The prodigal brother...

The Mumbai terror attacks have been a wake up call for India in many ways. India has finally realised that it can no longer afford to shy away from encountering the menace of cross border terrorism.

 Partition was the biggest mistake ever made by the erstwhile British colonialist regime, one that should have been resisted by the then political leadership dominated by the Indian National Congress. To be fair, there were many voices against the partition including that of the Mahatma himself. But, the majority of the leaders were unable to muster enough courage and will power to resist and defeat the last ditch effort of the Colonial regime to exploit the inherent diversity of the Indian nationhood. Many historians maintain that a prolonged freedom struggle may be for another ten or twenty years would have ensured a free, truly secular, unified sovereign republic of India. This would have saved India and the world from majority of the terrorist threats that exist today.

 The prodigal brother has been bleeding India for decades. Majority of the international community, especially the US and other western powers, chose to ignore the phenomenon until the 9/11 catastrophe. India should have learned its lessons from the pre-9/11 scenario. It is our prerogative to ensure our own safety. In the process, we have to force Pakistan to destroy the terror-factories operating from its soil. Pakistan will a tough time dealing with the extremist forces including the Taliban. In such a scenario, one could be fairly assured that the Pakistani army will topple the democratic government and will try to stand up to the ‘Hindu threat.’ This is when the US and other western powers will find the script unpalatable to them. They would prefer a Pakistan which is a base for their operations in Afghanistan. They would not want the Pakistani dispensation to be drawn away from the Afghan front by the Indian challenge. India must realise that this is the crux of the challenge that we have to overcome in our very own war against terror. India should draw the line here and must let the whole world know that the security of its people and assets are paramount to it. If in the process the US finds itself in a tough situation then, so be it. India must start getting its priorities right. US can flex its muscle and withdraw the economic and military aids given to Pakistan. The international community can impose enough restrictions on the Pakistani trade to make Islamabad fall in line. If and when India and the world adopt such a position, the prodigal brother will have no option but to fall in line.