Political Diary

New Delhi, 7 May 2011

India: A Soft State

NOTHING BUT CHEAP TALK

By Poonam I Kaushish

“Geronimo EKIA…. We got him.” Thus, ended the life of the world’s most wanted terrorist, Osama bin Laden. Devastatingly and brutally brought home Monday last when after 10 long years of 9/11, the US tasted victory. Not only did Operation Osama, the culmination of the War on Terror showcase to the world what US patriotism and nationalism is all about, earning it the numero uno Super Power tag. More important, it is a country which neither forgives nor forgets. Bluntly, don’t-mess-with-me-I’ll-get-you. Eureka!  

On the flip side, from the Kargil fiasco, Kandhar humiliation and Parliament brazen assault to 26/11 Mumbai blood-bath, India’s security farce continues. While Masood Azhar roams free in Pakistan, ‘death awardee’ Afzal Guru is alive and kicking in jail, Ajmal Kasab is still to be convicted,  Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi  and Hafeez Muhammad Saeed continue to spew venom against India and Pakistan scoffs at New Delhi’s hard rhetoric about crushing terrorism which ends in a whimper.

Regrettably, our leaders continue to wallow in the false belief that wars are born in the minds of men ---- won by waving the white flag! Think, post Washington’s Operation Geronimo, as the clamour for an US-type operation to revenge Pakistan’s diabolic terrorists’ acts grows, led by Army Chief VP Singh (India can stage an Abbottabad-type operation), our leaders refuse to re-draft its Pak policy.

Instead, South Block willy-nilly asserts dialogue with Islamabad is the best option given the volatile situation in the country. Said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, “The Osama episode will not deter will not change the universe of the discourse between India and Pakistan. Talks with Pakistan will continue...” Sic. Adding lamely, even the US has not broken its ties with Pakistan.

Arguably, is this 'don’t-rock-the-boat-avoid-confrontation' policy responsible for New Delhi’s failure to check terrorism, from across the border, North-East and Naxal country? Do we lack the will for bold, decisive action to defend the country’s security interests?  Is India a soft state? Yes, a big yes.

Undoubtedly, the polity’s powerlessness to deal with hard targets strongly has given us the soft State image whereby everyone takes us for a ride. Worse, the Administration is unable to enforce its writ throughout the country, a natural sine qua non of a State. Remember, it is no use having the instruments to enforce law if one lacks the ability to put them to effective use.

Undoubtedly, New Delhi’s hunger to build bridges with Islamabad appears to have blinded the Government to the web of deceit spun by its duplicitous neighbour. Astonishingly, the Prime Minister turned his cheek to Pakistan's Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir's blasphemous remarks describing as “outdated” India's demand for action against the Mumbai perpetrators and warning of “severe consequences and terrible catastrophe” if it undertook an Abbottabad-type “misadventure.”

Conveniently forgetting the harsh truth. Talks and terror cannot co-exist. Pakistan is a sponsor and user of terror and not its victim. It has not been honest in its commitment that its territory will not be used for terror. Asserted a senior South Block official, “Remember, Islamabad is no pushover, it needs to answer some tough questions. Are they doing enough on LeT, JeM and Hizbul Mujahideen? The Mumbai trials? On Lakhvi, Saeed et al all who remain a serious threat to India”?

In fact, many question the utility of an Indo-Pak dialogue when Islamabad has not delivered on India's demands on 26/11. “Where was the need for India to say that it will continue with the dialogue process irrespective of the fact that Osama bin Laden was protected by Pakistan? India had not called off the dialogue. It reflects poorly on India's foreign policy. It is devoid of any strategy, leave alone objective. All these show that our policy is whimsical and not goal-oriented," said a strategy affairs expert

Indeed, India's approach has been incoherent over the past two years, in fact bankrupt since 26/11. While a section of the Government favoured talks after Sharm-el-Sheikh, the Union Home Ministry talked tough on terror. Finally, the Prime Minister, for reasons best known to him, put the talks back on track by inviting his counter-part Yousaf Raza Gilani to Mohali as part of cricket diplomacy.

But till date all this has yielded zilch results. Clearly, if New Delhi means business it needs to quickly do justice in the 26/11 case by sentencing Ajmal Kasab through a speedy trail. There is no point in asking Pakistan to hand over Hafiz Saeed or Dawood Ibrahim and speculating on the possibility of a special operation to access them when a terrorist caught during a terror  act of terror is being used as a poster boy for Indian democracy and justice system.

The time has come for New Delhi to get its priorities straight and act together. Our leaders need to show some backbone in punishing terrorists before claiming to deal with the phenomenon of terrorism. They need to distinguish between conflict resolution and peace. Make clear that terrorism facing the country is not co-terminus with the Kashmir problem. Kashmir’s resolution and countering Pak-sponsored terrorism are two different issues.  Solution of J&K will not automatically defuse the terrorist threat for India.

Also, work towards evolving a policy that combines open dialogue with diplomatic pressure. Simply inter-acting, is not a solution. Talks to improve trade and cultural ties are not instruments to address terrorism from Pakistan. Plainly, statements like “Pakistan should stop harbouring terrorists” are innocuous demands having only rhetorical value. India should delineate a time frame with specific demands and spell out viable consequences if these are not met. Misadventures like Operation Parakaram (troop mobilization along LoC in 2002) following the attack on Parliament should be avoided.  

Pertinently, perhaps former US President Nixon had India on his mind, in his book "The Real War." Said he: “Nations live or die by the way they respond to the particular challenges they face While might certainly does not make right, neither does right by itself make might. The time when a nation most craves ease may be the moment when it can least afford to let down its guard.

“The moment when it most wishes it could address its domestic needs may be the moment when it most urgently has to confront an external threat. The nation that survives is the one that rises to meet that moment: that has the wisdom to recognize the threat and the will to turn it back, and that does so before it is too late.”

Clearly, La affair Osama should awaken New Delhi India into crafting a long-term Pakistan policy taking national security imperatives into consideration. We need to formulate a clear-cut regional diplomatic thrust. As also get rid of the naïve notion that we can preserve peace by exuding goodwill. This is not only stupid but could be dangerous. It may win New Delhi accolades but it also tempts the aggressor to be more belligerent.

True, one may not be overtly aggressive but we need to think and act smart. Have a clear view of where the dangers lie and the responses necessary to quell the danger. Tough times call for tough action. Above all, our polity needs to hold the mirror and be truthful. That ‘bankrupt’ practitioners of third-rate politics do not have the critical first-rate political will and stomach for making India into an effective hard State. After all, war can only be won by war! ----- INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)