The assassination attempt on Benazir Bhutto’s procession in Karachi has brought the stark reality of terror in Pakistan to the Indian public.
Benazir stands in the way of jihadis at a time when Pakistan is at a crossroad
NEW DELHI: The assassination attempt on Benazir Bhutto’s procession in Karachi has brought the stark reality of terror in Pakistan to the Indian public. Though such strikes are common across the border, the horror of a suicide bomber in the midst of a mass political rally, the kind of rally common in the sub-continent, has been horrifying to Indians.
The attack on Benazir has substantiated her claims that jihadis are aiming to eliminate her. The fact that she decided to go ahead and take the risk has reinforced her image as a courageous daughter of the east.
The government reaction too was different. Earlier, New Delhi had kept aloof and shrugged off events in Pakistan as a domestic problem. But on Friday, the South Block got into action and gave am unprecedented five statements on the event. The first statement was to condemn terrorism. India’s high commissioner in Pakistan was asked to contact Benazir and express the prime minister and the foreign minsiter’s personal concern to the PPP leader.
Opposition leader LK Advani spoke to Benazir. PM Singh wrote to Musharraf and expressed sympathy. Pranab Mukherjee also called the former PM. The next day, Congress president Sonia Gandhi spoke to her. Never before had India reacted the way it did. Not even when her father, the late prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was hanged. There was shock and sympathy in India, but no flurry of activity.
Behind all this is the belief that Pakistan is at the crossroads and the next few months before the elections are crucial. For India, it is vital that Islamic fundamentalists do not call the shots in Islamabad.
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