Terrorism in India: A Cold Analysis – Part I

As the dust around South Mumbai settles, the world beings to hear of the chilling sequence of events of November 25, 2008, and the days ensuing, as narrated by survivors and investigators. The lone surviving terrorist apprehended by law enforcement agents has implicated Pakistan’s Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) as the attacks primary sponsor. Pakistan has asked for evidence on these charges, and it is India’s responsibility, to its own citizens and the victims of the attack, to construct a case so water tight, that it would force Pakistan to act.

If there is a lesson that India should have learned from the December 13, 2001 Indian Parliament attack, it is that in emotionally charged times such as these, rhetoric and demagoguery emanating from India will provide enough room for Pakistan to wiggle out of any squeeze that India or the United States can effectively put on it to act on terror groups within its borders.

It is in India’s best interests therefore, to tone down the rhetoric, and work towards gathering incriminating evidence, provide it not only to Pakistan but also to the international community, and work with the United States in ensuring that pressure is put on Pakistan to take tangible steps to eradicate the LeT and other groups from operating in their country. In this two-part article, I will recap the inept governance (which continues to linger) that lead to this tragedy, highlight challenges that India’s internal security apparatus faces, summarize steps that the government plans to take (or has taken) to address security flaws, and point out areas that India should focus on going forward if we are serious about protecting the lives of our citizens.

Filed under: 11/25/2008, 2008, 25/11/2008, black cat, commandos, India, Indian Army, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Laskhar-e-Toiba, let, Mumbai, Mumbai Terrorist Attack, National Security Guard, november 25, nsg, oberoi, Pakistan, Pranab Mukherjee, south mumbai, taj, Terrorism, usa, advani, azam amir, bhutto, black cat, coast guard, commandos, FBI, federal investigation agency, FIA, gilani, india. mumbai, indian navy, isi, islamabad, jaswant singh, kasav, kerala, Lashkar-e-Taiba, lashkar-e-tayyaba, Laskhar-e-Toiba, let, maharashtra, Manmohan Singh, national security guard, november 25, november 25 terrorist attack, nsg, Pakistan, patil, raw, shivraj, terror, Terrorism, United States, vilasrao deshmukh

Pot, kettle. Kettle, pot.

A Sri Lankan military vehicle in Vannerikulam, Sri Lanka

India has been mounting a pressure campaign on Sri Lanka in the hopes that it can slow down the island-nation’s military advances into town of Kilinochchi, the administrative capital of the LTTE. Apparently, India has conveyed its “deep concern” over the “deteriorating humanitarian situation” in the LTTE controlled regions of Lanka. If this isn’t an example of a combination of barefaced hypocrisy and dirty politics, I don’t know what is. What right does a country whose politicians engage in violence against minorities as a matter of policy have to dictate terms to another country? Fringe nutjobs like Vaiko in Tamil Nadu and allies of the UPA administration, are behind this new effort to intervene in the internal affairs of Sri Lanka. In supporting a reign-in of Lankan military advances, they are, in effect, allowing the LTTE to regroup and refortify its defenses in the town. Perhaps these political parties are forgetting that it was in Sriperumpudur, a town in their state, in 1991 where one of our Prime Ministers had the misfortune of having his head blown off by the very same LTTE that they’re sympathizing with.

If this wasn’t bad enough, Sri Lanka gave credence to New Delhi’s bellowing by inviting Pranab Mukherjee to come and evaluate the “humanitarian mission” in the region.

“With the view of clarifying the position of the Government with regard to the humanitarian mission in the North, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has invited the External Affairs Minister of India Pranab Mukherjee to Sri Lanka,”

Civilian casualties are an unfortunate consequence of war, and one that any responsible government will want to minimize, if not eliminate. Everyone understands that the Tamil situation cries out for a political, not military, solution. But Sri Lanka is at a defining moment in its history, and at the cusp of a victory against a terrorist organization that has stood between reconciliation between the Sri Lankan government and the Lankan Tamil civilians. Who appointed the LTTLE as the sole representatives of the Sri Lankan Tamils? The truth is that they grew like any other terrorist organization ever did — through dividing and conquering. It needs to be pointed out that this is an organization that India has outlawed, its leader Prabhakaran himself being a wanted man in India for Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination.

Filed under: DMK, India, Karunanidhi, LTTE, Prabhakaran, Pranab Mukherjee, Sri Lanka, tamil, Tamil Nadu, Vaiko, DMK, India, jaffna, Karunanidhi, Prabhakaran, Pranab Mukherjee, Sri Lanka, tamil, Tamil Nadu, Terrorism, Vaiko