Terrorists Vs Martyrs in Secular India

The martyrdom of Mohan Chand Sharma, who died battling jihadi terrorists is a grim reminder of how many of our brave soldiers are dying in the process of countering terror against overwhelming odds. The almost celebratory mood of the media for the police success against SIMI is misleading; instead it should be a moment of self introspection and reappraisal for several sections of our society including “secular” politicians, “left wing intelligentsia”, certain English and most Urdu dailies, even the police and last but not the least the myopic viewpoint of the Muslim community as also its rabble rousing leadership itself.In previous articles, I have highlighted the “political Islamic terror” nexus [1] as also the political guardians of the SIMI in mainstream politicians like Laloo Prasad Yadav, Ram Vilas Paswan, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Mayawati apart from the Congress high command which even sent feelers to the homes of the previously arrested top SIMI leader Abu Bashir in Azamgarh (UP) to console his family and local Muslims. As the TOI admits [2], the mask has been torn off SIMI’s hardline terrorist face as also knocked out the SIMI’s claims of being a cultural organization. Remember, UPA ministers had hailed the tribunal order against the ban as validation of their belief in innocence of the organization as also its spirited defense by Syed Ahmed Bukhari, Shahi Imam and spiritual guide of Delhi’s Muslims. Sustained public opinion does generate response from even the most unlikely quarters. So we have the Samajwadi Party announcing an 11 lakh rupees award for the family of the officer who laid down his life for the nation although the source of the money is in all probability not their party’s coffers. This populist move seems to building up of the party’s battered image but is it anything more than a smokescreen? For, Saif Ahmad who was injured and arrested in the shootout is actually the son of Sadab Ahmad, vice president of the Azamgarh unit of the Samajwadi party. [3] Predictably, Friday’s shooting sparked off violent riots in Azamgarh, the mecca of India’s indigenous Islamic terror.It is lamentable that the UPA government views the encounter as a personal victory and vindication for its policy against terror. Three days back, Manmohan Singh was echoing proactive law line but seems was over-ruled by the super-PM Sonia Gandhi who feared erosion of the party’s Muslim vote. And why not? Minutes after the encounter residents of Jamia Nagar (a 100% Muslim Ghetto within the jurisdiction of Okhla municipality in Delhi where in 2002, a pro Osama councilor’s wife secured a landslide victory) were seen abusing the police and calling the encounter fake [4]. However, when media men questioned (Sahara Samay 8 P.M Newshow, 19.8.2008) the antecedents of the men holed up in the apartment none of the neighbors could identify them which provoked the anchor to ask the irate men as to how on earth could they vouch for the antecedents and character of the accused when they didn’t even know their identities! Or was it a typical case of Muslim cannot be terrorist rhetoric. A mother of 10 children instead claimed the state was making terrorists out of them by not providing them jobs. On what basis and qualifications? Their madarsa certificates? And why not consider the un-Islamic practice of family planning?The perversion of India’s political parlance is complemented by the left wing intelligentsia, their comrades within the English news media and their vitriolic Urdu counterpart. What will the Arundhati Roy’s, Yoginger Sikhand’s, A G Noorani’s and Teesta Setelvad’s now claim in their masterly editorials to the international press? Will they again discover a communal conspiracy as in the Afzal Guru case? Will the unofficial guardians of SIMI in Tarun Tejpal and Shoma Chaudhary of the Tehelka again discover sophisticated arguments in SIMI’s arsenal? Probably not – and the reason lies in not any genuine repentance but because of the uncomfortable situation that a police inspector died in the process. In no other nation of the world would a senior ranking police officer require to sacrifice his life in order to prove the encounter was not fake. The monstrosity of the national media requires police officers to be grievously hurt or preferably killed to gratify their “Gandhian” consciences! Recently, when the dreaded Bunty Bike gang was eliminated in Delhi, Aaj Tak reporter’s were demanding why were they killed and not taken into custody even if it would have involved casualties on the police side.Inevitably, the futile question arises as to why was the officer, a veteran of over 30 encounters not wearing a bullet proof jacket? Despite the precise information as to their location why was attempt made to make contact with such jihadis with so little protection and backup? Was their any political pressure to minimize the violence? Will such a scheme which involves the police to tackle terrorists with so little protection comprehensible in the modern world? Until we fail to answer these inexplicable conundrums, our brave soldiers will continue to perish in preserving those who frankly could do without!