Thank you Mr Modi

No one could have fought Pakistan’s Kashmir case better than Modi’s India. If the Pathankot incident was not enough, India had to do an Uri on itself, get into an acquired rage, draw the world’s attention to where it is located and the possible link between the two. To Modi’s bad luck, and indeed, that of India, the world at large was already looking at it; Kashmir. Uri, not much known till lately, came into sharp focus on September 18 with the news that very tight security of Indian Brigade HQ had been breached by four fidayeen. Shocking by itself, there was more to come. These four fidayeen could only be downed after they had killed 17 and wounded over 50 Indian soldiers in a battle which lasted for over five hours. Loss of life through any means is condemnable. However, what followed thereafter could be hilarious if the implications were not so serious. On the way to Srinagar, from Jammu, in the Indian-held Kashmir, this military camp, part of the biggest army jail in the world, may yet go down in history as the immediate cause of war between the two nuclear armed neighbours in the subcontinent; that is, if one were to eavesdrop Indian media, various Indian officials or some of their ministers. They normally blame Pakistan for everything gone sour in India; Uri was not going to be an exception. Luckily though, lax security and incompetence of the Indian army in dealing with the situation was not attributed to Pakistan or its army.

They were able to link the attackers with Pakistan even before the fiasco became public, quite an achievement for the geniuses who have yet to learn as to how these four crossed the most heavily fortified security system in the area, or why all those investigating various terrorist activities in which Pakistan is blamed, end up dead; be it Samjhota Express or more recent Pathankot fiasco? Or why is it that such incidents only happen when Pakistan sponsored bilateral talks between the two antagonists, are about to get underway? Mine is not a typical Pakistani’s rhetoric. Mr Modi confirmed it to the entire world when he proudly admitted to India’s role in the division of Pakistan in 1971. More recently, on August 15, 2016, he again confirmed what Pakistan has claimed since long, India’s direct involvement in terrorism in this country. Does he take Indians to be that gullible or foolish? Or perhaps both? Else, Indians would have known what they signed up for when they elected the proponent of Hindutva to lead them.

Would any intelligence agency in the world, much less ISI, ever leave fingerprints on the scene of the crime? Do Indians expect anyone in the world to believe this fable? Get real my friends in India. You may have illusions of grandeur but it is still quite a way off. You are not America and Pakistan is no Afghanistan. You would do well to think twice even if it were. Muslims have ruled India for centuries, and they were mostly benign rulers. History cannot be changed and more importantly, cannot be undone, not now — not when you are faced with a different Pakistan.

Kashmir is a festering wound, almost cancerous. India’s scare tactics that encompass Modi’s “muscle strategy” have done the job for Kashmiris. Their sacrifices are paying off. One cannot get away with mayhem at such a large scale. Indian markets may be good for many economies but only if they continue to exist. The world’s principles are not at play so far. Wait till the reality of what is being drummed up by India sets in. Thank you, Mr Modi and thank you very much, India. You have finally convinced most of us in Pakistan that India is, and will continue to be our enemy number one. No small feat considering that we were almost taken in by your socio-cultural invasion. Some of us may like your movies but all of us love Pakistan more.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 26^th, 2016.

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