Terror has struck India again, Bombay to be precise. (Bal Thackeray would want to impose his diktat even today that I say Mumbai instead of Bombay!) And the spectacle in India is absolutely on the expected lines: serial blasts, people killed, chaos all around, victims shifted to hospitals, media frenzy, 24x7 coverage, news headlines screaming “Resilient Mumbai” / “Life goes on in Mumbai” / “Mumbai back at work” / “Indomitable Spirit of Mumbai lives on” / etc. etc., condolences expressed by political leaders in the same words as used post every such previous terror attacks, candle light homage by people, anger and frustration of population – Bombayiites in the current case, again – aired on news channels non-stop, press briefing by security agencies, PM’s “stern” statement that “perpetrators of terror should (?!) be brought to justice”, international condemnation – especially by the US and the UN, visit to hospitals and blast sites by top political leaders, criticism of Pakistan and our own country’s Pak-policy by the Opposition, … and the life will go on, as always, till yet another terror attack strikes Bombay or any other part of India…
This is India. Incredible, isn’t it?
The sequence of events post a terror strike is almost same in any other nation on this earth. The difference, however, lies in the fact that elsewhere such attacks is followed by actions by the government - unlike in India.
In India, on the contrary, crores of taxpayers’ money is being spent to protect the biggest terrorist caught on the Indian soil so far. That is Ajmal Kasab for the world, the terrorist whose remorseless acts of massacres on the night of 26/11 in 2008 is still fresh in mind of public, but our esteem judiciary fails to get convinced that the evidence caught on close circuit cameras are adequate to fast track his verdict and his hanging. It is shocking to see that instead of punishing the perpetrator, our country is hell bent on showcasing its “top of the world” criminal justice system to the world by protecting a terrorist! So what if in the process India has managed to throw away its responsibilities towards protection of its citizens and delivering justice to victims’ families? So what if in the process India has succeeded in sending a strong signal to terrorists all across the world the it is okay to target the country at will because our nation lacks courage to safeguard itself?
This is India. Incredible, isn’t it?
What perplexes me the most is India’s utter helplessness in all such situations!
Why cannot we act tough? Why cannot we tell the terrorists that “enough is enough” and that they stay clear of India? Why cannot we crackdown on terror outfits, within our boundaries and beyond if need be? Why cannot we let our neighbors – Pakistan and other surrounding nations - know that they “behave”? Why cannot we bolster our intelligence systems further? Why cannot we use “actionable” intelligence to fend off any probable attack? Why cannot we work in a coordinated manner to safeguard India? Why cannot we put a functional anti-terror mechanism in place? Why cannot we put adequate pressure on the US to stop supporting – using - Pakistan to suit its narrow global aspirations and in turn turn almost a blind eye to its terror activities? Why cannot we tell the US to stop funding Pakistan till it aborts its terror exports? Why cannot we relook at our foreign policies and forge strong alliances with other important nations and take their support on issues concerning global terrorism, affecting India the most? Why cannot we use the UN platform to put our case strongly in front of the world? Why …???
The swiftness we exhibit in naming all such attack dates as 26/11, 13/7 now – obviously inspired by 9/11 – and then conveniently forgetting about it a few days later to everybody’s bliss is the most disgusting aspect of our dealing with terror attacks.
There are numerous “whys” but before we get answers to all these and more, we will have to demonstrate to the world – and terrorists in particular – that we value an Indian’s life! That we will not tolerate loss of even a single life in hands of a terrorist! That if any terrorist tries to act funny, we will crush the entire terror infrastructure! That we will not permit any breach of our security and safety and peace and that anybody indulging into it will face severe consequences!
But most importantly, we will have to show to the world – and the terrorists in particular – that we will not hide behind the “resilience” curtains anymore! That we will act and act tough!
Ok, all these sound pretty politically patriotic rhetoric; and that is precisely what we have to avoid. We have to act!
By the way, what are all these talks of “resilience” and “spirit of Mumbai”? What do we expect the Mumbaikars to do the day after? Sit at home and watch endless coverage on television? For how long? Is there any other option than going to work the next day? Wouldn’t all of us if caught in a similar situation do the same? Have we not witnessed a similar response in other Indian cities as well? Or, seen people reacting in similar fashion in terror-struck international cities for that matter?
Let us stop indulging into such mindless discussions and even thoughts of “resilience” and “spirit”.
Let us not act victim anymore; instead, let us show courage and act tough against terrorism.
Let us start by hanging Ajmal Kasab and Afzal Guru immediately. I am sure that if the government is trying to play minority appeasement political card here by putting both of these hardcore terrorists in death “row” - and that is what the GOI is doing exactly - then the Supreme Court should intervene. It is high time. India needs to see justice delivered; and, a closure to 26/11.
I hate seeing India act “helpless” …
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