Yet again our leaders in government have shown that we Indians may be better off being leaderless. Five of our soldiers are killed by our “Aman ki Aasha” partners and the prime minister’s lips stay sealed, just as it was after 26/11. The defence minister lies in Parliament after first providing Pakistan a handle to slam us with, then defending himself saying that his statement was based on the information he got then.
A lie, because the original briefing he received from the army explicitly blamed Pakistan for the attack. The minister then does a U-turn, on some latest input. Then we have a minister from Nitish Kumar’s Cabinet who says that people join the army and the police force to die. He obviously hasn’t heard Gen George Patton’s statement: “You don’t win a war by dying for your country. You win a war by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his...”
(The writer lives in Pune.)
No doubt attackers came from Pakistan
Who killed five Indian jawans in the Poonch region this week? The answer varies depending on who is replying to the question. ‘The Pakistan Army invaded Indian territory and killed our jawans.’ ‘A group of terrorists dressed as Pakistani soldiers did it.’ ‘Some Pakistan Army personnel accompanied by terrorists were responsible for the killing.’ Whichever is the right answer, the truth is that the attackers came from Pakistan and the Pakistan government failed to stop them. Pakistan’s prime minister Nawaz Sharif must take full responsibility and apologise promptly to the Indian people.
– Dr Mookhi Amir Ali, Mumbai
Pak unresponsive to dialogue
Apropos of “Intemperate Parliament”, one is unable to endorse your advocating continuing the talks with our hostile neighbour on the grounds that “a continuation of Parliament’s present tone and tenor would severely constrain the government’s ability to pursue an effective policy”. Umpteen sessions of talks with Pakistan at different levels and the many dossiers that have been handed over have not led to anything. Pakistan has not accepted our complaints and Hafiz Saeed is still masterminding hostilities. It is naive to believe that newly-elected prime minister Nawaz Sharif will be different, or that our prime minister who is too soft-spoken will be effective. In this scenario, continued talks are redundant.
– Dr V Subramanyan, Thane
Paying a high price for ‘peace at any cost’
The attacks on the border are always one of those whodunits that are almost predictable. But the question Indians are asking is “how many times more?” While it is not so difficult to figure out the design in the attacks, Pakistan’s double-faced approach with respect to such violations, or the 26/11 investigations, has put peaceniks in India in a spot. They promote the creed of peace at all costs, and this has been exploited repeatedly by both Pakistan and China.
– KS Jayatheertha, Bangalore
Fight against Pak mischief unitedly
There is a method in the madness by Pakistan. The month of August is a significant time when it seeks to create panic in India. It is the month when a series of major festivals begins and both countries also celebrate their Independence days. Unfortunately, the government is not adequately prepared to counter this mischief and this was confirmed by the confused statements by the defence minister. The major opposition parties have torn into the Congress party, which is seen as putting its interests before the interest of the nation. However, it is necessary that they exercise restraint and unitedly counter the mischief by our troublesome neighbour.
– MVN Raj, Bangalore
Making a ruckus in the House
Watching the proceedings in Parliament is amusing. The House assembles at 11am, is adjourned at 11.10am. The members reassemble at 12 noon, but the House is again adjourned till 3pm. They reassemble at 3pm, and again the House is adjourned, till the next day. I wonder why we spend so much money to elect these people to go all the way to Delhi to make a ruckus. Why not gift each one of them a megaphone which they can use to shout to their heart’s content in their neighbourhoods!
– Madhavan, by email
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