Political Diary

New Delhi, 20 December 2014

Child Killers

INDIA NEEDS TO BE ALERT

By Poonam I Kaushish

Blood-spattered school books on the floor, lone shoes, broken spectacles, burnt-out classrooms, bodies everywhere….“We were breathing in blood,” asserted a six-year old terrified girl nestled in the warm comfort of her mother’s arms, as she recounted Black Tuesday attack in the Army school in Peshawar, Pakistan. A dark day when 132 children and 16 teachers were cold-bloodedly murdered at point-blank range even as an unrepentant Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) brazenly stated it was retribution for killing its families. Underscoring a new callous and calculating depravity.

Worse followed. Even as LeT Chief Hafeez Saeed accused India for perpetrating terror and vowed vendetta, Islamabad played out a political nautanki when it feigned helplessness over Mumbai 26/11 terror master mind Lakhvi being granted bail by an anti-terror court the same day.  It is another matter it conveniently slapped inane charges to keep him in jail for another three months, perhaps to father another child, after New Delhi created an international stink.

Alongside, other dreaded terrorists belonging to JeM and Hizbul Mujahedeen continue to roam free spewing venom against India and instigating its followers to wage war against New Delhi exposing Islamabad’s diabolical double standards.

It is no secret that Pakistan has for long nurtured many militant groups as part of its covert policy vis-à-vis India. But the notion that the ruling Trioka could use terrorists motivated by religious zealotry as strategic assets which  give it reach beyond conventional and nuclear military capability lay shattered in the Peshawar military school. Demonstrating conclusively, that Islamabad attempts to distinguish between “good” and “bad” terrorists are futile and counter-productive.

Yet, the problem goes beyond the choice made to use terror for added strategic reach. The religious zealotry that terrorists use to gather recruits and legitimise their depredations derives from the conceptualisation of Pakistan as an Islamic state necessarily hostile to India.

Therefore, India needs to learn that the Peshawar terror dance could be a precursor of attacks here. Already grave dangers lurk as Delhi has been put on high alert post intelligence reports of it being targeted by terror outfits like Lashkar-e-Toiba to free terrorists lodged there. Moreover, schools have been asked to keep gates shut, deploy guards and allow entry only after proper verification.

Add to this, Pakistan’s daily militant incursions across Kashmir’s Line of Control (LoC) killing innocents as it refuses to give up its confrontational mindset of waging a “thousand wars” to annex Kashmir. Coupled with this it is busy infiltrating through the porous Western, Eastern and sea borders.

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”?

Undeniably, the flames of fundamentalist terrorism in India are still being fanned by the Pakistan army and the ISI. Wherein, in this age of real politik, India will remain at the mercy of terrorist organizations which will always have the upper hand in choosing the time and place of the next attack.

Remember a terrorist is faceless who has no creed, caste or colour. For him terrorism is the religion, a faith to kill. Be it a Hindu, a Muslim or a Sikh. He is an invisible enemy who uses our resources and freedom to hit us at will. His only belief is to create a psychological fear in the enemies’ mind whatever it takes.

An adversary who has no scruples and no borders. Adept in exploiting the latest technologies, he identifies and exploits our weaknesses. While we talk, he acts. Inflicting maximum loss at minimum cost. All at our expense.

What now? New Delhi needs the wherewithal to tackle a silent adversary. A tough task as the face of terror is an educated, sophisticated guy from your privileged neighbourhood.  Pune-based Mohammed Mansoor Asghar Peerbhoy, who headed the media cell of Indian Mujahideen, was a former Yahoo! employee. Peedical Abdul Shibli and Yahya Kamakutty of a Bangalore-based jihadi module were techies. Most of them were from rich families

Our leaders should not be under any illusion that the execution of Kasab and Guru would have any deterrent effect on the jihadis operating from Pakistan and their State sponsors. Deaths will not deter them from carrying on their irrational jihad.

Sadly, instead of learning lessons from previous attacks, we continue making the same mistakes: Casual indifference. Be it in intelligence gathering, not following alerts, lack of police patrolling and shooting their mouth off to score brownie points before nailing the perpetrators. All covering up their sins of commission and omission. Alas, only concerned about their own security.

Shockingly, in the Union Capital there is only one policeman to every 1000 citizens. Ditto the case elsewhere. The time has come for the Government to stop playing footsie with the aam aadmi’s life, get its act together and proceed firmly. No longer will “work in progress” suffice.

From Kargil to Mumbai the story, comments and diagnoses have been heard before. Examples abound. Post 26/11 the National Counter Terrorism Centre is nowhere in sight. The National Intelligence Grid is behind schedule. The National Security Guards hubs in Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Hyderabad for quicker response to terror strikes are yet to materialize. The Maritime Security Advisory and Maritime Security Adviser are thwarted by turf war. Our coastal security apparatus comprising registration of vessels & ID cards to fishermen are both incomplete.

Until we get out of this unprofessional rut, terrorists will continue to strike with impunity and innocent civilians will continue to die. How to neutralise their capability and infrastructure is a question that should engage our continuous attention. Obtaining accurate intelligence about impending attacks and then neutralizing the terrorists’ ground capability once and for all will only work.

New Delhi cannot afford to take any chances with what constitutes India’s national security and strategic interests and pursue them doggedly. Craft a long-term Pakistan policy that combines tough talk with diplomatic pressure. We need to take the bull by the horns and hammer out differences across the table.

Irrefutably, time for out-of-the-box thinking and guts. Towards that end mean-talking Modi should take a leaf from ex-US President Nixon book The Real War:  “Nations live or die by the way they respond to the particular challenges they face. The time when a nation most craves ease may be the moment when it can least afford to let down its guard. 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.”

The need of the hour is that the Government immediately finds answers to two questions: Are we alert after Peshawar blasts? Is it sure that Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai or X,Y,Z city are now secure? Time to show a strong resolve to fight against terror. Remember, for Indians it is a question of life and death. ----- INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)