The book understands the predicament Abdullah has had to contend with. Abdullah “wanted to be a bridge between Srinagar and Delhi … he was in politics to work with Delhi, not against it”. But the problem is Delhi did not grasp this. “Delhi has never really understood Farooq Abdullah or his ideals … there was something about him that was simply beyond the Capital’s comprehension.”

That’s one aspect of Abdullah’s predicament. The other is the tension between Abdullah and the Kashmiri people. They don’t trust Delhi. “There is immense mistrust attached to any institution vaguely associated with Delhi. The Kashmiri is immediately on his guard.” Consequently, “The (Abdullah) family has faced the wrath of Kashmir’s citizens … for their loyalty to India.”

This means, on the one hand, Farooq Abdullah wants to reach out to Delhi but the response is less than fulsome. On the other, his own people are not convinced of what he’s attempting. Instead of full support, he often faces their wrath.

In fact, Dulat is very insightful of a conundrum that separates Kashmiri politics from the rest of the nation. “Kashmiri leaders talk a different language in Kashmir,” he writes, “and a different language in Delhi.” Dulat does not perceive this as hypocrisy but as some form of what the French call politesse. The reality of survival imposes this. It’s not opportunism.

The Farooq Abdullah story Dulat relates centres around three great betrayals he has faced. The abrogation of Article 370 is one of them, even if Dulat has handled it ineptly. The other two would be to Farooq Abdullah’s liking.

The first is how he was ousted at midnight in 1984. Dulat squarely blames Indira Gandhi and believes the impact on Abdullah was devastating. “The entire incident left a scar on Farooq’s psyche that has never healed… I don’t think he has recovered from that. Nor do I think he ever will.” I doubt if Abdullah would disagree

The second happened in 2002, when Atal Bihari Vajpayee and LK Advani offered Abdullah the office of vice-president and then reneged. “Farooq was elated,” Dulat writes. “His life’s ambition had been to one day become President of India and this was the penultimate step to that goal.”

Of the bond that binds them — and I believe it still does even if it’s presently under stress —Dulat writes: “How much Doctor Sahib has trusted me, I will never know – and how much I knew of him he will never understand.” Only friends who understand each other can make such a claim.

And yet there are clearly gaps in Dulat’s understanding. Otherwise, the unfortunate controversy over the allegation that Abdullah would have been willing to help abrogate Article 370 if he had been taken into confidence would never have arisen. The irony is Dulat makes this precise point in his first chapter. “In the three decades that I have known Farooq, I can’t say with any real confidence that I truly know him. You see, that is the enigma of Doctor Sahib. It is not easy to know him.”

What happened last week was a tragic way of proving Dulat’s point.

Karan Thapar is author of Devil’s Advocate: The Untold Story. The views expressed are personal