Mumbai Mumbles

By BrigGen(Ret) Dr. Muhammad Aslam Khan Niazi

(Taj Mahal Hotel: Courtesy- Human Rights Watch)

The gruesome human carnage in Mumbai occurred like a flash flood, almost choking
the Indian print and electronic media about the maintainability of intellectual impartiality.
Unprecedented gush of accusations was heaped on Pakistan faster than the terrorists’
lethal weapons though no clue was yet available except their distant images taken by the
expert foreign media. The gory trauma lasted for 62-72 hours. The shadowy discrepancy
in the length of operation could be attributed to the premature claims by the Indian forces,
busy in flushing out the young but well trained terrorists when some pockets of resistance
held on longer than expected, thus negating the early success signals. Hotel Oberoi, Taj
Mahal and a Jewish Center were the main areas that were struck by ‘Deccan Mujahideen’
(DM).

Pakistani Foreign Minister, already touring India and pledging to open a new chapter
of mutual reconciliation with erstwhile archrival was perhaps the first diplomatic casualty
who had to cut his visit short and dash to Islamabad. President Asif Ali Zardari and his
Prime Minister vowed to continue collective war on terror along with India. They made
emotional claims, as damage control measure, to stand by the shoulders of Indian
brothers against such savage acts. The felony committed by DM hurled the regional as
well as world politics into a dangerous spin that could rubbish the hopes of dawn of new
era, India required so desperately for its burgeoning economy and Pakistan for its
budding democracy after repressive Musharraf led dictatorship, lasting for eight years. At
this critical juncture, all Pakistani political parties displayed remarkable restraint and
abandoned the point scoring strategy on the incumbent government. In fact whole
Pakistani nation appeared inclined to forgive India, not only for recent Hindu extremists’
killings, bombing or torching several hundred Muslims and Christians, including some
missionaries but also for the deep wound India inflicted by stage managing the Pakistan’s
internal discord and dismembering it in 1971. The wave of sympathy was short lived

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when some of their top Government and Military heads commenced their usual anti-
Pakistan tirades.

Indian Prime Minister, Mr. Manmohan Singh went to the extent of, according to
Indian media, summoning Pakistani ISI Chief who heads an elite agency with cis and
transfrontiers military operational intelligence role. Pakistani Premier, out of good will
and sincerity buckled under the weight of Indian media hype for a while but soon
recovered. It was obvious even to laymen, that demanding a top agency head by
designation is in stark contravention to the international norms particularly when the
accusations are being heaped on an institution incessantly. It was not the credibility
deficit that ISI Chief would have faced but amidst the Indians simmering anguish against
Pakistan, that is so spontaneous to spark in India, it would have complicated the situation
further. If the Indian side when the DM were still resisting, was ready to show some
proofs of Pakistani involvement to ISI Chief, the urgency of concoction becomes
manifest by itself. Given the time, ISI Chief would have been in sound position to carry a
plane-load of proofs of Indian involvement in Pakistan from the eastern as well as
western borders. Abrupt break out of Karachi riots within hours of Mumbai’s battle
appear RAW’s success to grind its axe and soothe Indian masses ire that also spoke of
‘revenge’. When emotions ran high, one does not grudge their reaction. Being a neighbor
and with vast experience of events manipulation, RAW’s success was not surprising.
What boggles mind of Pakistani nation is the presence of fifth columnists taking refuge in
Karachi with glossy labels of ‘patriotism’. Mumbai monsters’ rampage that engulfed
multi-cultural and multi-national cosmopolitan revealed some naked realities.

• The print and electronic media in a secular state, if dominated by the brains
with ethnic and racist tilt is a dangerous proposition. It thus failed to demonstrate
the requisite maturity to play ‘bandage’ role, when nations and countries are
inflicted wounds, suspected to have been engineered by foreign hand. Had there
been no Angela Merkel, David Milliband, Condoleezza Rice, BBC and CNN,
perhaps the WMD launchers of both the countries would have soon moved to the
launch pads. To counter media hype and public frenzy against Pakistan, sounding
alert to IAF and moving some additional troops to Indo-Pak border was witty as
well as unwitting move, though it was soon contradicted by India and Pakistan.
Hostile posturing of two nuclear adversaries ebbed down perhaps after the
intervention of US and EU. Pakistani media, shocked, bewildered and threatened
by Indian ‘jumping to the conclusions’ sort of behavior showed remarkable
restraint. Threat of some kind of hostilities, if not an all out war, still hovers on
the horizon.

• The so called CBMs, engineered by Musharraf government and supposedly

passed on to the new government emerged merely a smoke screen behind which
India has expanded its lethality and venom dozes, it is injecting into Pakistan.
Talk of open borders trade may be fine but would Pakistani leadership floundering
in internal quagmire of its own making, realize the intent and designs of its
erstwhile adversary. Perpetuation of tyranny over Kashmiris for last 62 years ,
switching off 90% of Chenab River water supply in violation of the existing

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 agreements, maintaining its ability to trigger violence through paid cronies and
driving wedge into FATA and Balochistan from behind Hamid Karzai’s green
cloak are a few to count. As if it was not enough, India now has an operational
airbase in Tajikistan on the NW periphery of Pakistan that would afford India
pincer-like capability to strike our sensitive installations in northern Pakistan in
matter of minutes, both from East and West.

• The urgency of phoning for upping the diplomatic ante by Pakistani leadership
proved that it is heavily dependent on goodwill of external powers beyond
proportion only because it is pathetically weak from within. Sovereign status
means integral deterrence to the extent of hedging external threat effectively
without SOS calls to US, EU or China. If the people of Pakistan, through the
mandate of February 18, 2008 election had rejected the dictator’s rule, there is no
margin for the present government to maintain status quo. It must undo the
policies and governance style of previous dictator to win the people’s confidence.
The charisma of Benazir Bhutto and Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, both killed by opponents
dubiously is fast waning; no matter you name all roads, historical buildings, cities,
institutes and air ports in their names. These are the utopian recipes to prevent
disaster that would come any way if sound, corruption-free judiciary and the
state’s institutions are not allowed to operate independently.

• Karachi is Pakistan’s time bomb. Though it has stayed violence-prone city, yet
during Musharraf interim government immediately preceding February elections,
huge stocks of sophisticated weapons were built up in Karachi as the rumor goes.
In Pakistan, surprisingly, rumors never fail. It is unbelievable that PPP
government does not know of it. However, to save their skin, if they have chosen
to be voluntary hostage to anti-state capability of some faction, they are only
behaving like brilliant fools. A short clip on third day (2 December 2008) of the
riots in Karachi was shown on electronic media when ‘criminals’ of a particular
locality were being arrested and thrashed, only to make them as escape-goats and
shift public attention from the real culprits. In Karachi the deplorable volcanic
situation can erupt any time as a coup-de-grace by anti-state elements wrapped in
the guise of ‘patriotism’ to hit at the roots of country’s solidarity.

• Curt warnings to Pakistan appearing in Indian media to flush terrorists from its
soil becomes meaningless because Pakistan is under far more severe attacks by its
own people though the battle of guts is certainly among estranged brothers,
particularly in FATA and Balochistan. Certainly the degree of estrangement has
been manipulated by some regional and extra regional powers.

• Standing by India at such critical juncture is fine gesture to a neighbor but in the
long run, it must meet the test of reciprocity that is totally absent from Indian side.
Giving concessions to India through such assurances like NFU (no first use) in the
nuclear domain is incoherent with the conduct of art of diplomacy. Our foreign
office should heed to the fact that interstate relations are governed by brains and
national interests. Hearts are kept folded. For last couple of years, the

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 intelligentsia is witness to the pattern that suggests to the contrary. Practically
Pakistan has been pushed to the brink by our inept foreign policy stalwarts. Thus
India secures any concession it wants, without letting its position budge by an
inch. The imbalance is unacceptable. Pakistan side should well be suggested that
India be dealt with always as if some crisis situation is being handled to avert war
in the face of several contentious issues that persist among the two opponents.
India has so far successfully pursued potentially contradicting goals. One to
prevent war (may be nuclear) and the other to prevail on the adversary. India
would never go to war but it flaunts threat of war toward Pakistan to achieve its
war aims without firing a bullet. Pakistan remains ‘honored’ to build CBMs in the
mean time.

• The commando operation conducted by Indian elite force, ‘Black Cat’ to flush
out the terrorists from huge hotel structures and the Jewish Center left much to
desire. Fire power was the only option used by the rescuers, resulting in higher
deaths of hostages versus a few terrorists. No ruse and deception was applied. If
terrorists were taking shield of the hostages, so did the rescuers. An Indian soldier
shooting grenades from a neighboring building into a hotel with a grenade
launcher was trying to put the hotel structure on fire aimlessly, forgetting that his
technique only fitted to a conventional battle field. The point proves that Russian,
US or Israeli equipment if sold to Indian forces must be annexed with the required
expertise transfer also.

The conclusions are obvious in the entire episode. Pakistan shall never initiate a war
even though it has been severely and persistently mauled and dismembered by India. Yet
if the war is imposed on Pakistan, it would be too willing to face it until logical end. It is
in Indian interest to contain home grown terrorism by addressing the Kashmiris
grievances, which span over several decades and also of the people of Bihar, Assam and
Tamil lands in just ways. Pakistan is better advised to find political solutions for FATA
and Balochistan, sparing military might and focus for its larger war, threat of which
haunts us from the EAST every now and then. Quest for ‘peace’ nevertheless must stay a
preferred option by both, India and Pakistan.

(Also a member of WSN International Advisory Board, the author’s book, “The New Great
Game: Oil and Gas Politics in Central Eurasia has been recently published from New York,
London and Swansea simultaneously under his acronym, Dr. Makni. E-mail
makni49@hotmail.com)