The July 11 bomb blasts in suburban passenger trains in Mumbai significantly enough did not end up in communal riots, especially considering that some one?everyone is free to guess who?sought to deface the bust of the late Smt Thackeray. It may be taken for granted that there is a clear connection between the two acts though the Shiv Sena wisely did not take the second opportunity to initiate a communal riot. That said, the media has no clue about the terror released in Mumbai by unnamed terrorists but when Pakistan'sForeign Minister Khurshid Kasuri links Mumbai attacks with lack of progress in the resolution of the Kashmir dispute, the culprits can be easily identified as Pakistani supported Islamic terrorists.
The editorials in most of the English media are insipid though The Times of India (July 13) gathered enough courage to say that ?New Delhi has to signal that if it gets no satisfaction on sanctuary to terror groups (in Pakistan) it, in turn, is fully prepared to exploit Islamabad'svulnerabilities.?
The Hindu (July 13) ran a lengthy?fully two-column?lecture on what Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should do such as leveraging ?growing international outrage to compel Pakistan to deliver on its repeated promises to end terrorism directed at India.? This kind of lecturing is futile. The Hindu later realised it when it wrote that ?it is possible that no level of international pressure will deliver the results India seeks? and that ?pro-jehadist elements in Pakistan'smilitary establishment might believe that the defiance of United States edicts by Iran and North Korea demonstrates that there are limits to the West'scoercive powers and that in any case the jehad against India can be pursued at no great cost?. That is the truth, But then what should India do?
No newspaper has the courage to say that India must mount an attack on Pakistan even at the risk of a nuclear holocaust. Pakistanis understand only one thing: muscle power. One can'tnegotiate with barbarians. Fancy the priests in Somnath Temple calling for a round table conference with Ghazni Mohammad prior to his sacking the temple.
The Times of India said that first the government ?has to apprehend and punish those responsible for conceiving and executing the crime?, as if the criminals will present themselves at Esplanade Police Court in Mumbai. Second, it said, it must stand fast against attempts at stoking communal violence and lastly it added that Islamabad must be told that if gruesome attacks like 7/11 continue they would place intolerable strain on the peace process.
Deccan Herald said, ?Surveillance cameras must be installed in Mumbai'srailway stations and other transit points.? How would that help?
The Pioneer (July 13) wanted to know whether the UPA regime have the courage to confront jehadis. ?Only an effete and irresolute Government will limply suggest that the people must fight and win the battle against Islamic terrorism while those in power wring their hands in abject despair.? Well said. Mumbaikars don'tneed Dr Manmohan Singh'sadvice. Said The Pioneer: ?The general and foot soldiers of jehad know that with a pusillanimous regime in New Delhi a government that believes its policy of non action against terrorism can been cashed for votes at the time of elections, they are on a winning streak.?
Obviously, in a secular country Pakistani thugs and their paid agents in India can kill hundreds of people without fear. Secularism is another word for cowardice. The next day The Pioneer told the Indian Government how Israel reacts when its security interests are at stake. But what can one tell a secular government that secularism doesn'tmean turning a blind eye to Islamic terrorism? We follow a practice of political self defeat said a lead article on Pioneer'sedit page. On July 15, The Pioneer had a lead story on its front page that said that there were 24 armed fidayeen engaged in the crime and that seven well armed fidayeen, freely entered Churchgate station within a short span of time. Editorially the paper blamed the Congress because it helped SIMI to recover and regroup. The Prime Minister and his Home Minister owe an explanation to the nation as to why the ban imposed on SIMI on September 27, 2001 by the NDA government was allowed to lapse. Worth reading is an article by Balbir Punj that appeared in The Pioneer'sedit page entitled Vadodara to Bhiwandi.
A front page headline in Hindustan Times (July 13) said: ?India growls at Pak, but won'tbite.? That said it all. Editorially, the paper said: ?These are times when you want to say the hell with political correctness and demand an eye for an eye.? That, may it be said, is the demand of all decent Indians barring our secularists. The paper added: ?When you see your near and dear ones blown apart, your fellow citizens killed or maimed for life, praise for your spirit and sense of calm means little. This is something the government needs to understand clearly.?
While all this is going on Shri Arjun Singh is asking for reservations for Muslims. The man says the most atrocious things but goes undisciplined. When will we get a government in Delhi which has courage enough to tell Pakistan that India will react strongly if further mischief, howsoever minor, is repeated?
But believe it or not, all that Sitaram Yechury, the communist could say, also in Hindustan Times is to blame the BJP for ?whipping up? communal passions. Why doesn'the blame Vir Sanghvi, a secularist, for his editorial? The other charge made by Comrade Yechury is that the UPA government is changing India'sindependent policy to make it ?dovetail into the US'sglobal strategic interests.? If that be so, why don'tthe Leftists withdraw their support to the UPA government? The communists want to have their cake and eat it too. We are living in a world of sick politics. But we are now told that the bombers and their backers have been identified. Joke. Does one need to be told that it was the ISI that was behind the bombing and that the operations were conducted by ?Indian operatives?? How many more innocent lives to be killed for our secularists to wake up and assert India'sself respect? Israel knows how to deal with thugs. The Hindu (July 17) carried an article by a Pakistani social science researcher called Foqia Sadiq Khan blaming India for not breaking free of its ?fossilised realpolitik? and effectively addressing ?issues of justice such as suppression of people in Kashmir?. So, as always, India is wrong.
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