The terrorist prince: the life and death of Murtaza Bhutto By Raja Anwar, Verso, £ 11.95 This book provides an interesting insight into the barbaric and feudalistic nature of the Bhuttos, particularly of Murtaza Bhutto, son of the former Pakistani president, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Murtaza's brief involvement in politics can be traced back to the time when his father was executed in 1979. Shortly after this, he formed the armed group, Al-Zulfikar, with the chief intent of avenging his father's death. The organization ceased to exist after Murtaza was himself gunned down in 1996, a murder allegedly plotted by his brother-in-law, Asif Zardari. Unlike her brother, who wanted to avenge their father's death through violent means, Benazir Bhutto capitalized on the incident by using it as her stepping stone to political power. Later, as prime minister, she was not willing to share this power with Murtaza. In an interview, she proudly declared how Zulfikar always compared his daughter to Indira Gandhi and was even confident that Benazir would outshine her in politics. Ironically, Murtaza always underestimated his sister, considered her as 'weak' and thought that she was actually filling in for him. He considered himself the rightful heir to Zulfikar. The entire book is strewn with anecdotes about Murtaza's shortsightedness and emotional instability. In spite of Zulfikar's extolment of the Nehru-Gandhi family, Murtaza was disappointed when Indira Gandhi treated him like an 'ordinary' visitor. Although this could have been his first lesson in politics, he failed to learn from this humiliating episode that friendship and family ties have nothing to do with politics. However, later in 1983, during the Sikh rebellion (with Zia ul Haq's alleged involvement in it), Indira Gandhi took Murtaza under her wings. Zulfikar was probably the first to initiate the culture of irresponsible leadership, which has become the order of the day in Pakistan. As founder of the Pakistan People's Party, which started off as an organization of the urban lower middle class and the rural poor, Bhutto only spoke on 'rights' and evaded the issue of work ethics. Paradoxically, most ministers and governors in Zulfikar's regime belonged to the feudal class. The author, in spite of his scathing attack on the Bhuttos, ultimately holds the British raj responsible for the underdeveloped industrial base, feudalism and the lack of a democratic tradition in contemporary Pakistan. As for Murtaza, the author has almost nothing to say that could redeem him in the eyes of the readers.(Of course, he talks about Murtaza's love for his pet dog.) Anwar traces Murtaza's political career back to his attempt at preventing Zia's men from arresting Zulfikar. The book is a testimony to his immaturity and shortsightedness - which also accounts for Murtaza's inability to view himself critically. This precipitated his failure in politics. Another aspect of Murtaza's character was cruelty. Anwar narrates how he tried to kill the unborn child of one of his followers and how he failed in this attempt. One often wonders whether Murtaza was mentally ill. In spite of his overbearing feudal spirit, Murtaza never stood by his followers. From this account, it appears that Zia and Murtaza had much in common - both used the same methods to achieve their respective goals - 'while Murtaza was driving his flock of young believers into the slaughter house, for the sake of personal vendetta and political power, Zia was brutalizing Pakistan in the name of Islam.' In 1984, under Zia's regime, when Murtaza's men were being hanged, he was away at Cannes, totally oblivious of the brutality that was being inflicted on his men in Pakistan. Ironically, till they breathed their last, Zia's young victims were confident that their leader, Murtaza, would keep his promise of coming to their rescue. This not only cost them their lives, but also devastated their families. Among the innumerable instances of Murtaza's failed plans, the one which stands out from the rest is the hijacking of a Pakistan International Airlines flight. According to his instructions, the hijackers demanded that the plane should be flown to Damascus instead of Peshawar, its original destination. When the pilot informed that there wasn't enough fuel, his men could only think of Kabul as an alternative. The hijack was not staged to achieve a specific objective other than the restoration of civil liberties. This was 'neither new nor so immediately urgent as to require a hijacking'. This alone proves that Murtaza wanted violence for its own sake. These intriguing anecdotes have been compiled by Anwar, a student leader who became Zulfikar Bhutto's adviser. Later he joined Murtaza and eventually fell out with him. The book has been translated by Khalid Hasan, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's first press secretary.