Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, we are told, is very keen to meet his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif and give one last thrust to his still born peace initiative with Pakistan. Though officially, government sources insist nothing is certain yet.
Nawaz Sharif's certain utterances (though completely belied by actions on ground) have given Dr Singh and his team hope, that this time things are different and Pakistan genuinely wants peace with India. The prime minister's intentions are good. But the good doctor fails to appreciate that the way to hell is paved with good intentions. He risks the lives of hundreds of innocent Indians chasing his dream.
Has Pakistan closed jihad factories?
Has Pakistan taken action against Hafiz Saeed?
Has Pakistan neutralised Dawood ibrahim?
Has Pakistan stopped printing and circulating Fake Indian Currency Notes?
Has Pakistan closed down terror launch pads along LoC?
Has Pakistan stopped training, arming and funding Indian Mujahideen?
Has Pak army stopped shelling/firing along LoC to push in terrorists in to J&K?
Has Pakistan stopped Project K to make J&K burn before 2014?
If the answer is yes to any of the above questions Dr Singh, go ahead and reward Nawaz Sharif by shaking his hand. If the answer to all of the above is no, then Dr Manmohan Singh you risk the lives of innocent Indians for personal glory and chasing a dream that has no foundations in present ground realities.
Peace with Pakistan cannot be laid on the foundation of dead bodies of innocent Indians killed in Pakistani terrorist attacks. Elements in government say we must strengthen democratic forces in Pakistan. Do that but not at the cost of Indian lives.
India's biggest folly is we fail to learn from history.
For the moment I am not even going back into history to 1947 when Pakistani raiders and army attacked Jammu and Kashmir and tried to occupy it by force as part of Mohammad Ali Jinnah's Direct Action Plan. For the moment lets look at Pakistan's most spectacular defeat in 1971 and the birth of Bangladesh. The Indian army had 93,000 Pakistani prisoners of war and 15,000 sq kms of `Pak' territory in control.
Then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi could have sorted out the Jammu and Kashmir issue once and for all; or could have pushed for it. We returned territory and PoWs but did we get lasting peace in return? That time ZA Bhutto pleaded for leniency. He said after having lost then east Pakistan, let me not also lose Jammu and Kashmir. Please let me not go back losing face. Please lets have peace with honour. Indira Gandhi's advisors said: it is better to deal with a civilian government than to deal with a military government. India gave several concessions to Pakistan without getting back our own PoWs or ensuring LoC became IB.
Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw said he told Indira Gandhi the Pakistanis had made a fool of her. And they had.
Pakistan continues to fool us. Dear Prime minister, how is Nawaz Sharif any better or worse than a military dictator. Why is it India's responsibility to strengthen democratic forces in Pakistan at the cost of turning a blind eye to Pakistan military establishment sponsored terror attacks. Nawaz Sharif was at the helm of affairs in Pakistan when Kargil happened. There is a heated debate even in Pakistan whether he was in the loop or not. But he has been at the helm of affairs when our soldiers are slaughtered or civilians killed in terror attacks.
Is it not within his power to arrest Hafiz Saeed? Or Riaz or Iqbal Bhatkal of Indian Mujahideen? Or Dawood Ibrahm? If not, you are wasting your time talking to him. If yes and yet he doesn't even then it is not only wasting time but even risking precious lives.
Abu Jundal, Abdul Karim Tunda and Yasin Bhatkal's arrest have given the intelligence community and the security establishment more evidence of involvement of Pakistani state in spreading terror across India. But these arrests have not happened because of Pakistan but in spite of Pakistan. in the case of Abu Jundal, Pakistan's ISI fought his deportation to India tooth and nail, going to the extent of producing a Pakistani passport and family to show he is Pakistani.
India had to submit DNA samples to prove he is Indian (though a Pakistani at heart). So nothing that Pakistan has done on ground gives any hope, Pakistan desires peace with India. It will continue to bleed India. While Dr Manmohan Singh and his family enjoy multi-tiered SPG protection, it is the aam admi who is at risk with such peace adventurism.
Channels of communication must always be open. But not at the summit level. Not without adequate ground work and the right environment. Other wise India will be Sharm-el-Shiekhed again and the Thimpu Spirit will continue to haunt us.
Gr8 Article Gaurav and a Good start.
ReplyDeleteToo many question for PM to answer but im afraid the Honourable PM has got answer to that.Hope good sense prevails & meeting with Pak PM is cancelled.Meeting should not happen until Pak does something to stop terrorism.
If Pakistan is not afraid of India's Nuclear capabilities, why should India care about theirs? In every other TV debate we are reminded to Remember pakistans Nukes. Why Indians are not staring back ??
ReplyDeleteWell observed the line "Dr Manmohan Singh and his family enjoy multi-tiered SPG protection, it is the aam admi who is at risk with such peace adventurism. " is very attractive .Indeed Government shouldn't hold any talk with PAK !
ReplyDeleteVery restrained and sensible advice to MMS. He of all people should remember was happy to enter India with his head intact on his shoulders when groups of marauding Muslims were cutting off fleeing Hindus and Sikhs. The man is delusional and a disgrace to humanity! Indians will not forgive him for saying, "I want all resources to be given to Muslims first.." or some such thing! It is a pity he was not removed from his position following this remark.
ReplyDeleteGaurav, your provocations are powered by strong sense of articulation but with little sense of logic. You begin by raising conditions on peace talks while forgetting that peace is an outcome of the diplomatic process and not the other way around. Your conditions for a peace process should actually be the points India should press-for in diplomatic meetings. Your rhetoric fails to identify differences between the establishment, army and terrorists; a view which can be expected from an uneducated, ill-informed person but not a mediaperson like you. You say that we fail to learn from history but the truth is that all of India's actions are moulded by history without being held hostage to it. You then claim that Nawaz Sharif and the democratic forces are enemies of India whereas I see them as the only ones who can stabilise Pakistan which is in the interest of both countries. Lastly you see the Sharm el-Sheikh and Thimphu meetings as a terrible thing without actually referring to its contents. These were meetings where the Indian side asked Pakistan to take action on the 26/11 attacks and these were acknowledged at the highest level, a result of which is the Judicial Comission which is scheduled to visit India. You want India to behave like a behemoth in the South Asian region, an image India has tried to evade from time immemorial. Yes we are a soft power and not a soft nation but that should be expressed in the right manner and by not engaging in diplomatic processes India only weakens its position in the bigger scenario.
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