The recent spate of attacks on CRPF Jawans has again lent teeth to the phantasm of terror. Cross Border terrorism has always been a reality but being the world’s largest democracy we have often muted our response as a nation. In doing so this reality has simmered down to a phantasm.
The surgical strike earlier was a controlled act of revenge to the perpetual act of violence arising out of the Pakistani soil. For once even the common man felt that a much needed response was given and it will result in lesser incursions on the Indian soil. But Newton’s third law would come back to haunt us and an 18 year old will consume the lives of 40 CRPF Jawans .
The masters of terror this time preyed on a vulnerable but a full throttled young man who had altercations with the Indian army earlier. Gandhiji once said that an eye for an eye makes the world blind; In the case of Kashmir, the polity has gone blind. I say so because whenever there are indications of a plebiscite the entire region swings towards Pakistan. Right wing experts attribute this to the exodus of Kashmiri Pundits. And for once I believe what they say is true.
The artist in me would like to see the inclusion of Kashmiri’s in the mainframe. Time and again successive governments have tried to mobilize such efforts with positive results. But just when there is hope, an arc of terror rises from the ashes to bring it down like a house of cards. And this is not a phantasm, it is real.
Back in time liberal and leftist leaders often cited the war in Mahabharata was not real. It symbolizes the chaos within ourselves which needs to be addressed. Even by that belief system, the youth in Kashmir has to make an informed decision. The government on the other hand has to purge the roar of terror and see to it that there is no collateral damage. The social fabric of Kashmir which has been denigrated by terror has to be rebuilt too. The hatred between different social groups which has built over decades of cross-firing from both sides of the border also has to be contained.
The Pulwama attack has given rise to a wave of Anti- Kashmiri sentiments across the nation and the Kashmiri youth across the nation is under scrutiny. At this point in time, if we vent our displaced anger on them instead of the actual perpetrators of terror, it will make them think that we Indians indeed hate them, and more and more Kashmiri’s will get radicalized. Kashmir has been witness to a long drawn proxy war. The terror apparatus in this new axis of evil includes Pakistan, the Taliban, and shadow governments working in tandem. As citizens of India, we hope this problem is resolved at the earliest and we as a nation unleash a wave of development that will conquer all.