India's National Humiliation - By Arvind Lavkare
•Hang your heads in shame, my India countrymen. Do it because a dozen-odd terrorists traveled 500 nautical miles of the Arabian sea from Karachi to Mumbai’s Gateway of India and proceeded to humble the city of 16.4 million into utter helplessness for over 48 hours even as over 150 civilians and some distinguished professional security men lost their lives to the hand grenades and rifle bullets of a fanatical mindset. It was a humiliation worse than the drubbing the Chinese army gave us in 1961.
•It was because our motherland, India is a soft nation, tested and proven so several times. Ahimsa, non-violence, became the motto of our motherland. So bad has this become over the last 60 years that today even killing a stray dog on the street, however vicious and sick, has become a crime, courtesy another Gandhi, Maneka by name.
•At every stage of our every “encounter” with a terrorist act, our collective national response has been reactive rather than active, defensive rather than offensive. Public statements are issued, action is promised. Period. Nothing else really happens.
•We are confused by terrorism. We are not sure whether to treat it as a law and order problem or as an act of war against the nation. The UPA government that came in 2004 quickly repealed the Prevention of Terrorist Act (POTA) which NDA government had introduced after the ghastly attack in December 2001. It was not withdrawn because of its stringent features but because it was allegedly misused against the minorities (read Muslims).
•Lt General Sinha recently disclosed that in the last sixty years after Independence the number of police stations in the country has increased by a laughable 15 per cent over the figure of 12,000 that existed then. In contrast, he says, our population has increased four times in that same period even as policing has become so much more complex than before.
• Meager Indian police force is overworked, underpaid, apart from being manipulated and exploited by their political bosses. The whole world watched Mumbai’s policemen looking so unfit, almost obese, and so blank in face. Our Intelligence force. assigned with election duties. National Security Advisor is involved Indo-US nuclear deal than National Security.
•Human rights industry and our politicians’ concern for it much beyond national interest. And there’s that impractical concern for “guilty beyond reasonable doubt” even in matters of terrorism. If cockroaches had votes and rats had a religion, our politicians would enact a law prohibiting killing of those two living species as well.
•People’s Democratic Party of Jammu & Kashmir granting pensions from government to families of slain terrorists. Imagine, the Prime Minister himself disclosing his sleepless night over the plight of the mother of an Indian Muslim held in police custody in Australia on suspicion of being involved in a bomb blast but not over the plight of mothers of thousands of his innocent countrymen killed in terrorist violence.
•Two India Cabinet Ministers oppose the ban on SIMI. One Cabinet Minister wanting all illegal migrants from Bangladesh to be given full citizenship rights, another Cabinet Minister approving of a University vice chancellor’s decision to deploy funds provided by a foreign government to be utilized for the legal defense of two of his University students accused of involvement in terrorist violence.
•When 9/11 occurred in 2001,USA enacted Patriot Act. Full name of that legislation is "Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001". If a name can arouse emotions, that one certainly does. The draconian law has prevented the recurrence of 9/11. Our naïve Prime Minister calls the Pakistan chief of intelligence to share info with us.
•It was because our motherland, India is a soft nation, tested and proven so several times. Ahimsa, non-violence, became the motto of our motherland. So bad has this become over the last 60 years that today even killing a stray dog on the street, however vicious and sick, has become a crime, courtesy another Gandhi, Maneka by name.
•At every stage of our every “encounter” with a terrorist act, our collective national response has been reactive rather than active, defensive rather than offensive. Public statements are issued, action is promised. Period. Nothing else really happens.
•We are confused by terrorism. We are not sure whether to treat it as a law and order problem or as an act of war against the nation. The UPA government that came in 2004 quickly repealed the Prevention of Terrorist Act (POTA) which NDA government had introduced after the ghastly attack in December 2001. It was not withdrawn because of its stringent features but because it was allegedly misused against the minorities (read Muslims).
•Lt General Sinha recently disclosed that in the last sixty years after Independence the number of police stations in the country has increased by a laughable 15 per cent over the figure of 12,000 that existed then. In contrast, he says, our population has increased four times in that same period even as policing has become so much more complex than before.
• Meager Indian police force is overworked, underpaid, apart from being manipulated and exploited by their political bosses. The whole world watched Mumbai’s policemen looking so unfit, almost obese, and so blank in face. Our Intelligence force. assigned with election duties. National Security Advisor is involved Indo-US nuclear deal than National Security.
•Human rights industry and our politicians’ concern for it much beyond national interest. And there’s that impractical concern for “guilty beyond reasonable doubt” even in matters of terrorism. If cockroaches had votes and rats had a religion, our politicians would enact a law prohibiting killing of those two living species as well.
•People’s Democratic Party of Jammu & Kashmir granting pensions from government to families of slain terrorists. Imagine, the Prime Minister himself disclosing his sleepless night over the plight of the mother of an Indian Muslim held in police custody in Australia on suspicion of being involved in a bomb blast but not over the plight of mothers of thousands of his innocent countrymen killed in terrorist violence.
•Two India Cabinet Ministers oppose the ban on SIMI. One Cabinet Minister wanting all illegal migrants from Bangladesh to be given full citizenship rights, another Cabinet Minister approving of a University vice chancellor’s decision to deploy funds provided by a foreign government to be utilized for the legal defense of two of his University students accused of involvement in terrorist violence.
•When 9/11 occurred in 2001,USA enacted Patriot Act. Full name of that legislation is "Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001". If a name can arouse emotions, that one certainly does. The draconian law has prevented the recurrence of 9/11. Our naïve Prime Minister calls the Pakistan chief of intelligence to share info with us.
Comments
Wrong! Non-violance was preeched by Ghandi. But, you Indians never lived to the Ghandian principles. You are a violent nation, all these years. How many times you burnt down the homes of your cricketers, when they lose a match? Is that Ahinsa? How many times Hindu's & Muslims killed each other?
Above all, you trained all the LTTE terrorists in Sri Lanka, during the 70's and 80's. Your nation is a terrorists breeder. You got what you deserve. A nice taste of terrorism, you supported in other countries.
At least now, India should leARN A lesson and stop supporting terror groups in other countries.
I am sad this happened in Mumbai.
It should have happen in Chennai! The capital of terrorism in south Asia.
- 'n' number of well educated people (not fundamentalists of any hue) understand or feel it. But what about n x 1000 miseducated and uneducated ones evermore conscious of own caste, race, religion and language to exclusion of all others, carefully cultivated by our political elite over six decades.
- Just 150, 1500, 15000, or 150000 deaths are not going to get them out of the torpor. If at all, may be it requires two more zeroes on the figure or perhaps a genuinely great leader of caliber and resolve of Abrahan Lincoln or Winston Churchill.
- Who does not know that for more than 40 years police of all cadre across India are recruited and appointed only after regular large bribes. Many people are still naive to believe that armed forces are probably more honest, while on even scratching the surface slightly one comes across substandard blankets to falling fighter planes all the time. About politicians only newborns may not know. Three generations of rot cannot be a foundation of anything and even a mild attempt to clean up may mortally hurt interest of close to 20 Million of our brethren raking in Rs 300 Billion every year in bribes(estimate published in 2006 newspaper) and naturally resistance is great.
- Today the commodities which are in dire shortage are honesty, moral courage and rightousness. These build a strong community, else you build a fragile community of few strong self centered members.
- One ex-army officer (retd. long ago) once confided that, may be, we have not much to fear from Pakistan or Bangladesh militarily because they are equally corrupt. But what is left unsaid may make one still feel quite uneasy..
Though I sound like a frustated citizen, reality is far from it. I believe the material is available and in private enterprise there are increasing and shining examples of good work culture, standards and attitude in past decade or so. Though uphill and time consuming, rubbing it off on the ruling class is possible, yet improbable in short run.
Dont give up this long battle. First practise yourselves and support heartily those who do.
Guni Palekar
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