The report that the body of an Indian soldier was decapitated by Pakistani soldiers that had crossed the line of Control in Jammu & Kashmir is calculated to send a shiver down the spine of a country that is in the midst of Diwali celebrations. As much as a religious festival that commemorates lord Rama’s triumphant homecoming to Ayodhya after 14 years of exile and a grand victory over the King of lanka, Diwali is the occasion for friends and family — the core of society and, indeed, the nation. That the family of an Indian soldier has to endure such a grisly tragedy on Diwali should alert us to two simple home truths.
Firstly, that amid the economic buoyancy and the celebrations there are people — and not always those stationed across the border — who are motivated by a single-minded determination to destroy our way of life, our country and, indeed, our civilisation. Secondly, that had it not been for our brave soldiers and others in or out of uniform who are on permanent alert and who don’t have the luxury of celebrating Diwali in any meaningful way, this threat would have been far more pressing. The Prime Minister has taken a great initiative requesting citizens to greet a jawan on Diwali — and he will be spending Diwali with soldiers stationed on the India-China border. It is hoped that these symbolic gestures help remind people of the debt they owe to people who are busy ensuring India experiences a joyous festival of lights. It would be meaningful if each Diwali we reserve a special place in our hearts and minds to those who are doing their duty to India.
The news from the borders are disturbing. For reasons that are the subject of intense speculation, Pakistan seems to have stepped up its aggressive designs on India. Having triggered civil unrest in Kashmir Valley after one of the Hizbul Mujahedeen commanders, Burhan Wani, was killed by security forces in an encounter, Pakistan seems hell bent on ensuring that the State remains in the throes of violence. Its Army has facilitated attacks on Indian Army camps throughout the summer and now that the onset of winter has made infiltration from across the loC more difficult, it has directed its people to target school building. Some 25 school buildings have been destroyed in arson attacks. I am sure that sooner or later they will target other public institutions to maintain the tempo.
Without sounding alarmist, it would not be inaccurate to suggest that the Cold War between Islamabad and Delhi is steadily becoming much more than political and diplomatic bickering. There are suggestions that increased Pakistani aggressiveness could be a consequence of that country’s convoluted internal politics, particularly the delicate relationship between their civilian Government and armed forces. While this one-upmanship struggles have been a recurrent feature of Pakistan, it should never be forgotten that both civilians and military are united on one point: that the hostility towards India should be unceasing. There may occasionally be tactical differences but on the larger perception of India as the historic enemy, there is unanimity.
This pre-existing distaste for a neighbour that has not only remained united since 1947 — despite doomsday prophecies — but has progressed economically, is compounded by Pakistan’s own existential crisis. At one time it positioned itself as a modern Islamic state. Indeed Mohammed Ali Jinnah’s contradictory visions of Pakistan were sought to be married with Kemal Attaturk’s ideas for the post-Ottoman Turkey. However, following Pakistan’s deep involvement in the civil war inside Afghanistan, much of the modernism that marked its history till the mid-1970s was progressively discarded. Today, Pakistan is located on the outer perimeter of the radical Islamism that is troubling the entire West Asia and North Africa. To the range of radical Islamism that exists between the Islamic State (ISIS) and the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt (whose possible counterpart is the Jamiat-e-Islami), Pakistan’s politics has thrown up leaders such as Maulana Masood Azhar and Hafeez Saeed who spout poison not only against India but even against Muslims who don’t entirely agree with them.
Pakistan is also gripped by severe ethnic tensions ranging from Baloch and Pashtun separatism to Mohajir alienation. These strains inside Pakistan don’t affect India directly but when the efficacy of the Pakistani state is challenged by forces within, there is a tendency to play the anti-India card to try and secure a maximum of national unity.
Finally, while India has succeeded in detaching Pakistan from its earlier close proximity with the West, particularly the United States, it has not been able to persuade China to keep its distance. There is an obnoxious Beijing-Islamabad-Pyongyang nexus that poses a grave challenge to the stability of the region. Despite the possible opportunities presented by the Indian market, China seems totally unwilling to lessen its political and diplomatic embrace of Pakistan. Apart from the fear of India’s growing proximity to the US, there is the reality of China’s vision of establishing its hegemony all over Asia. It has so far successfully used its economic clout to establish a political presence in various parts of the world but India’s unwillingness to oblige has been an irritant.
These challenges to India’s national security cannot be overcome instantly. They necessitate a patient approach whereby muscle and guile have to be combined. Traditionally, India has not evolved a strategic culture and we are often busy fighting irrelevant domestic battles quite forgetting the real tasks. This Diwali, while we celebrate, it is also worth thinking about the larger national project without which there will not be more Diwalis to celebrate.
