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Do
we need Hindu suicide-squads?
Romeet
K WATT
SHIV
SENA supremo, Bal Thackarey created hullabaloo of sorts - not that
the phenomenon is new - by beckoning Hindus to forms suicide squads
to battle the increasing menace of terrorism in the country. Now the
million-dollar question is: what impelled him to issue such
dictates, given that his own party is an important ingredient of the
BJP-led government in New Delhi. His utterances, if one may further
the argument, are largely attributed to the growing disappointment
of the majority-community in India, who in the wake of series of
attacks, first in Jammu and Kashmir, and nowadays in other parts of
the country, feel apprehensive; notwithstanding having accepted a
secular dispensation to accommodate the wishes of the minority
communities.
The
acceptable interpretation of his assertions may be ascertained as:
If ISI, the disreputable intelligence arm of Pakistan can make use
of right-wing Jehadi elements in its society to foment trouble in
India, why can’t Indian Intelligence, RAW, make use of ring-wing Hindu elements in India to return the
gesture in kind.
Secondly
if Jehadi elements can structure suicide squads with absolute prop
up from the junta regime, in Pakistan, and unleash a reign of terror
in India by killing Hindus, what impedes our establishment to
reciprocate the gesticulation in kind.
Larger
sections of the right-wing Hindu organisations have not made known
much enthusiasm to these propositions. RSS, the ideological
organisation of the ruling party, BJP, has candidly disparaged the
proposition, which they assert is against the tenets of the Hindu
religion, and as such can’t be put to exercise.
The
scope of this argument has time and again been argued, possibly not
in the analogous comportment, but in the assertion that weakening of
Pakistan as a state - by providing support to disgruntled elements
in its society - would advantage India. Such a proposition has been,
in the past, implemented to the point of success in the separation of East Pakistan from Pakistan, something for which RAW
played an instrumental role. Image the horror of having to protect
our interests, should East Pakistan have been still the part of
Pakistan. Incidentally, contrary to what we presuppose, India has
the longest borders with Bangladesh and not Pakistan.
But
given the changing dimensions of world-order, the repeat of such a
feat (creation of Bangladesh) is not where we ought direct our
energies. Mr Mani Shankar Aiyer, in his book, The Pakistan Papers,
outlines four major theories to bring about ways and means of
dealing with Pakistan. And one of the theories, he suggests, is to
delve ways and means to bring about the balkanisation of Pakistan.
But in the same breath, he himself belittles the whole scheme for it
may not be in the interest of India in the long run; and secondly
India may not have the essential hold up within Pakistan to bring
about such an unfeasible feat.
Pakistan
has actively engaged its state machinery to accomplish severance of
Kashmir by engaging in a low proxy war against India with the aid of
disgruntled elements in Kashmir but they in all certainty shall not
achieve the desired result, that casts serious doubts about whether
such a proposition in itself is viable.
Having said that, India has more to blame itself for its
dismal track-record for faltering time and again in extending its
democratic principles in Kashmir by engaging its state machinery to
rig elections to suit their convenience. However it is also
imperative to understand that the emotional prop up for Pakistan’s
overwhelming support to Kashmir issue can largely be attributed to
it’s yearning to seek retribution for severance of East Pakistan
and establishment of Bangladesh.
While
there is a general consensus, that the menace of terrorism unleashed
by Islamabad needs to be countered, in an apt manner, but the
mechanism for counter-action does not involve reducing ourselves to
a level wherein we are seen sponsoring terrorism in any form. We are
democratic dispensation, known world-wide for its values and
principles, and can’t be seen associated with terrorism, and to
what purpose will it benefit us. Even if we are able to rope in
disgruntled members in Pakistan, not that there a dearth of such
elements, it will not help India to reduce the violence levels in
India but may instead further augment the pandemonium.
While
some argue that by
reciprocating in kind to Pakistan, India will be able to raise the
costs for Pakistan and that
a destabilised Pakistan fits neatly into India’s strategy of
putting the coerce on Islamabad.
This is all but loose-talk by people who have not been able
to come to terms with the ground realities prevalent in Pakistan.
The more pressure you apply, greater are the odds of pushing
Pakistan into an Afghanistan-like state-of-affairs, with the mantle
of governance in the hands of some hard-core radical fundamentalist
who would not even blink in pushing south-east Asia into a nuclear
holocaust.
While
there is an earnest need to re-examine our internal security
environment to come to terms with the ever-increasing attendance of
ISI cells in the country, the debate about making happen the
balkanisation of Pakistan, by exporting our variety of terrorism in
form of Hindu-suicide squads, should be put to rest once and for
all. We needn’t engage ourselves in some kind of low-intensity
proxy-war; if Pakistan has conducted herself in a “bad” way,
India needn’t respond in a “worse” manner.
India
has clear advantage in conventional military might, and should the
need arise is very much capable of taking the fight into the enemies
territory like brave
nations do, and not like cowards who go on a killing spree just
because people belong to a different nationality or for that matter
even different religion.
Incidentally,
one of the so-called-experts based
in US of A, argued in his latest paper, that, should India not able
to unshackle its downbeat image, thanks to its “restraint”
mantra, and continues with the same policy, it is destined to be
balkanised, with each piece being “Islam’s latest conquest.”
While there are
people who have a thing about going into a pessimistic over-drive,
that too, concerning the future of their own country, there is an
urgent need to initiate steps to contemplate serious pre-emptive
against the terrorist camps across the Line-of-Control (LOC) to make
known to Pakistan that we are not bullied by its nuclear threats,
and would not hesitate to unleash our military fury should she not
desist from its surreptitious activities in Kashmir, and other parts
of the country.
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