Tere Bin Laden

(Not so)Dear Bin Laden,

It is quiet an uncanny coincidence that you met your destiny on the 63rd anniversary of the end of the Fuhrer, another psychopath tyrant, culprit of genocide. Much the same to the Nazi ruler you crusaded against a particular race and massacred scores of innocents at the altar of your theocratic fanaticism. But on the contrary the bullet that came as a nemesis for your 25 year old atrocities on men, women and children came not from your own weapon but from the gun of the most lethal commandos of your biggest rival nation. Where Hitler saw his end coming and chose to kill his wife and himself before falling into the hands of the Soviet Army, you perpetually tried to escape the inevitable and furtively run your crusade against the west. However, quiet unlike Nazism, your Jihad would not decompose with your body. Even as your annihilation is marked by revelry all across the United States and also other parts of the world, Ladenism still pose a big threat to the world.

Though the Americans accredit this day as a testimony of their might, yet do not declare it as a victory in their 'war against terror'. The reverberations and reprisals within the Islamic radicals that would eventually ripple still haunt their minds and thus the haste in burying your body in the sea and hesitance in revealing your picture seem to be pre-emptive measures to undermine the prospects of you being worshiped as a martyr. Albeit, there still exist a frisson of sympathy among a large faction of Muslim community.

This heroic stature and iconic worship is something you have enjoyed for 25 years. Way back in 1986 when you renounced your luxurious billionaire life to launch a fight against the Soviet forces in Afghanistan, you and your militia gained a huge support among the masses. Since then your theological ideas and radical approach has been admired by thousands of Muslims across the world. It was just at your one call that your 'Fidayeen' soldiers were ready to give their life in the name of Jihad. Nonetheless, when the allied forces invaded Afghanistan to hunt you down, you bought no time to escape from there leaving hundreds of your soldiers to be killed by the British and American army.

However, even as you were inactively cooped in one of your hideouts, your ideologues continued your fight against the non-Islamic countries. Your sympathizers and patrons on the other hand kept the world under deception regarding your whereabouts. Now when you were found and eliminated in a mansion at a garrison city situated next to the capital of Pakistan, the country which claims to be an ally of the United States in its war against terror there are innuendoes that you enjoy immense popularity amongst the Pakistani people.

Not more than 24hours after America declared Geronimo (a nom de guerre of yours anointed by US) dead, sceptics have started raising questions on its credibility while Pakistan that has been caught dead to rights is in a fix facing the ire of both: its military ally US and its own people. To one's surprise prayers for you would be offered even in India but it would be limited to some individuals and not the masses. Whereas in Pakistan you seem to be immortalized amongst the radical Islamists.

Well, when I talk about your proponents, some names just randomly flash into my memory. The most prominent of them being former President of Pakistan and ex-army chief Gen Pervez Musharraf. You would remember that way back in 1980's when you, under the aegis of the CIA were employed to construct bunkers and tunnels in Afghanistan to help the Guerrilla warriors in their fight, this Pakistani officer who was then assigned with the task of training the mercenaries recruited by several Islamic groups had first met you. In the years to follow when there was a Shia rebellion in Gilgit in Pakistan, Brig Musharraf called upon several Pakhtoon tribesmen from Afghanistan commanded by you in order to quell the mutiny. Also there were suspicions regarding your militants being used in Kargil.

Therefore it was not at all surprising when the first condemnation of the American operation came from none other than Gen Musharraf. Moreover as Musharraf has now his vested interest in the Pakistani national politics, he has all the more reason to raise the issue and fob off the current government's ability to protect the sovereignty of the country.

But the main concern for the US would be over your most faithful ally, the ISI. As you know Pakistan has always been a keen supporter of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan for its own diplomatic reasons, the ISI has been perpetually providing you subventions and protection to destabilize the current Afghan government. Now you being killed, ISI would bequeath your legacy to your close aide Dr. Ayman AL Zawahri and thus continue its operations. Further, the clandestine support to Al Quaeda provided by the Pakistan Army would be more deliberate considering the threat from the US Army and the CIA.

Besides, the cabals of other radical Islamists and your acolytes like Hafeez Saeed, Masood Azhar, Lakhvi and also the local militants in the tribal areas of Waziristan could break in an insurgency against the Pak government for the lapse in your security.

Above all the US is in no mood to overlook Pak's duplicity. Hence the Pakistani army could be deprived of the billions of dollars which it gets from US in the form of Military aid and which the army further disburse among several terrorist organisations like yours. This could further generate animosity between US and Pakistan providing the fanatics an opportunity to get a stronghold in the governance of this Nuke state.

Hence, in spite of you being exterminated your scrofulous theological diabolic propaganda of Jihad would keep lurking and projecting a great threat to the world.

GAURAV TRIPATHI

Knowing Kashmir...

1)75 SECURITY PERSONNEL,91 CIVILIANS killed in 708 incidents in the year 2008 which include incidents like Malegaon bomb blasts, Mumbai attack & other attacks on CRPF group camps..

2)34 security personnel, 20 civilians killed in year 2010 upto June 30.

After the 26/11 Mumbai attacks Pakistan had faced ire throught the world for sheltering the commanders of various terrorist groups. The terrorist groups had also been dormant with the international intelligence agencies keeping them under their vigil.

Hence the Pakistani agency ISI had no choice but playing diplomatic inorder to keep the troubles for India alive. The recent violence in Kashmir is an illustration of the same. ISI's support to the sepratists and a total debacle of the administration has generated the ongoing revolution in kashmir which is proving to be a tough task to handle for the centre. The picture above depicts the graveness of the situation, that even the women have moved forward to join the protest.

Ever since 1948, the people of Kashmir have insisted on being a seperate sovereign state. This feelings of the Kashmiris was vocalized by Sheikh Abdulllah who was inturn detained in southern India for 12 years by Nehru. This added to the agony of Kashmiris and Nehru had to released Sheikh and deport him to Islamabad.

Unfortunately when Abdullah was in the midst of talks with Gen Ayub Khan, Nehru died. Later on India-Pak had few wars which resulted in no solution of the prevailing problem. Subsequently, the Shimla Agreement came into existence where the Cease Fire Line was declared as the Line of Control. This later on proved to be India' s first diplomatic failure as in Pakistan started pressurising India to declare LC as the international border. Which India kept denying till date.

On the other hand the political leaders of kashmir demanded India to go back to the terms of accession of 1948 where India's role was limited just to Defence, Foreign Affairs and Communications. The sly Pakistan henceforth conspirated few leaders to initiate a revolution in Kashmir.

As a result of which the secular movement in Kashmir took an Islamic edge and the Kashmiri pandits were expelled out of the state. The second debacle of Indian administration came in when the elections of 1987 were rigged on Indian side. This influenced the youths of Kashmir to pickup weapons. And thus insurgency was born.

Several other incidents like formation of All Hurriyat Conference and the stand by Saiyed Ali Shah Gilani added fuel to fire.

However the people of Kashmir seeing no resolution to the issue even with weapons, decided to give India another chance and came back to ballot from bullet. They started participating in elections and in the last assembly elections they turned out in as great as 60%. India being complacent did not realized that its ignorance towards Kashmir could again lead to violence.

No major development projects were initialised by the centre government & Kasmir remained to be a hard-bitten underdevloped state. The state leaders like Farooq Abdullah also lost their faith amongst the Kashmiris as they became more intersted in holding power and cabinet seats.

The dejected Kashmiris now see no savior but the separists like JKLF and leaders like Gilani who are favored by Pakistan.

The violence & killings by the security forces have now agonised the commoners there so much that even kids and women have joined the stone pelting protests in valley.

The incompetent state and central governments seek no solution but imposing curfew in the valley. This has now convinced the citizens that both governments are anti development in Kashmir and resulted in the incidents like shoe throwing on the CM.

The problem may have shifted from the front page headlines to brief stories in the Indian newspapers but its a fact that its more severe than how its being handled.

The statements of the Centre like first cease violence, then talk and of the seperatist to first solve the prob and then stop violence is certainly leading nowhere. Its a first hen or first egg riddle for the problem now and the straight benefit going to Pakistan which has inflicted violence without any terror attacks.

The cause of such complications in this problem is nothing but the inefficiency and laxity shown by the centre and state government so far, right from 1948.