By Abu Asim
After a long hush, intelligence agencies have swung into action and arresting people who had detonated bombs at different places of the country and by these arrests the government wants to give the message that it won’t tolerate any kind of terrorism -- saffron or green. But question comes to mind that only detonator of bombs are terrorists?
Languishing in jails, the alleged perpetrators of Malegaon and Mecca Masjid blasts would be cursing their fate for being branded as terrorists. Not even in their wildest dreams they would have ever imagined sharing cells with the Islamic militants.
Had they any prior idea that they would be jailed for slyly detonating bombs, (meant to malign Muslims for killing innocent people) would have preferred to rioting and killings rather than setting of bombs.
If they had taken part in instigating communal violence, like their would have been walking free and daydreaming of becoming chief ministers, and even prime minister of the country. But mistake had been committed.
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In fact, they had an impression that the cops that had been turning a blind eye to the act of overt terrorism of their gurus, unfortunately swung into action and nabbed them, which is sheer diversion from the India’s old tradition of policing.
For that, they should raise their voice of protest against such a blatant discrimination. If the government can arrest them on charges of covert terrorism why it has been shying away from putting the perpetrators of overt terrorism behind bars? Even it is not ready to call it an act of terrorism. While the objective of both the actions--- bomb blasts and rioting-- was the same --to terrorize and weaken the Muslims of the country.
Therefore, they should not be made scapegoat since what they had done was only a part of the project of destruction and that was also on the direction of their masters. Why should they be fall guy for the crime that involves majority of the country? So, the government cannot hang them just for detonating a bomb somewhere at a religious place!
In fact, in covert terrorism only a few people are usually involved but in the act of overt terrorism, apart from majority of people, police and the whole government machinery happily take part in destruction and tear up the flimsy fabric of communal harmony.
Moreover, the people involved in covert terrorism, only get the amount promised for the execution of the job but in the act of overt terrorism, they are not only paid for instigating violence in streets but also get the spoils of the looting and destruction.
The pleasure they get in playing with the pride of the respected people and seeing veiled women along with their relatives with folded hand begging for leaving them inviolate, which the perpetrator of covert terrorism can only dream of.
The victim of covert terrorism just vanishes from the scene in a fraction of a second while the victim of the overt terrorism carried out by communal violence, departs his life in installments. He becomes a walking ghost. With his own open eyes he sees his world being torn apart what he had built brick by brick after years of toil. He helplessly watches his establishments being destroyed, his own loved ones being slaughtered and sisters and daughters being raped by his trusted neighbors.
To his horror, he sees that the very people who had killed his loved ones and ruined his life, giving speeches about non violence and peace and also being voted to power by people as reward for their outstanding service to society.
And he cannot do anything because his loss of dear ones, and loss of faith in justice and in his fellow countrymen snatches away every reason of life.
If anyone travels the length and breadth of the country will certainly find the traces of overt terrorism that have been continuing for a century. But strangely, most of the perpetrators of plunder and destruction were hardly ever punished on the charges of overt terrorism!
Surprisingly enough, the government is hounding the detonators of bombs even on foreign soil, and the whole nation celebrated the arrest of the culprits of terrorism, while the Assam and UP were burnt in communal fire and thousands of people fled their homes to take shelter in the refugee camps, the same people were silent and the government appeared helpless before the rioters and waited for the time when crime against humanity would be forgotten, as thousands have been forgotten.
That is why the naked dance of rioting had failed to create anxiety in the country. Nobody shouted from rooftop to fight all-out war against wide-spread destruction nor security agencies released sketches of suspects nor houses were raided and people of the area were shepherded to the police station for interrogation.
More strikingly, neither Foreign Minister S M Krishna wept on the Uncle Sam’s shoulder and said amid sobs, “ Bodos attacked our people” nor the US President Obama consoled him saying, “As I slain Osama Bin Ladens after destroying three countries, I will destroy the whole India to nab the culprits of the massacre.”
However, playing to the gallery our Prime Minister called that slaughter a ‘blot on the face of country’ as his predecessor Atal Bihari Vajpayee had used the same words when genocide was continuing in Gujarat in 2002. The similarity was that both the leaders did little to stop the violence.
The reason behind this apathy is that nobody considers this bloodbath an act of “terrorism”.
If the government is really sincere about stamping out the menace of terrorism, it should redefine the word terrorism and put both kind of terrorism ---overt and covert terrorism in the same bracket as there are many culprits of barbaric act of overt terrorism are walking free because of the limit of the meaning of the word terrorism.
Therefore, the government should arrest the terrorists of all hues (covert and overt) and prosecute them under TADA, POTA, MOCOCA and whatsoever suitable Acts may be and give them befitting punishment the same way as the Ajmal Qasab has been given otherwise the dream of terror-free country will always remain a distain dream.
[Abu Asimis based in Hyderabad. He can be contacted at abuasim09@gmail.com]
After a long hush, intelligence agencies have swung into action and arresting people who had detonated bombs at different places of the country and by these arrests the government wants to give the message that it won’t tolerate any kind of terrorism -- saffron or green. But question comes to mind that only detonator of bombs are terrorists?
Languishing in jails, the alleged perpetrators of Malegaon and Mecca Masjid blasts would be cursing their fate for being branded as terrorists. Not even in their wildest dreams they would have ever imagined sharing cells with the Islamic militants.
Had they any prior idea that they would be jailed for slyly detonating bombs, (meant to malign Muslims for killing innocent people) would have preferred to rioting and killings rather than setting of bombs.
If they had taken part in instigating communal violence, like their would have been walking free and daydreaming of becoming chief ministers, and even prime minister of the country. But mistake had been committed.
For that, they should raise their voice of protest against such a blatant discrimination. If the government can arrest them on charges of covert terrorism why it has been shying away from putting the perpetrators of overt terrorism behind bars? Even it is not ready to call it an act of terrorism. While the objective of both the actions--- bomb blasts and rioting-- was the same --to terrorize and weaken the Muslims of the country.
Therefore, they should not be made scapegoat since what they had done was only a part of the project of destruction and that was also on the direction of their masters. Why should they be fall guy for the crime that involves majority of the country? So, the government cannot hang them just for detonating a bomb somewhere at a religious place!
In fact, in covert terrorism only a few people are usually involved but in the act of overt terrorism, apart from majority of people, police and the whole government machinery happily take part in destruction and tear up the flimsy fabric of communal harmony.
Moreover, the people involved in covert terrorism, only get the amount promised for the execution of the job but in the act of overt terrorism, they are not only paid for instigating violence in streets but also get the spoils of the looting and destruction.
The pleasure they get in playing with the pride of the respected people and seeing veiled women along with their relatives with folded hand begging for leaving them inviolate, which the perpetrator of covert terrorism can only dream of.
The victim of covert terrorism just vanishes from the scene in a fraction of a second while the victim of the overt terrorism carried out by communal violence, departs his life in installments. He becomes a walking ghost. With his own open eyes he sees his world being torn apart what he had built brick by brick after years of toil. He helplessly watches his establishments being destroyed, his own loved ones being slaughtered and sisters and daughters being raped by his trusted neighbors.
To his horror, he sees that the very people who had killed his loved ones and ruined his life, giving speeches about non violence and peace and also being voted to power by people as reward for their outstanding service to society.
And he cannot do anything because his loss of dear ones, and loss of faith in justice and in his fellow countrymen snatches away every reason of life.
If anyone travels the length and breadth of the country will certainly find the traces of overt terrorism that have been continuing for a century. But strangely, most of the perpetrators of plunder and destruction were hardly ever punished on the charges of overt terrorism!
Surprisingly enough, the government is hounding the detonators of bombs even on foreign soil, and the whole nation celebrated the arrest of the culprits of terrorism, while the Assam and UP were burnt in communal fire and thousands of people fled their homes to take shelter in the refugee camps, the same people were silent and the government appeared helpless before the rioters and waited for the time when crime against humanity would be forgotten, as thousands have been forgotten.
That is why the naked dance of rioting had failed to create anxiety in the country. Nobody shouted from rooftop to fight all-out war against wide-spread destruction nor security agencies released sketches of suspects nor houses were raided and people of the area were shepherded to the police station for interrogation.
More strikingly, neither Foreign Minister S M Krishna wept on the Uncle Sam’s shoulder and said amid sobs, “ Bodos attacked our people” nor the US President Obama consoled him saying, “As I slain Osama Bin Ladens after destroying three countries, I will destroy the whole India to nab the culprits of the massacre.”
However, playing to the gallery our Prime Minister called that slaughter a ‘blot on the face of country’ as his predecessor Atal Bihari Vajpayee had used the same words when genocide was continuing in Gujarat in 2002. The similarity was that both the leaders did little to stop the violence.
The reason behind this apathy is that nobody considers this bloodbath an act of “terrorism”.
If the government is really sincere about stamping out the menace of terrorism, it should redefine the word terrorism and put both kind of terrorism ---overt and covert terrorism in the same bracket as there are many culprits of barbaric act of overt terrorism are walking free because of the limit of the meaning of the word terrorism.
Therefore, the government should arrest the terrorists of all hues (covert and overt) and prosecute them under TADA, POTA, MOCOCA and whatsoever suitable Acts may be and give them befitting punishment the same way as the Ajmal Qasab has been given otherwise the dream of terror-free country will always remain a distain dream.
[Abu Asimis based in Hyderabad. He can be contacted at abuasim09@gmail.com]