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Where the Chest-thumping Policies are leading us?

- Azad Singh Rtahore
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Where we are heading ? Are we reacting as an irresponsible country? Are we
losing the tracks of diplomacy? Are we behaving like one of our neighbouring
country, who is on edge of breaking and bankruptcy because of its policies? Are we
losing our credibility on world forum ? Do we want to be a strong nation or want to
look like a strong nation on false basis? These are not the questions I read
somewhere, these are the questions I am asking myself because of few incidents I
saw and which I followed in last few months. I would like to share my thoughts and
those incidents which raised so many questions in my mind. In present scenario no
one is allowed to ask any questions for the sake of nationality but I think as a proud
citizen of our great beloved country I deserve the answers from political
establishment.
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Incident One:
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"Let me tell you. I hope you remember 31st December night. We blew off that
Pakistani boat. We have blown them off. I was there at Gandhinagar and I told that
night: blow the boat off. We don't want to serve them biryani," Loshali, who is the
Coast Guard Chief of Staff (North West Region) at Gandhinagar, made the remarks
during the launch of an interceptor at Hazira. Earlier minister of defence Manohar
Parirkar told in a media briefing that the suspicious Pakistani fishing boat blew itself
off the Gujarat coast after being chased on December 31 last year and was not
destroyed by the Coast Guard. A release from the Ministry of Defence stated that
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar “complimented the Indian Coast Guard and
those involved in the operation for intercepting the rogue vessel off the coast of
Gujarat, in a timely and precise manner, thereby, averting a possible danger”.
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The Defence Ministry said the Coast Guard ship warned the fishing boat to stop for
further investigation of the crew and cargo. However, the boat increased its speed
and tried to escape from the Indian side of the maritime boundary.
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Two contradictory statements clears very much that there was something fishy in
“fishing boat” event.
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Question is whether it was a boat laden by high explosive and terrorist or small-time
liquor and diesel smugglers, ferrying bootleg cargo from the port of Gwadar to other
fishing boats? It is inconceivable that the Coast Guard’s state of art ship, capable of
moving at 24-26 knots per hour needed to pursue a Pakistani fishing boats —
typically four-crew vessels, with an average length of less than 25 meters-moving
which at the best may hit 11 to 12 knots. Nonetheless, it managed to stop the boat
“after firing warning shots”.
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Also burning flame of boat was confirming that it was a fuel fire not explosive
because high explosive could have scattered the boat instead of flame it out. The
photographs released by defence ministry shows it as just burning and its silhouette
showing intact amidst burning flames. More interesting was the absence of Indian
Navy in whole issue which has been made in-charge to tackle any such terror
threats coming from the seas after 26/11 terror attacks.
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BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said “India celebrated a happy New Year because
the Coast Guards and the intelligence forces could successfully abort a probable
terrorist attack” giving a moment of triumph to people of India. According to the
ruling party Bhartiya Janta Party version of the story, this was a tremendous feat for
the Indian Coast Guard which had succeeded in counter a potential terror attack on
Indian soil, which might have a 26/11 magnitude. Anybody questioning this version
was labeled by the BJP-led government as ‘anti-national” or “pro-Pakistan”.
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I totally agree with any action that’s needed to be taken against smugglers, who
can stop us to secure our borders and we must do that without any adverse thought
but why we need to do it under a facade of counter terrorism? We have a right to
stop or shoot those who are trying to enter our legal territories without our
permission. I would have been happier had the government told me about how our
brave forces shot the terrorist who were trying to enter our area, but instead of
doing that they kept telling me irrelevant things and kept me in state of confusion.
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Why? Was the government’s strongly wanted a facade of national security to cover
loopholes in the story? by floating this story in the first place, was the government
trying to score cheap brownie points for having protected the nation from a terrorist
threat, which were actually the smugglers ? Neither of my questions is answered
nor is any clarification given by government on issue till today. A good work of our
brave forces was overlapped by a bad intention of people in government.
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Incident Two:
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On June 4th, 2015 Indian army held a press conference, in briefing ADGMO Maj
Gen Ranbir Singh told “You are all aware that following the attack on our security
personnel in Chandel, Manipur, we have been on high alert. In the course of the
last few days, credible and specific intelligence was received about further attacks
that were being planned within OUR TERRITORY. These attacks were to be carried
out by some of the groups involved in earlier attacks on our security personnel and
their allies. In view of imminent threat, an immediate response was necessary.
Based on intelligence, we conducted operations to counter these planned assaults.
Early this morning, the Indian Army engaged two separate groups of insurgents
ALONG the Indo-Myanmar border at two locations, along the Nagaland and
Manipur borders.” Indian Army was very clear that operation was conducted in
Indian side of border and not mentioning any crossing of international border, but
communicated Myanmar authorities on matter.
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(Full draft of statement by Indian Army is above)
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As a proud country man one should support and appreciate its army’s operations,
so was every Indian doing, but Government thought that this is not enough, triumph
should have been more loud.
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For the first time, an Indian government took a strategic (?) decision to deliberately
leak the information about the operation to the world and its own people with a
totally different prospectus of across the border strike in Myanmar, which army
never said in its press conference or any other domain. Government disowned its
own army’s version in evening when Minister of State for Information &
Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore went to media and lauded the Army
operation in Myanmar and said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had ordered the
operation in which two insurgent camps were completely annihilated. He said that
the surgical strike “INSIDE MYANMAR” was an unprecedented and extremely bold
step by the Government. Also added operation was overt not covert and "we will
carry out surgical strikes at the place and time of our own choosing”. Rathore also
chose #56inchRocks as hash-tag in his tweets to send out a message that the
action was possible only because of the Prime Minister's courage. Defence Minister
Manohar Parrikar also joined the celebration on 12th June by saying "If the thinking
pattern changes, lots of things change. A simple action against insurgents has
changed the mindset of the full security scenario in the country. Those who fear
India's new posture have already started reacting, "but on asking about whether
operation, the raids, were done inside Myanmar ? He just said “along the India-
Myanmar border”, only after two days he took a U-turn again by saying “As per the
official statement, we conducted the operation on the Indo-Myanmar border. But
one should know to read between the lines.”
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Many versions of the operation were floating on social media all through the day
including cropped, pixilated photographs of purported soldiers who conducted the
operations.
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In the continuation of event according to reports, Zaw Htay, director of Myanmar's
presidential office, said that, as per the information sent by Myanmar army's local
battalions, the military operation by the Indian army was carried out on the Indian
side of border.
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The disclaimer from the Myanmar government points to differences which creates
an impression that New Delhi either did not inform it about the operations or
excluded it in post-operation drama.
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There were so many questions which were not answered. Did Information Minister
knew about crossing of International border or he was just pretending it? If it was a
true or an official version why army not clearly confirmed crossing the border? Why
defence minister not confirmed any of official statement and keep changing his
statements? Why Myanmar is not accepting crossing of border? If Myanmar was
helping us but was not comfortable in accepting of any insurgent on its land why we
wanted it to accept? Why we are putting credibility of our Indian Army by denying its
briefing on event? I felt event was a great success of Indian Army but a big backfire
on political jingoism and people in government still shamelessly want to prove their
version right which is leading us towards a wrong path of diplomacy. If not, than I
am waiting for answers.
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Incident Three:
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"You can do one Mumbai, you may lose Baluchistan”: Ajit Doval, in Feb 2014 (He is
now NSA for our PM).
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I support the people of Baluchistan and their long freedom fighting revolution
against Pakistan, Baluchistan is a beautiful piece of land, residence of brave Baluch
people where Pakistan army committing a 'tsunami of rights violations’ and
Pakistan should immediately end ‘atrocities’ on people of Baluchistan. But I am not
convinced and I don’t agree by NSA on point. I do not understand that why we need
one more Mumbai type of attack to help Baluchistan people to be successful in their
freedom fight against Pakistan. As a responsible country we should raise voice
against any violation of human rights in region. Baluchistan is a subject of revenge
to us?
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In this continuation, on Independence Day our Prime Minister Modi roared from the
rampart of red fort on Pakistan which meant If you send terrorist to our country we
will send terrorist to your country. If you spread insurgency in Kashmir we will
spread in Baluchistan. You want to take Kashmir apart; we will take Baluchistan
from you. You are known as irresponsible and terror harbouring country in world
and now we are also ready to take ourselves as low as you are.
Is this the message our PM wanted to give from Red Fort?, Yes, unfortunately this
was the massage he wanted to give, He very clearly knew that by playing the
Baluchistan card, he is not going to deter Pakistan from interfering in Kashmir in
present or future but Baluchistan will provide an another chest thumping moment to
his supporters at home about his imaginary 56-inch chest. By creating this another
moment of political jingoism Modi made himself accused of reversing an age-old
Indian position: We do not interfere in the internal affairs of other country, if that
country doesn’t request. How our government will ask Pakistan establishment to
not interfere in “India’s internal matter” in Kashmir?
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August 15 was arguably a case of the worst possible person speaking up at the
worst possible time. Policy bankruptcy has become the hallmark of government’s
so called "maximum governance”
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! (BJP Rajya Sabha MP Swapan Das Gupta loudly confirming PM Modi’s I-Day message )
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Present government has also dented the Indian stance over Kashmir. How does
New Delhi now ask Islamabad to not interfere in “India’s internal matter” in Kashmir,
when our PM is giving a message of doing the same in a Pakistani territory that it
doesn’t’t even stake a claim to?
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On other hand, US State Department spokesman John Kirby told in a recent news
briefing in Washington, That “The US government respects the unity and territorial
integrity of Pakistan and we do not support independence for Baluchistan,” The
country which was very well exposed in wikileaks for disturbing the region to
counter its rival China and Iran’s building interest and their important strategic
project in region.
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Time has come to think “Where these chest thumping policies are taking us?”