A tale of two nations

What the chain of events that began on February 14 after the horrific killing of over 40 CRPF jawans in Pulwama confirmed, is that there is very little chance of resolving the Kashmir conflict between India and Pakistan. Terrorists from Pakistan Occupied Kashmir(PoK) are being used to wage a proxy war against India. In Pulwama, the lone and locally bred Kashmiri suicide car bomber was able to go undetected(for strange reasons) on the J&K National Highway, a heavily patrolled stretch by security forces through check points and frisking. Further, questions arise as to how the bomber got hold of around 30 kgs(some reports claim 300 kgs) of plastic explosives, automatic weapons, hand guns and grenades ? That will be left for any independent agency to probe. Rather any probe would only result in the predictable conclusion. The Pulwama attack was followed a few days later by an aerial dogfight between Indian and Pakistani air force fighter planes. Leaving aside the claims and counter-claims, an IAF pilot was captured on February 27 after the MIG 21 crash landed inside Pakistan after being hit. The situation appeared to be heading for the worst case scenario of another war between the two nations. Such a war will be detrimental to both countries and could even engulf south Asia if China jumps to aid Pakistan. The US would not allow that to happen and so an enlarged conflict in a global scenario will be inevitable. The Kashmir issue cannot be decided through military means as such an option is highly unlikely and dangerous. The problem that India faces is not from fighting Pakistan but fighting a proxy war in the form of terrorist attacks inside Jammu and Kashmir. India has accused Pakistan of sponsoring terrorism against India. These accusations are backed with solid evidence but Pakistan refuses to accept them as “credible evidence”. The entire ruling civilian and military establishment in Pakistan are responsible for creating Pakistan’s ‘Frankenstein’ – radical Islamic terror outfits. Geopolitics has ensured that terrorism became a thriving cottage industry in Pakistan largely influenced by Saudi and American money. The billions of dollars poured into Pakistan ensure the emergence and strengthening of Wahhabi-oriented armed extremists in Pakistan. The US provided money, training and weapons earlier to fight the Soviets in Afghanistan. American intelligence services and the ISI supported the Haqqani network in its fight against the Soviet Union during the 1980s. The network is the Frankenstein monster over which both sides have lost control. By encouraging terror attacks against India in Kashmir, Pakistan has become a sponsor of terror. Whatever little chance of promoting a climate of peace between the two nations is being lost on account of the agenda of the ISI and the military and their terror tools and also anti-Pakistan rhetoric by some ultra right wing politicians and sections of the electronic media in India. It may be easy to expect Pakistan to act on terror while it is largely felt, that due to complex factors, Pakistan itself is not fully able to take on its Frankenstein. This leaves India with no option but to fight terror with all its resources but restrain from political rhetoric and jingoism. Again, while India launches diplomatic offensives to expose Pakistan as a provoker and sponsor or terror, India should also not close its doors for promoting future relations.