to say. I don’t think he has done anything wrong. After all, he is retired now and is free to say whatever he wants to say.
One Former Foreign Secretary: All I can say is that I feel lucky I was not the Foreign Secretary when a decision to send B to Delhi was reached. Thank God.
Another Former Foreign Secretary: Oh, I hate politics.
First Person: It is very simple. He wanted to become the Foreign Secretary. He couldn’t. The one who became the Foreign Secretary was not liked by him. So, the tussle is obvious. Not rocket science, eh? Furthermore, while in Delhi, he did not deliver as per the wishes of his leadership. Simple, instead of recalling him to the Headquarters, the leadership opted to ignore him completely. The rest is history.
Eighth Person: Deliver me from those who acquire self-esteem by finding faults with others. Who said it?
Head Table: Never mind who said it. Your point is registered. Enough, this meeting is over. I need to go to the hospital. Good day ladies and gentlemen. All participants start moving towards the main door. Voices saying shame, shame, shame, could be heard in the background.
SCENE V- In his lounge suit, F is getting ready for his morning lecture to the budding diplomats. Phone bell rings.
Voice: But why are you quiet, Sir? Why are you taking this nonsense and not setting the record straight?
F: Mian, I am trying to recollect the times when B was being considered for the post. I have asked N to dig up some papers. Let’s see.
Voice: Sir, silence is ninety per cent approval. You must speak up. Your name….
F: I know. I know. But my dear, I am an old-fashioned guy who believes in ethics and morality. And, yes, wasn’t it Churchill who said that you will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks? If you will excuse me, I am getting late for my lecture. Come over sometime and we will talk about literature.
Voice: Destination? But haven’t you reached your destination already, Sir?
F laughs: Who knows? You can learn something new even five minutes before you die. Anyway, thanks for calling young man. Good day.
LAST SCENE – Twenty-one years later, thunder and lightning outside, a hall full of people, flanked by the incumbent Foreign Secretary and Additional Secretary (Admin), a good-looking man in his late-forties is sitting on the stage. He looks familiar to the audience.
Moderator: Honourable Foreign Minister, respected Foreign Secretary, Officers of the Foreign Office, distinguished ladies, and gentlemen, it is my great privilege and honour to welcome you all in today’s special event. As you all know, today, we have gathered here to welcome the new Foreign Minister in our Foreign Office. Before we formally start today’s function with the recitation from Holy Quran, may I acknowledge the presence here of His Excellency Mr. B, who is joining us as a special guest of the Hon. Foreign Minister………
Twenty minutes and three speakers later, the Moderator requests the new Foreign Minister to come to the podium for his concluding remarks. The good-looking Foreign Minister gets up, fixes his coat button and instead of coming to the podium, starts walking down the stairs, greets B, holds his hand, brings him to the stage and requests him to sit in the middle chair. He then reaches the podium, looks at B, takes out a paper and starts reading it out, finishes reading, and after taking a deep breath, starts speaking again.
Foreign Minister: My dear colleagues, you must be wondering why Mr. B is sitting in my chair and why I had requested him to grace today’s event as my special guest. Well, I owe a debt of gratitude to His Excellency Mr. B for his book that he wrote two decades ago. If I am who I am, it is mostly because of Mr. B. If he had not written this book, I might not have had the honour to represent our country as the Foreign Minister. Before I go any further, I would like to invoke the Chatham House Rules. I hope all of us understand what it means.  Okay, so I was telling you that had it not been for Mr. B’s book, I would never even have thought of becoming a Minister. Instead, I might have been sitting in this hall as one of your colleagues. You know, I was preparing for my CSS exam when this book was released. After reading it, I decided not to go for any Government job and instead joined a political party. And here I am, in front of you, as the Foreign Minister of Pakistan.
All are wearing a serious look on their faces. The quietness in the hall is such one could hear a pin drop. The audience is dumbfounded and so is B who after hearing what he heard, straightens up his stick and gracefully starts walking towards the main door. The Moderator could not understand why Mr. B was smiling.
Concluded