The dragon cometh … Slowly

Spend a few days along the Sino-India border and you will experience the palpable tension that is mounting along the LAC. Remember, China is no Pakistan that brazenly intruded into Kirgil, instead the dragon is moving slowly, stealthily – nibbling away at Indian territory while the government proclaims that all is well.

The first thing that we noticed in Leh was the eerie silence there, (and I am not talking about spiritual silence @ 11,000 feet, kind of thing) the silence of the official machinery on China was baffling. Chinese incursions into India were making national headlines – but Ajit Kumar Sahu the Deputy Commissioner of Leh assured me that some ‘isolated instances were being blown out of proportion by the media’. But if that was the case – why did the same Mr. Sahu shoot off a letter to the government, confirming repeated incursions by the Chinese? Why was it that the man who had blown the whistle on the Chinese incursions had suddenly become so nonchalant???

Within twenty-four hours of us landing in Leh one thing was clear– there was an unofficial gag order in circulation – over any mention of the border dispute. After initial news of Chinese incursions and rock paintings leaked out from the Ladakh sector – the local administration had surely been censured. When our cameras weren’t even allowed in the offices of the Deputy Commissioner, SSP and the ITBP – we knew that something was amiss. The only option for us then was to see for ourselves what was happening along the Sino-India border.

Pangong Tso (Tso: Ladakhi for lake) would have been a tourist haven had it not been geographically situated along an intensely disputed territory. At an astounding altitude of 13,900 ft, the 134 km long lake extends from India to China along the Line of Actual Control, 60% of the length of the lake is controlled by China – the rest is with India. The six hours that it took us to reach Pangong from Leh explained the need for India to accelerate its border highway project. While China has built double width paved roads, right upto the border – we are still to make all weather roads even between major transit points. As our car pitched and rolled on unpaved roads we saw something more astounding along our way… hundreds of army trucks were moving to and fro from the advanced border posts – old military bases being spruced up and new military check posts being set up – even filed guns had been positioned at specific locations, their barrels pointing towards China. (see pic) So even as SM Krishna was reassuring the nation that the border with China was ‘most peaceful’ the army was taking no chances, ensuring that another Kargil does not happen. (China sure does have the inclination and the military might to embark on such an adventure)

We stopped for tea at Changla Pass (the world’s third – highest pass) and here our ‘papers’ were checked. (An Inner Line Permit is required, even for Indians, to visit the lake as it lies on the Sino-Indian Line of Actual Control) When we quizzed a jawan about the heavy deployment of men and machines at the border with China, we got a standard monosyllabic answer, ‘Exercise’

It was late in the noon when we finally made it to the Pangong Lake, the breathtaking views aside – you realize the strategic importance of the lake – for you can see Chinese territory from here. It was a chance meeting with (Retd.) Company Major Hawaldar Wanchoo here – that proved to be an eye opener. A veteran of the Kargil war, Wanchoo quit the Indian Army in 2000 to start is own little resort. But the locals still flock to him and tell him what they have spotted on the Chinese side.

The government of Jammu and Kashmir has admitted to it only now, but the locals have been telling Wanchoo for months, that the Chinese have been nibbling away at Indian territory – inch by inch and not by yards. First the shepherds are shooed away (sometimes harassed) when they take their sheep out to graze along the border…then Chinese troops indulge in ‘aggressive patrolling’ and finally China quietly constructs permanent structures in otherwise

disputed/Indian territory. Along the Pangong lake itself – the Chinese enter Indian territory as many as five times a week! Not only that – the so called ‘no man’s land’ between the two nations has virtually disappeared with the Chinese walking right upto the Indian observation posts.

So is the media crying horse over nothing? Empirical data suggests that we better tighten our belts, pull up our socks and wear our reading glasses to understand the new ‘great game’ that is afoot.

FACT – China wants to keep India engaged in talks, even as it continues to build military pressure in the area. Talks have been going on for three decades –with no breakthrough, is proof enough

FACT – China is consolidating its national power (with special focus on Tibet region), once that is done, expect more pressure on the LAC with India

FACT – the military muscle mismatch between the two countries is wide and is increasing day by day … China and NOT Pakistan is a more potent threat

FACT – Long before we lost Askai Chin in ’62 – there had been reports of Chinese activity in the area…from ’57 onwards India chose to ignore the clear signals of Chinese aggression.

Whatever the Foreign Minister or the Army says – these are historical facts that can’t be dismissed; facts that point out that China is again eying Indian Territory (even though they are moving forward at a glacial pace). The question is – will India stand around like a dinosaur or respond to the climatic change – for even a class five student will tell you that failure to adapt to the changing situation – can result in annihilation.

YSR’s Copter Crash: The Inside Story

Even days after the crash, the ELT on the CM’s chopper remains missing. Why? Because the locals may have just walked away with it as a souvenir, this even as the forces were busy clicking pictures of themselves in front of the mangled chopper. The crash site had become a tourist spot.

It was as if all of Andhra Pradesh had converged at the Idupulapaya estate; YS Rajasekhara Reddy’s favourite retreat and sadly his final resting place, a befitting (though chaotic) farewell that reaffirmed the popularity of the former CM and the diehard following that he had. But even as the human tsunami that hit Reddy’s funeral receded, people had one burning question in their minds – What/Who caused the death of their beloved Chief Minister? From the roadside tea stalls to the drawing rooms of the rich and powerful – that’s the one consuming question in Andhra Pradesh. From Naxals who shot down the chopper to political rivals who murdered YSR to natural causes, no conspiracy theory is being discounted.

Now a full fledged inquiry has been ordered into the crash, the DGCA is taking the matter ‘seriously’ and even representatives of Bell Helicopters have been roped in to ascertain the cause of the crash. However there is slim chance that this belated action would yield any tangible results. The reason for that is the government did not even follow the very basic rules of crash site investigations, failing to cordon off the site, allowing ‘souvenir hunters’ a free run and trampling over hundreds of pieces of helicopter debris that was strewn over a 500 meter radius. The Chief Minister’s helicopter had crashed in the most inaccessible of places – and yet even as the elite Greyhounds looked on, the crash site became a tourist spot.

3^rd September – 8.00am: It was close to twenty-four that the CM’s helicopter had disappeared. We had air dashed from New Delhi the previous evening and driven all night to reach Rollapenta (74 kilometres east of Kurnool) which had been the last contact point for the CM’s helicopter. But soon we got word that YSR’s copter had indeed crashed in the core forest area of Nallamala (near Atmakur)

10.00am: With no motorable road to speak of – it was a combination of SUV’s, tractors and walking that brought is close to ‘Pavurala Konda’ (Doves Hill) where the copter had crashed. Not long ago this was the area where the Naxal ruled – and for good reason; no mobile or road connectivity, undergrowth so think that you could not see beyond five feet, an area so remote that even the GPS gave up on us.

1.00pm: Hours later the fifty member search party had thinned down to a dozen and with no GPS data – we were just roaming aimlessly. By now all the five bodies had been extricated from the mangled remains of the helicopter and airlifted to Kurnool and we thought it best to retreat from the area before the light faded. But even as we were returning dejected, we came across a team of the Greyhounds, the elite anti-naxal force that knew the Nallamala jungle like the back of their hands. Since the Greyhounds were headed for the crash site we tagged along… another ten kilometres of steep rocky terrain and we finally managed to reach the crash site.

4.00pm: We were the first journalists to make it to the crash site and my cameraperson Manhoar Reddy was worried that we may not be allowed to shoot at the crash site. But what we witnessed next was most startling. After airlifting the bodies – the government had virtually abandoned the site, even as the Greyhounds and the CRPF men lounged around – local villagers and tribals walked all over the crash site. Picking up stuff and kicking pieces of metal. Far from cordoning off the area – people were allowed to pick up pieces of the helicopter and walk away. More than twenty hour hours after the crash there was the reeking smell of Aviation Fuel and burnt human skin. It was as if the helicopter had rammed into the hill at full speed – then rolled upwards – before exploding in a fireball, YSR would have had very little or no time to react. With two hours worth of fuel in its tanks – the Bell 430 must have created quite an explosion the remote jungles of Nallamala. That’s why the Emergency Location

Transmitter (or ELT) might not have worked – the force of the impact and the ensuing fire may have reduced it to a heap of metal and as for the Cockpit Voice Recorder (or CVR) not much will come from it. Even if the CVR has not been damaged with people walking over it – it will only replay the voice of the pilot and not the aeronautical data of the helicopter (like a full fledged black box that stores data like speed – altitude – engine performance) Going by the way the helicopter slammed into the hill – even the pilot might not have had time to realise that he was flying so low that he slammed into a hill.

5.00pm: Before I left the crash site, a local pointed out a dismembered leg to me, clear indication that the commandoes who had airlifted the bodies had done a shoddy job out of it. We had arrived at the crash site just hours after it was identified from air – it’s impossible that the experts had conducted a survey of the area before we came – and by the time we left the crowds were swelling, curious locals thronging the area for a quick dekko. The YSR’s crash site had become a public spectacle.

4^th September – 2.00am: After more than 24 hours on the road (with forty kilometres of walking in the jungles) we were back in Kurnool feeding visuals of the crash site to the newsroom. But even before the questions about the crash/sabotage could be raised the next morning – our tired souls knew the answer. With this kind of ham handed investigations into the crash – YSR’s death will remain just another unsolved air crash. It’s only in India that even a Chief Minister’s death does not merit a proper scientific investigation. Surely the king of Cuddapah deserved better.

BJP: POLITICAL ILLITERACY AT ITS BEST

The seeds of vivisection of India having been sown, ceaselessly, year after year, as much by us (Hindus and Muslims) as by the post Second World War enfeebled British; for they did of course divide to rule, but we also divided ourselves; what else could then follow but a destructive break-up? Jaswant Singh in Jinnah: India – Partition – Independence

So does Jaswant Singh really sing paeans for Jinnah in his ‘controversial’ new book???

The BJP has been ripped asunder over that question and Pakistan has fallen in love with Singh for his ‘unpatriotic efforts’, but the fact remains that the limited few who have actually gone over the six hundred odd pages of Jinnah: India – Partition – Independence, have found tons of scorn for the ‘megalomaniac’ Jinnah, a stinging critique on Nehru for his inept handling of events leading up to the partition/creation of India and derision for the British Raj, for its haste to split India.

Logically it’s the Congress, not the BJP that should have been hopping mad over the ‘revelations’ in the book, but Congress’s ‘ignore don’t react’ policy stands it in good stead. (Of course any historian worth his salt would tell you that the book does not bring to light a single new fact) Nevertheless BJP loves to shoot itself in the foot. Instead of using Jaswant’s writings to its advantage (by showing historic blunders made by the Congress) – the saffron party decided to light a keg of gunpowder by banning the author from the organization and his book in one state. That ill-informed action set off a chain reaction that continues to gather momentum with each passing day. Had Rajnaath and Co. even read the following excerpts from the book – they surely would have taken a different line. But then this is not the age of the literate politician, is it?

To tackle the newly uncorked jinn of Jinnah, one must answer the fundamental question – was Jinnah secular in Jaswant’s eyes? The answer is, Yes and No.

In the first part of the book Jaswant takes great pains to show how Jinnah was a nationalist to the core, how he wanted a united India. Even as late a 1937 Jinnah was writing Gandhi, affirming his belief in an India, where Hindu’s and Muslims had equal status… ‘Nobody will welcome an honourable settlement between the Hindus and the Muslims more than I and nobody will be more ready to help it’ But that’s where BJP ‘intellectuals’ stopped reading Jaswant’s book and went off to sleep. (With Sudheendra Kulkarni not around, one doubts if there is any reading going on in the BJP at all.)

Its in the second part of the book that Jaswant tongue lashes not only the Congress but also Jinnah and the Muslim League – because both transformed form being nationalists to mindlessly communal…sample Jaswant’s words; ‘The misdemeanors of local Congressmen, the implications of Congress rhetoric on the riots, errors of administrative judgement, also instances of possible bias might not have strained Congress – Muslim relations as mush had the Muslim League not been around to scratch these already sore vulnerabilities.’ Doesn’t sound like praise at all…but it gets worse.

Pakistani’s who are now dedicating songs in praise of Jaswant Singh might want to turn to page 316 of the book where a heated exchange between Gandhi and Jinnah is recounted. Bapu making a last ditch attempt to reason with Jinnah – asking the Quaid-e-Azam what would he do with the Jats, Sikhs and Christians in Pakistan. Would they have separate nations too??? A cornered Jinnah says that they can all have separate electorates and separate existence if they so wished. (In other words Jinnah was talking about sub-nations inside the sub-nation of Pakistan) A clear inditement of the man who from an ambassador of Hindu-Muslim unity had became its biggest opponent and lost his logical faculties in the process.

According to Jaswant, by the time independence was knocking at India’s door – the transformation of Jinnah was complete. Calling for Direct Action in 1946 at the closing session of the League, Jinnah said, ‘Today we bid good bye to constitutional methods …. We have also forged a pistol and are in a position to use it’ So the lifelong lawyer and constitutionalist had ditched the rule book and become a fanatic himself.

Towards the end of the book - Jaswant downright degrades the Quaid-e-Azam over the issue of him suddenly, at the 11th hour, wanting to become the first Governor – General of Pakistan. ‘As for megalomania, who, in reality, suffered a more serious version of it, Jinnah or Mountbatten, is difficult to tell’ that’s the ‘praise’ for Jinnah for which Jaswant was politically executed. That the veteran leader was kicked out for reasons other than his book is no secret – but the BJP did a disservice to itself when it chose to ignore a potent political tool.

It’s a historical fact that Jinnah was secular to begin with (he was not much of a practising Mussulman himself) however his beliefs changed when he saw the Congress lust for power – while the Muslim League continued to played the fiddle. By debating over Jinnah’s ‘secular credentials’ the BJP exposed its own illiteracy. And whatever reasons drove Jinnah towards Pakistan – the Congress high handedness had a major role to play – that’s also a historical fact that Jaswant has highlighted and something that the BJP could have used.

Jaswant quotes V.P.Menon (Reforms commissioner and advisor to the Viceroy) from his book Transfer of Power, ‘The congress decided to have homogenous ministries on its own and decided to choose Muslim ministers who were members of the congress party. This was the beginning of a serious rift between the Congress and the League and was a factor which induced neutral Muslim opinion to turn to the support of Jinnah’ Not only this – Jaswant uses history to indite the grand old party…‘Congress had unanimously passed resolutions, directly or indirectly conceding Pakistan, in 1934, 1942, 1945, and March 1947. Gandhi and Nehru had also referred to partition contingency as a very possible one.’

Also in Jinnah: India – Partition – Independence Nehru’s arrogant attitude comes under fire on more than one occasion. Case in point, in February 1938 (when there is still some sort of correspondence between Nehru and Jinnah) Nehru feigns ignorance about the ‘issues’ that Jinnah has and writes ‘I am afraid that I must confess that I do not yet know what the fundamental points of dispute are’ At this late juncture in time, when the concept of Pakistan was spreading like wildfire – to claim such ignorance about ‘fundamental points of dispute’ is sheer travesty. But arrogance seems to be Nehru’s trademark; more than eager to grab the high seat of power than the welfare of the communities. That’s why even as Calcutta was being ripped apart by the worst sort of medieval riots in 1946 – Nehru was more focused on the transfer of power plan. ‘Our programme will certainly not be upset because of a few persons misbehaving in Calcutta’ Amazingly the Congress not react to Jaswant’s writings. That’s because the party knows how to let a controversy pass by and die a natural death. Case in point, when Margaret Alva did a Jaswant in the Congress party by raising a stink about the cash for votes scam. Alva wasn’t expelled – just conveniently sidelined - then quietly politically reinstated (this time as a governor). No fuss – no party linin washed in public. In this context, the political immaturity of Rajnath Singh can be understood – but what was the ‘Lau Purush’ doing when Jaswant was being given the marching orders? L.K.Advani would be one man who knew that a secular Jinnah was not taboo. (Or was his dislike for Jaswant Singh so intense?) Jinnah himself never would have imagined that his secularism (or the lack of it) would have caused such uproar half a century later.

Jaswant aptly sums up Jinnah strategy ‘In Jinnah’s mind, partition was a simple, pragmatic solution with the “Two – Nation theory’ as a temporary ideological justification and with a marked sense of a continuing unity with India despite the partition’ When Advani called Jinnah secular – it was a backhand taunt to the Pakistani establishment for the religious mess they had put the nation in, definitely not keep with Jinnah’s vision. Sadly the BJP missed the nuance then as it has now with Jaswant’s book.

Jaswant had needled the leadership the wrong way on many occasions – but he may have saved himself the expulsion had he put the last lines of his book on the jacket of Jinnah: India – Partition – Independence. The final synopsis of the book is a stinging rebuke of the very idea of Pakistan… ‘Pakistan has remained a conceptual orphan, the result of a somewhat barren attainment; ‘barren’ because Pakistan itself, as both the progenitor and as the first born of the idea, has demonstrated that this notion of Muslims being a separate nation does not work’ Jaswant may not have realized it when he wrote it – but those lines may ring true for the BJP soon… for the party risks being a conceptual orphan (of Hindutva), the result of a somewhat barren attainment (Ayodhya), ‘barren’ because it has demonstrated that the notion of a party representing one religious community … does not work.

Legally – Jammu and Kashmir not part of India!

What bunch of hypocrite patriots we are…

Every time we see maps like this, our blood boils.

Every time CNN lops off India’s head in its maps – we call it pro-Pakistani.

Every edition of Time Magazine and every edition of the Britannica Encyclopaedia, coming into India- still have these ‘wrong’ map stamped out.

Technically, you would assume that it would be unpatriotic, blasphemous and downright illegal to use such an ‘incorrect’ map.

Not totally.

Ever wondered what does the law of the land say about the Status of Jammu and Kashmir? The troubled state may be the centre of attention of every governmental agency, but legally speaking it’s not part of India(!!)

Surprised?

Look up the definition of India, as given by in various central acts (part-B states (laws) act 1951). The Central acts define India as "the territory of India excluding the state of Jammu and Kashmir." And we were wondering what Pakistan was making such a hue and cry about!!! Most of the central acts like Indian Penal Code, the Indian Evidence Act etc. describe India as territory of India excluding J&K and most of the acts have been made inapplicable to the border state….its not the act - but the wording that is worrisome.

Ofcourse I am not stating anything new – back in 2007 two petitioners form J&K, B S Billowria and Manzoor Ali Khan filed a petition in the Supreme Court, contending that the separatists, militants, secessionists and supporters of Pakistan in J&K were misusing the definition to impress upon the people -- that Jammu and Kashmir was not an integral part of India.

Interestingly the Supreme Court dismissed a petition that was questioning the basic validity of the definition of ‘India’….True that Jammu and Kashmir requires special provisions, true that our legal definition does not give Pakistan the right to show Kashmir as part of its territory….but the some of the fault lies on this side of the LoC too!

The world perceives parts of Jammu and Kahsmir as a hot-spot/disputed territory. We could make a start towards clearing that perception by NOT wording our laws so blatantly – so blatant that it gives ammunition to anti national forces and sends confusing signals to the international community. No wonder they continue to print wrong maps of India – because we continue to be confused over our position on J&K.

If only Prabhakaran was in India…

If India took so long to hunt a forest brigand ... its anyone's guess how long we would have taken to nab Prabhakaran .... Why are we so sissy? Any guesses as to how India would have reacted in a similar situation? Imagine Prabhakaran in the jungles of Tamil Nadu, holding several hundred Indianans as hostages? Is there a chance in hell that there would have been a military operation against him?

Even as this article is written, Velupillai Prabhakaran is alive (albeit cornered) along a narrow stretch of land in Northern Sri Lanka. Regardless of weather he is caught / killed / escapes, one thing are for certain, the edifice of terror that he built, has now crumbled to dust. The reign of suicide bombings and raids that he had promised on Colombo hasn’t materialized, instead like a coward he fights for survival – using Tamils has a human shield - the same Tamilians he had promised an independent Eelam.

But even as Prabhakaran is gasping for breath – there is a lot of hue and cry that is being made about him in India. The ‘humanitarian crisis that is brewing in Lanka’ has given the Congress a pretext to stop the war immediately, while conveniently forgetting that the ‘humanitarian crisis’ is as much the creation of the LTTE as much as Lankan forces. It’s this kind of soft approach that lands the Indian Government into hot water all the time, half-baked, half-hearted and hot potch, that’s our standard reaction to terror – be it Kandahar or 26/11.

True that the Congress had to protect its (and the DMK’s) Tamil vote base, but Prabhakaran is the man who annihilated the IPKF, assassinated a former prime minister and alienated every peace loving Tamil sympathizer. Killing was/is Prabhakaran’s raison d'être and every offer to smoke the peace pipe with him was brutally stubbed out. Yet it seems that India wants him to live - to kill another day.

Conversely if Prabhakaran had been in India, he would have retired peacefully – handing over the reigns of his terror organization to his son, who would have taken the organization to new high’s (pun intended). In India, any attempt to flush him out would be abandoned as the ‘civilian casualty’ would have been unacceptable. (Never mind the civilians he would have bombed – maimed and tortured) That’s the exact reason why we let the Naxlas flourish, now they decide where and when to strike and it’s the government that’s on the run.

If Veerappan, a mare forest brigand outran the law for more than twenty years, then a Prabhakaran with his micro lights, submarines and guerrilla tactics would have lasted a century. At a very basic level there are a lot of similarities that can be traced between Veerappan and Prabhakaran. Both started out, avenging the ‘wrongs’ that had been done to their near and dear ones. Both used the forests to their immense advantage. Both had local support and sympathy – part driven by loyally but more due to fear. But significantly both were not taken seriously enough – until they became too serious to handle.

Case in point - Besides conducting several daring raids and escapes, Veerappan famously kidnapped popular Kannada actor Dr. Rajkumar in July 2000. Despite having sufficient grounds to do so – the Karnataka government did not call the army – as it would have reflected ‘poorly’ on the state. (There are allegations that as much as Rs. 50 crore was paid to Veerappan to secure Dr. Rajkumar’s release)

Similarly when the IPKF was pushing him back towards Kilinochchi, the Tiger chief Prabhakaran conveniently put his scruples aside and made a peace pact with the then President, Premadasa. The IPKF suddenly found itself stabbed in the back and had to make a humiliating exit from the island nation. (Of course Prabhakaran eventually eliminated Premadasa too)

The point his that the Sri Lankan government learnt its lesson the hard way – that’s why Rajapakse does not want to stop before he gets Prabhakaran’s head. Not a bad move – considering that all ceasefires in the past have been used by the LTTE to rearm, regroup and reinforce. Any guesses as to how India would have reacted in a similar situation? Imagine Prabhakaran in the jungles of Tamil Nadu, holding several hundred Indianans as hostages? Is there a chance in hell that there would have been a military operation against him? Going by the empirical evidence provided by the Kandahar hijack – the answer is blatantly obvious.

Veerappan finally ran out of breath in 2004 and fell to bullets fired by the STF. On the wrong side of fifty, with no organization to speak of, the sandalwood smuggler met his ‘natural’ end. But Prabhakaran in India would have continued on and on….although he too is on the wrong side of fifty, Prabhakaran had a structure and organizational hierarchy that the GOI would have found difficult to dismantle. When we can’t counter a rag tag group like the ULFA then the LTTE would have been a far cry.

Ofcourse the Lankan government has committed atrocities on the Tamil population, ofcourse there was justification behind the rise of the LTTE – but when a rebel looses sight of his cause, his inevitable downward spiral begins. Prabhakaran has been spiralling for quite sometime now. True that the Lankan Army will have to tread cautiously – minimize the civilian casualties, but the Rajapakse knows that there will collateral damage - and it’s a choice that he’s willing to live with. It’s a choice that Indian politicians find impossible to make.

Meanwhile our political leaders continue to do, what they do best - make statements. Bang before the elections, Jayalalithaa says he she will demand a separate state of Tamil Eelam. Prabhakaran and Co. do not worry, there is someone to take up your cause after you are gone, by the way, if you do manage to escape in that submarine of yours, just land up on Marina beach – your political asylum request shall be earnestly considered (At least till the elections are over!)