Commentary/Varsha Bhosle

A requiem for Security

If you had logged on to Rediff on June 6, you couldn't have missed the day's top story on Major Avatar Singh being arrested for his involvement in the murder of J&K human rights activist Jalil Andrabi. The item told us how Andrabi's death had sparked off widespread anger in the valley; that Amnesty International had condemned the lawyer's killing; that he was scheduled to attend a human rights seminar in Geneva; and, for good measure, it mentioned Mrs Andrabi.

If you'd logged in on June 7, you wouldn't have known about the deaths of 6 people in the Punjab cantonment town of Pathankot: It did not make the headlines in newspapers, either. Therefore, let me relay the no-news: Some of India's harangued citizens had decided to celebrate the 13th anniversary of Operation Bluestar with a fireworks display inside a private passenger bus. The explosion had ripped through the middle section of the bus, instantly killing six and critically injuring eight. Unlike the frills on Andrabi, the only information given about the dead human elements was: they were all civilians from Himachal Pradesh.

If Andrabi's was a custodial death, we can guess what happened. But what I'd like to know is, what had provoked the army to pull him in for questioning? No newspaper has bothered to investigate. We're told that the court had declared the officer a "proclaimed offender", and that Amnesty International has demanded an inquiry into the alleged murder. I say "alleged" because nobody has yet proved to me that it wasn't an execution. For, after the suicide of SSP Ajit Singh Sandhu, Mr K P S Gill has indicted human rights organisations as an "industry being used for political purposes" – and I tend to believe him.

Ever since Sanjay Dutt landed in jail, we've heard everything there is to be heard about inhumane laws, innocent victims, barbaric cops and bloodthirsty soldiers. We've absorbed the compassionate views of film stars, professional secularists (aka politicians), editors, foreigners, novelists… none of whom would even consider opening a window during a riot, let alone camp at the frontiers. So OK, nor would I. Then, how about sparing a minute to hear from those who have actually faced the fire? How about a requiem for Indian security?

Lieutenant General (retired) B T Pandit, commander of the XI Corps in Punjab (1989-90): "I did come to know Sandhu quite closely as I was witness to the very difficult operations then being carried out in the Mand… In my last assignment as adjutant-general at army headquarters, we faced some 184 writ petitions in the Guwahati high court, alleging human rights violations ranging from rape and torture to illegal confinement. By the time I retired, after a year-and-a-half, nearly 175 of these had been dismissed as baseless. Many, if not most, (such) allegations are motivated by the desire to hamper and demoralise the security forces… This nation needs more people like Sandhu to overcome enemies, internal or external. As a retired soldier in olive green, I salute another soldier in khaki for his heroism, gallantry and national spirit."

Mr D S Soman, former DGP of Maharashtra: "Civil libertarians have been crying themselves hoarse about the human rights aspect (of TADA), but I would like to ask them: Do terrorists recognize human rights? Our criminal justice system is not even in the 19th century and we are almost into the 21st. All over the world, criminal justice systems are being made more stringent – the manifesto of the Labour Party says, 'No mercy for criminals' while Clinton's position is similar."

Mr A V Karnik, former Intelligence Bureau officer: "Let alone witnesses, there was not a single magistrate or judge willing to try these cases (against terrorists). Under such circumstances, the police have no choice but to depend on a law like TADA. If a terrorist enters the city, the police cannot detain him for interrogation unless they have recourse to something like TADA. Believe me, we are on the threshold of facing very serious trouble from terrorists. The ISI is active all over the country, weapons and explosives are coming in every day. Just because there's peace right now, it shouldn't lull us into a state of security…"

Methinks Indians are the only people in the world who refuse to accept: a) the enormity of terrorism; b) the existence of organised terrorism; c) the indispensability of ruthless anti-terrorism laws; and d) the dangers posed by enemy states. The factors are related: The incomplete fortification of the Indo-Pak border in Rajasthan has led to a spurt in smuggling activities, much to the alarm of the police and BSF personnel who aren't authorized to haul in suspects. The smuggling of gold, silver and heroin has given way to RDX, detonators and AK-56s – which are then distributed to peaceful groups in the country. That apart, border districts like Pokhran are used for sensitive operations like Prithvi trials and weapons tests... And what do our Cheshire Cats do? They laud Dr Bhabani Sengupta's idiot scheme to throw open the border "for a few days in a month" so that people can cross the LoC. Wunderbar!

The friendly-compassionate are upset about Dr Sengupta's forced resignation. I am relieved: On ZeeTV last month, Dr Sengupta affirmed that he "does not believe in the theory that my country is always right. That my country, right or wrong, is above criticism." He wouldn't. People who did – President John F Kennedy's tribe – made their country the most powerful in the world – with the help of the nukes that Dr Sengupta has such a bee in his bonnet about. His buddy, our PM, doesn't think twice about unilaterally easing travel restrictions on Pakistanis. He doesn't deem it necessary to raise the issue of ISI-sponsored phataakas in India. And of course, the Indo-Pak bhai-bhai associations get unilateral kittens over their bilateral tours.

But let's get to my favourite whipping-boy: As long as I stick to Khalistanis, there's little to-do; but… There are those who think that Islamic terrorism does not exist in India, or if it does, it isn't systematic. Well, in February 1993, the US House Republican Research Committee published The New Islamist International, a detailed report describing the nature of fundamentalist Islam across the globe. It's a massive document, from which I reproduce the opener of just the overview:

'Since the Fall of 1992, there has been a significant increase in Islamist terrorism, subversion and violence in such diverse countries as India, Pakistan, Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Algeria, Nigeria, Somalia, and many others. Despite the different circumstances of these incidents, they do not appear to be isolated events. Rather, they are the first incidents in the escalation of an Islamic jihad against the "Judeo-Christian world order". What is most striking, and indeed alarming, about this new campaign is that it is being carried out not by the usual Shi'ite fundamentalist groups, but by Sunni networks affiliated with a new Islamist International that is serving as the umbrella organization for numerous "Jihadist" groups. Essentially controlled and sponsored by Iran, and run via Sudan under the leadership of Shaykh Hassan Abdallah al-Turabi, the Islamist International is the realization of the Ayatollah Khomeyni's original vision of an ecumenical "all-Islamic Revolution" that would unite Sunnis and Shi'ites in their war against the 'Great Satan.' "

It's obvious that the report has its own agenda: mark the "Judeo-Christian world order". Subsequently, the US Senate passed a Resolution on Christian Persecution in September 1996, and have followed it with the Freedom of Religious Persecution Act this year. Nevertheless, that an organised attempt is being made to subvert non-Islamic countries, cannot be brushed off. Observe how the above information checks out with that below:

The Hindu: "Efforts are now on to bring five such organisations closer together. These are: the Muslim United Liberation Tigers of Assam, Muslim Volunteer Force, Muslim United Liberation Front of Assam, and the Muslim Liberation Front of Assam… Two student bodies are also counted among the fundamentalist outfits. One of them, the Islamic Students Movement of India, was floated by Saudi Arabia during Ayatollah Khomeini's regime in Iran, when Saudi Arabia's relations with Iran were bitter. The other, Islamic Students Organisation of India, is an Iran-based group, deriving its inspiration from the tenets propounded by Khomeini… The ISMI is understood to be collaborating with the Jamaat-e-Islami of Bangladesh, Bangladesh Freedom League and Bangladesh Nationalist Party. There are sundry other outfits such as the United Revolutionary Army of Assam, Islamic Tigers, Assam Muslim Liberation Army, Adam Sena, Saddam Bahini and Muslim Security Force."

The Hindustan Times: "The Jamaat-e-Islami leader Syed Ali Shah Gilani has exhorted Indian Muslims to join jihad in Kashmir. Participating in the anti-nationalism campaign organised by the Students Islamic Movement of India, Syed Gilani has regretted that the Muslim ummah was indifferent to the jihad in Kashmir. The Jamaat parivar is supporting this campaign enthusiastically, and as the professional Muslim leadership has maintained total silence, one may safely assume that it is at least in partial agreement with this appraisal…"

Then there's the funding: The hawala scam was unearthed after the arrest of a Kashmiri militant near Delhi's Jama Masjid. The lead took the investigators to a student of the JNU, and his interrogation revealed that terrorists were being financed through hawala dealers. The secret funding by foreign intelligence agencies to terrorist outfits is a serious one; the ISI is said to be pumping millions into subversive groups like the Hizbul Mujahiddin, the Hurriyat, the Muslim Conference... What "no conspiracy"? It's hardly possible for Bhosle and the likes of her to counter a book on the "myths" about Muslims in a mere article. But not to worry, we'll get there: Truth always does. Fact: you cannot talk about terrorism and avoid Islam.

Last week, 7 CRPF jawans were killed by armed extremists near Imphal; a blast shook a railway station in Madras; a television station was bombed in Thanjavur. This week, 15 army personnel were killed by militants in Tripura; a blast derailed a goods train in Punjab; a RDX bomb was defused on the Avadh-Assam Express in Assam. Organised terrorism exists. India needs harsh anti-terrorism laws. It needs healthy, unhampered security forces. What it does not need is the masking of truth to keep the damn secular peace. For at this rate, we'll soon be taking a unilateral route to a Beirut-like hell.

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