Friday, November 28, 2008

Mumbai bleeds, Government sleeps


I am filled with rage and helplessness over the events of the last 3 days in Mumbai. The fact is that India is vulnerable and Indians are insecure. The authorities ordained to protect the country have failed miserably and the country's defense and intelligence have collapsed. Watching the Taj Mahal hotel burn for two days has felt like living through Mumbai's own 9/11, for the Taj is not merely a five-star hotel, it is a symbol of the city's identity, an iconic link between its rich past and bustling present.

Indian Mujahideen, Deccan Mujahideen, Students Islamic Movement in India, Sadhus and Sadhvis - the list goes on, but irrespective of the instigators, the frequency and the flawless execution of these attacks have all but underlined the fact that India, known for its hospitality, is a welcome abode for terrorists. They can strike at will.

While I am appalled at the ineptitude of the government to take drastic measures despite 8 terror attacks in 3 months, the fact that newspaper reports are able to give more information than Shivraj Patil, the Home Minister, is rediculous. The Home ministry, in its current state is a far cry from the one that Lal Krishna Advani managed and it is time to fire Shivraj Patil.

It only took one 9/11 for the US to revamp its internal security and while traveling has been a hassle since, the US is far more secure than in 2001. I am not sure how many attacks it would take for the government to take a tough stand on terrorism. It is time to think out side of vote banks and politics and provide a solution that prevents such attacks rather than reacts to them.

Ultimately, it doesn't matter if the color of terror is saffron or green, it needs to be wiped out.


3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Its terrible! I'm shocked!

more irritating when Advani, Manmohan and worst of all, Modi are cutting into the perimeter of the location trying to ride on the emotions of common man..
Damn..insensitive politicians..pheww..

Cowards these ppl r...cant do anything by themselves, so go on destroying what others did...
And as Suheil Seth said on TV, our country is in the hands of not men/women but that of wimps!

Btw, Nice review! I jus happened to visit ur blog..Worth reading..

Ranjan said...

hmm. We will utilise this
for getting votes. damn innocents, getting vote is more important.
- Niranjan (Air India Delhi)

Naga said...

The fact is that we do not have a federal agency for internal security like the US does post 9/11. Ideally we should have woken up after the Mumbai blasts or the parliament bombing in 1992-93 and protected our borders and cities. Instead we were busy with internal squabbles - Raj Thackeray's "Mumbai is for Maharashtrians" and Naren Modi's Gujarat Genocide, which are nothing more than sensational political manipulations. I am sure that with election around the corner, it is only a matter of time before the focus shifts to these "important issues"