Salman Haider tipped for top post after retirement

George Iype in New Delhi

Foreign Secretary Salman Haider, who retires on June 30, is tipped to get a high-profile post either in the Prime Minister's Office or as India's next ambassador to the United States or the United Kingdom.

Official sources said Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral, who considers Haider one of the country's finest diplomats, is likely to appoint him as officer on special duty in the PMO.

Haider, who last week led India in holding a successful round of bilateral talks with Pakistan, is considered quite close to the prime minister. Since Gujral himself is the external affairs minister, Haider's continuance as a key aide in the PMO is said to be essential to further accelerate the ongoing Indo-Pak peace dialogue.

On Friday, the prime minister set a precedent and stunned the protocol conscious Indian bureaucracy by hosting a farewell dinner for Haider at New Delhi's Hyderabad House.

The prime minister generally hosts dinners at Hyderabad House for visiting foreign dignitaries. Officials said this rare gesture to Haider indicates that a more significant posting is in store for the retiring foreign secretary.

An official in the ministry of external affairs told Rediff On The Net that Gujral is keen to appoint Haider as an OSD in the PMO, especially to coordinate on major foreign policy decisions between the PMO and the ministry of external affairs.

But he said it is unlikely that Haider will aspire to be on OSD in the PMO after having retired as the foreign secretary.

Soon after his taking over as prime minister in May, Gujral had appointed foreign affairs expert Bhabani Sengupta as OSD in the PMO. But Sengupta had to resign within 24 hours after former prime ministers Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Chandra Shekhar criticised his appointment in Parliament.

Sources said if Haider refuses to become an OSD, he may be given an ambassadorial assignment either in the US or the UK.

The term of Naresh Chandra, the present ambassador of India in Washington, is coming to an end shortly. Bureaucratic circles believe that the prime minister will pick Haider to succeed Chandra. In fact, three years ago, then prime minister P V Narasimha Rao's first choice for the Washington appointment was Haider. But Haider is said to have sacrificed the high-profile post then to become the foreign secretary.

Dr L M Singhvi, the present Indian high commissioner in the UK, has been serving there for more than three years. He has reportedly informed the PMO that he would not like another extension and would like to return home.

More than a decade ago, Haider had served in the UK as India's deputy high commissioner. Government sources said the Prime Minister's Office will soon announce Haider's new assignment.

Meanwhile, senior Indian Foreign Service officer K Raghunath takes charge as India's next foreign secretary on July 1.