Candid view on terror

We have felt the impact of terror in our lives. One hears the bomb blast in the neighbourhood and is scared. Another person nearby may have lost a limb and just next door a friend may have lost life. Scary scenes these are indeed. Of course, metropolitan cities like Mumbai and Delhi have been worst hit in India and globally speaking it is New York City that bore the brunt. Terrorists move in with an aim when they launch a terror attack and to achieve the aim they go all out, come what may.

WHAT IS TERROR

Terror remains undefined till today. Shri Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India had spoken of this major lacuna in the functioning of the world body while he was addressing large audiences comprising Indian Diaspora, foreign visitors and guests including Americans and Europeans on the American soil in California. Modi Ji lamented that the United Nations Organisation in its seventy years of existence has not succeeded in finding a universally acceptable definition of Terror. Well, if a definition of Terror cannot be found in seven decades, how many decades will it take to tackle Terror, he asked.

The Word Net Dictionary defines a Terrorist Attack thus:

“ A surprise attack involving the deliberate use of Violence against civilians in the hope of attaining political or religious gains” Of course, now military men, women and installations are also being targeted by terrorists. Terror is now a worldwide phenomenon but some countries have been attacked relentlessly for religious reasons. We shall discuss the modus operandi threadbare in this paper.

It would be pertinent to take a look at other definitions of Terror so that we understand what is Terror and what is the general modus operandi. The American government and the public did not give a damn to acts and omissions of Terror until it visited their homeland – the Continental United States; CONUS. When the Twin Towers in the New York City were destroyed by the Islamist terrorists, the US Administration and the man in the street suddenly woke up to understand what it was all about and defeat the attackers of the oldest democracy of the world.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation or FBI defines Terror thus:

“Terrorism is the unlawful use of force and violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population or a part thereof, in furtherance of political or social objective.”

One may note that a secular country like USA did not want to bring in Religion as a motivating factor of Terror but the writing was on the wall for everyone to read. Islam and its propagation through violence have been the most powerful motivation to spring Terrorists into action.

The United Nations Organisation also put forward a definition of Terror in 1992 but it still is bereft of an official backing. It runs thus:

“An anxiety inspiring method of repeated violent action employed by clandestine individuals, group of State actors for criminal or political reasons, whereby in contrast to assassination – the direct targets of violence are NOT the main targets.”

The above definition was not acceptable to many nations and it never got a universal recognition.

The British definition of Terror given in 1974 is quite close to Truth as it talks of Fear generated by violence perpetrated by terrorists. It says:

“Use of violence for political ends and includes any use of violence for purpose of putting the public or any section of the public in FEAR”

Let us be realistic and understand the psychology of the common man or woman who hears of an act of violence on the radio or watches innocent people die of bullets or shrapnel on streets, these scenes introduces FEAR in their minds. Generating FEAR in minds of men and women is the ultimate aim of Terrorists and when it happens they succeed in achieving their AIM.

WHY TERROR AND NOT WAR

Terror is the ultimate weapon of those State actors and their cohorts whose paramount power, the State and the Government have waged wars to gain territory, wealth or predominance in the region but LOST not only battles but all wars. The losers have no place to hide; they have no alibi to convince their people of their victory whereas they were defeated.

Let us take the case of India and Pakistan in the South Asia. In the six decades plus of its existence Pakistan launched as many as FOUR major military operations against India but lost all four ensuing loss of men, material and prestige. The Generals of the Pakistan Army, the civilian administrators and diplomats had no face to show to their own people. They converted the Defeat in 1965 war into so called victory on paper. It was nothing but a paper tiger. So, to save face the defeated coterie took recourse to launching a War of Terror against India. Despite loss of thousands of innocent lives in India the gain accruing to Pakistan, if any, was equivalent to a ZERO. Instead of gaining power and prestige, Pakistan lost Face in the Comity of Nations and almost was reduced to the status of a pariah.

Pakistan too has suffered at the hands of its own Terrorists but the fault lay at their door. Those who ride a Tiger of Terror, finally end up in its stomach. The massacre of a large number of school children at an Army School in Peshawar caused anguish and pain to parents who belonged to the Pakistan Army. Yet their generals have not yet learnt a lesson.

Pakistan had a misconceived notion that their loss on the battlefield would be their ultimate gain in the bloodied streets of Mumbai, New Delhi, Varanasi, Akshardham Temple town and so on. Pakistan’s military planners and Terror handlers have been living in a fool’s paradise. Islam might be promising them pretty virgins in paradise on their attaining martyrdom but in actual fact the Paki terrorists and military men killed by the Indian soldiers failed to get a grave in their promised land because their motherland refused to accept their dead bodies for last rites. What a shame for Terrorists and their State handlers.

Pakistan is unable to eliminate terrorists from its own land because it does not have the political and military will to do so. The then President of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf had a radio-telephony conversation with Chief of the general Staff of Pakistan Army then on a visit to Beijing wherein both emphasized that the Islamic terrorists were real brothers of the Pakistan Army. When the Army goes to war against India, the Islamic terrorists would protect their flanks. The Indian Military Intelligence has a recording of that chat in its archives.

The Pakistan Army and the State have nourished Islamic terrorists for decades to use them against India and Afghanistan. Tw successive Presidents of Afghanistan, Karzai and Ghani have held Pakistan responsible for creating trouble in Afghanistan. India too has blamed Pakistan for the bloody terror incidents on its soil. Pakistan had earlier guided terrorists but now same Terror outfits are guiding the Pakistan policy. Pakistan nourished Terror-Snakes and the same is now bold enough to bite its feeder.

The question is: If Pakistan is suffering at the hands of Islamic Terror, why is it still supporting it? Well, they have terrorists as a military reserve to be launched against the Hindu India that the Islamic Pakistan hates from bottom of its heart.

Pakistan lost all four wars and was at the receiving end. Pakistan is the weaker side and finds Terror an effective weapon that provides coercive power with many advantages of a military force at a fraction of the cost. Pakistan finds Terror against India cost effective. If their terrorists are caught and hanged they deny their Paki origin. Pakistan is always in the denial mode on such issues.

With a view to silencing Pakistan before it launches Terrorists into India, Pre-emptive action in air, on ground and at sea is required to neutralize the threat of Islamic terror.

Pakistan is a nation of 190 million people. India is a nation of over 1.3 billion people. Both are nuclear powers but if Pakis launch a nuclear attack, India’s response would be so swift and massive that the Islamic Republic of Pakistan would be wiped out from face of the Earth and be just a dot in geography.

MARTYRS OF BHARAT

Why have Paki terrorists been attacking Mumbai, Delhi, Varanasi and Akshardham time and again? The government and the Army of Pakistan launched their terror operations in India with the aim of bleeding Bharat and weakening it to the extent that it would not be able to sustain itself to stand up and face Pakistan in another military operation. Noble aim of theirs that floundered on the Rock of Gibraltar in Bharat – that is absolute Patriotism and having a sense of pride in making the supreme sacrifice in defence of Bharat Mata.

Why has been Pakistan terror handlers targeting Mumbai time and again causing massive damage to men and material. Let us take a look at the massive terror strikes at the commercial capital of India aimed at paralyzing the Indian economy at the grassroots. These were:

A. 12 March 1993- 13 bombs exploded by Islamists. 257 Indians, mostly Hindus, killed and many more maimed and injured.

B. 25 Aug 2003-  Zaveri Bazar and Gateway of India bombed. 50 killed, mostly Hindus in the bullion market of Zaveri Bazar.

C. 11 July 2006- seven train bombs exploded in the First class coaches, generally occupied by the Hindus. 209 persons killed.

D. 26 Nov 2008-  coordinated attacks by ten Pakistan terrorists, nine of them killed by the Indian Police and Army commandos. 172 Indians killed by terrorists – mostly Hindus, Parsis and a few foreigners.

E. 13 July 2011-  Serial explosions by Pakistan terrorists killed 26 Indians.

Numerous attacks on the Indian places of political importance were launched by the Pakistan terrorists to draw international attention to the Kashmir problem. In 2001, 5 Islamic terrorists had attacked the Indian Parliament House, Sansad Bhawan, and killed 9 personnel of Watch and Ward and Police. The 5 terror attackers were gunned down and a conspirator was tried and hanged till death.

The Pakistan terrorist attack on the Indian Parliament had brought the armies of the two nations face to face at the borders. However, a shooting war was postponed for another day.

SLOW BLEEDING OF BHARAT

In its dream reverie Pakistan sees India being bled to death slowly by the Islamist terrorists. Another opinion of theirs is that by launching sporadic terror strikes throughout the length and breadth of India, Pakistan will tire out the outstretched Indian Security Forces. When the Indian soldiers are dead tired and their morale is in their boots, the freshened Pakistan Army would launch a major military offensive and annihilate the dead tired Indian Army. Little does the dumb enemy realize that the Indian strategists also keep fresh troops in reserve to be launched against Pakistan when the time is ripe. It is a well known fact that when Pakistan had launched the clandestine operation named OP GIBRALTAR to wrest Jammu & Kashmir from India, they had planned to catch the Indian Army unawares. But that was not to be.

Pakistan generals sitting in their air-conditioned offices in Rawalpindi had banked heavily on an uprising of the Kashmiri Muslims, supported by Paki sharp shooters, to frighten the Indian soldiers out of their wits and achieve the aim of annexing Kashmir to Pakistan. But that was NOT to be. If wishes were horses beggars would ride them.

Mohammad Ali Jinnah, founder of Pakistan, too had waited for days at Abbottabad to receive the good news of fall of Srinagar to Pakistan Army and proceed to Srinagar to receive the surrender of Maharajah Sir Hari Singh’s State of Jammu and Kashmir but had to return to Karachi deeply disappointed.

TERRORISE THE TERRORISTS

The way out of this impasse is to terrorize the terrorists to such an extent that he leaves the path of violence and returns home to take to tilling the soil and growing crops. It is a possibility provided political leaders develop the political will to go to any length to finish off the cancer of Terror forever. There is no half way house solution to this recurring problem. All affected nations of the world must unite for the Common Cause and pursue it with all sincerity that it deserves.

The posterity will be grateful to the present generation of leadership of major super powers of the world for bringing the sordid drama to an end. It is not a regional problem of South Asia. It is not a problem of the Middle-East. It is not a problem of Europe or the Americas. If one were to dissect it dispassionately one would find that it is a problem of the Humanity against the demon-like Terror. Let all human beings unite and kill the demon before the Demon kills the Humanity.

By Brigadier Chitranjan Sawant,

VSM

Email:  sawantchitranjan@yahoo.com