My Opinion

On Wednesday, when Wing Commander Abhinandan, flying a Mig-21 Bison was taken into custody by Pakistani authorities, two videos immediately appeared on social media from Pakistani sources: one, showing the Wg Cdr being beaten by a group of Pakistani soldiers before being taken away by an officer, and the other, the blindfolded pilot disclosing his name, rank and service number.

As both these videos went viral on social media, there were outpourings of rage. It made the blood boil. By evening, Pakistani army tried to cover up these insulting videos by posting another video of Wg Cdr Abhinandan holding a cup of tea in hand, and ‘praising’ the Pakistani captors for their “kind treatment”. Circulation of such videos of a prisoner is prohibited under the Geneva Convention, because the motive was clearly to humiliate the prisoner and the Indian authorities, according to military legal experts.

India has already issued a demarche to Pakistan demanding early and safe return of the prisoner. We in India salute the brave pilot and pray for his safe return.

In this context, I would appeal to all our fellow countrymen not to fall prey to Pakistani propaganda on social media in these trying times. Let me make it clear that Pakistan is trying to beguile and mislead the world by speaking about peace while committing acts of military aggression across the Line Of Control. Its Air Force jets had targeted our military installations in Kashmir on Wednesday and were effectively repulsed by our valiant Air Force and Army.

Pakistan’s main aim is to foment acts of terrorism inside Kashmir and attack India stealthily from the back. In any conflict of such a nature, false and misleading propaganda through social media becomes an effective tool for the enemy. Whether it is the Pakistani PM or the Pakistani army spokesman speaking of peace, or whether it is a video of a prisoner “praising” Pakistan, these are all tools of war propaganda meant to befool the other side.

Our media should remain alert against such war propaganda, and the common man on the street should understand that all the videos that are circulated on social media are not true. They are part of the enemy’s strategy. I would once again appeal to all of you not to blindly accept such videos as gospels of truth, and refrain from circulating them among your friends and groups.

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Today I attentively watched a press conference by Asif Ghafoor, the Pakistani Army spokesman, and found that his tune had completely changed in the last 24 hours. For at least 20 times, he said, Pakistan does not want a war with India. Yesterday, this same gentleman had spoken of ‘teaching a lesson’ to India, after the spectacular IAF air strike. He had then threatened that Pakistan would give India a surprise, and retaliate.

Today this army spokesman claimed that Pakistan Air Force aircraft crossed the Line of Control in J&K and deliberately threw bombs on empty spaces. He then clarified on his own that the Pakistan Air Force wanted to show to India that it had the capability to strike, but “since we do not want a war, we only showed our might and came back”.

This spokesman had yesterday claimed that PAF jets had forced IAF aircraft to flee from Pakistani airspace and India should wait for our response. Today the same gentleman said the same thing which the Indian Foreign Secretary had said yesterday. The Pakistani army spokesman said, “our PAF jets did not target any military establishments, and we did not cause any civilian casualty. Our jets kept a safe distance from the targets.” He however added that “we could have attacked, but we did not, because we are a responsible nation.” Today this spokesman appealed to Pakistani reporters not to report about war, but about peace, because “we do not want war”.

Why did the Pakistani army’s tone and tenor about war and peace changed within 24 hours?

There could be two interpretations: One, Pakistan is scared, it does not want a war, it has now perceived that it may have to face humility if it loses a war. Two, this change in tone and tenor could be a cosmetic one and it could be an attempt to fool the Indian army. In other words, speak about peace, but fight a proxy war on the side.

I think the second interpretation could be true. In Hindi, we have a saying, “an elephant has two sets of teeth: a set of teeth for display, and the other set of teeth to chew on.” My bet is on this interpretation only.

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The entire nation salutes our brave warriors of Indian Air Force who carried out a daring air strike decimating camps of the terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed on Feb 26 pre-dawn deep inside Pakistan. The identities of these Air Force warriors have been kept secret for security reasons, but they have made every Indian proud.

To enter the airspace of a terrorist country, execute the air strike with pinpoint precision and then return safely without any casualty is not an easy task. These warriors risked their lives to exact revenge for the death of our CRPF martyrs and they richly deserve the honour.

Pakistan’s reaction was not surprising, to say the least. It clearly reflect the frustration of its leadership. One of their ministers said that it was pitch dark and their armed forces could not find out when the IAF planes came and left. Their army spokesman says that the Pakistani Air Force forced the IAF planes to flee without inflicting any casualty. But he had no answer when asked why PAF fighters could not target a single IAF plane despite their presence inside Pakistani airspace for more than 20 minutes. It was a similar charade like last time when Indian army commandos carried out surgical strikes and returned safely. The Pakistanis flatly denied that any surgical strike had taken place.

After the devastating air strike deep inside its territory, the Pakistani army has given two types of threats. The first threat is: ‘we will give India a surprise, at a time and place of our own choice’, and the second veiled threat is in the form of an announcement that the National Command Authority that authorizes nuclear attacks will meet on Wednesday. This is the same Pakistan army which had been threatening four days ago of swift retaliation if India tried to carry out a strike, but was caught unprepared on Tuesday early dawn.

History shows that the Pakistani army always lost wars that it waged in 1948, 1965, 1971 and 1999. Our armed forces are on high alert right now and if Pakistan dares to strike back, it will be paid back in the same coin. The entire world knows that our IAF targeted terror camps only. It did not inflict casualties on Pakistani civilians or the Pakistan army and it did not occupy an inch of their territory. The Tuesday air strike by the IAF received support from world powers, and if Pakistan resorts to any misadventure, it will incur the world’s wrath.

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In another bid to show to the world that it is taking action against terrorists after Pulwama killings, the Punjab government in Pakistan has taken over the headquarters of Maualana Masood Azhar’s Jaish-e-Mohammed in Bahawalpur on Friday. Troops surrounded the madrasa and mosque where the HQ is located, and reportedly whisked away Masood Azhar to protective custody. This action is purely cosmetic, similar to earlier actions in putting Lashkar-e-Taiba chief Hafiz Saeed under house arrest and then quietly releasing him to indulge in politics.

Pakistan must clearly understand that it cannot escape punishment from India. Our Prime Minister has time and again said that Pakistan has committed a blunder and it will be taught a lesson. Whatever happened in Pulwama was an assault on India’s sovereignty and unity, and Pakistan cannot absolve itself of its guilt. Its Army Chief visited the Line of Control in Pak Occupied Kashmir on Friday to boost the morale of his troops against impending action from India.

As Prime Minister Modi said, the time for dialogue is over. Yet, there are many in India who are still advocating dialogue with Pakistan. Among them is former J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, who was my guest in Aap Ki Adalat show.

In her replies, Mehbooba Mufti gave this argument that India had to go for dialogue with Pakistan in the past even after the 1965, 1971 and 1999 Kargil conflicts. She said, if the US can have a dialogue with Afghan Taliban, why not India? The audience in the show belonged mostly to the young generation. They were not at all impressed with her arguments, coming after the dastardly killings of 40 CRPF jawans in Pulwama. The young crowd was so much charged that whenever issues like Pulwama and martyrs arose, they shouted slogans like Bharat Mata Ki Jai and Vande Mataram.

There were several retired senior Army generals present among the audience. They told Mehbooba clearly that the time has come for our Army to teach Pakistan a lesson. One retired General went to the extent of saying that India should not worry at all and must strike back even if Pakistan has nuclear weapons.

The message was loud and clear: if we do not retaliate now, the morale of our enemies will get a boost. You can watch Aap Ki Adalat with Mehbooba Mufti on India TV on Saturday night at 10 pm, and on Sunday at 10 am and 10 pm.

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Pakistan government on Thursday re-imposed ban on Lashkar-e-Taiba chief Hafiz Saeed’s outfits, Jamaat ud Dawa and Falah-i-Insaniyat Foundation to show to the world community that it is taking action against terrorists. This is, to say the least, laughable. Pakistan took the action because it feared punitive action from the Financial Action Task Force, which is scheduled to meet on Friday. India described this action as “cosmetic and was not worth the paper it is written on.”

People of India still remember how Pakistan government tried to fool the world by keeping Hafiz Saeed under so-called house arrest and later quietly released him, to address rallies, form a political party and field candidates in last year’s elections. The dastardly killings in Pulwama were committed not by LeT, but by Masood Azhar’s Jaish-e-Mohammed, propped up by the ISI. No action has been taken against Jaish so far by Pakistan.

Already, the United Nations Security Council has named Jaish in its resolution adopted on Thursday night while condemning the Pulwama killings. India, on its part, is ready with its action plan, and all eyes are fixed on when and where the action will be taken. Pakistan must be ready to face retaliatory action for the blunder it has committed.

India has virtually isolated Pakistan in the international arena, and it has conveyed its intention to take punitive action to the National Security Advisers of US, Britain, Russia and France. The action plan prepared by our army is ready, and we should have faith in the capability and valour of our armed forces, come what may. The heinous and brutal killings of our CRPF jawans must not go unpunished and Pakistan must be taught a lesson.

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The Committee of Administrators that runs the BCCI, India’s topmost cricket body, has prepared a letter to be sent to International Cricket Council seeking a ban on Pakistan from participating in the forthcoming ICC World Cup tournament, because of Pakistan-sponsored terrorism in India.

The entire nation is anguished and unhappy after the Pulwama killings, and the BCCI will be taking a right step. People in India now want action against Pakistan in whatsoever form it may be. Already India has imposed 200 per cent import duties on all Pakistani goods leading to a virtual standstill in shipment of goods from Pakistan. Bollywood producers and cine artistes’ associations have clamped a blanket ban on participation of Pakistani artistes. And now, BCCI has taken the right step.

India is scheduled to face Pakistan on June 16 in a World Cup tie, but the mood of the nation is completely against Indian cricketers playing with their Pakistani counterparts. Pictures of former Pakistani cricketers have been taken off from the picture galleries in the cricket body offices in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Nagpur.

The common man in India wants action against Pakistan for harbouring and training terrorists who are carrying out attacks in Kashmir. If Pakistan is allowed to play in the World Cup, India, as per rules, will have to play against the enemy country. If India refuses to play, it will have to cede points and pay a stiff penalty, The BCCI has, therefore, initiated a smart move by demanding exclusion of Pakistan from the World Cup. This is the need of the hour and the BCCI has responded rightly, taking popular sentiments in mind. The common Indian on the street simply does not want to see our cricketers playing with the Pakistanis.

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Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s video speech telecast on Tuesday clearly shows that his government is desperate after Pulwama killings, mostly due to international pressure and domestic fiscal crisis.

Imran Khan has been visiting many capitals, seeking foreign aid to tide over the present financial crisis. He managed to get a promise of $22 billion investment from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, but by then, Pulwama killings had already taken place and there was international pressure from several quarters on Pakistan to take action against terrorists.

According to sources, the Pakistani PM pleaded with the Saudi Crown Prince to speak to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi to mediate and help in easing tensions on the border. Clearly, with a depleting treasury, Pakistan cannot afford to face a conflict with neighbouring India.

India’s stand is crystal clear: There can be no third party in any negotiation on the issue of Kashmir, which is clearly a bilateral issue. After the Pulwama killings, Prime Minister Modi has emphatically said that the time for talks is over. It is now time for action.

It is in this context that Imran Khan gave his video speech exuding false bravado on Tuesday and said, his country “will not think about retaliation, but will retaliate”. This was purely for his country’s domestic consumption, and the ground reality is that Pakistan is desperately seeking a way out of the present mess.

Imran Khan even offered to probe if India gave “actionable evidence” on his country’s role in Pulwama killings. The answer was given on Tuesday evening itself by Finance Minister Arun Jaitely. He said, the evidence (Jaish chief Masood Azhar) is sitting inside Pakistan, and there was no need to give evidence.

Imran Khan, clearly under pressure from his army, said in his video speech that “we know it is easy to start a war. It is in the hands of humans to start a war, however, to end the war isn’t in our hands. In which direction this will go, Allah knows better.”

I want Imran Khan to look at the pictures and videos of 92,000 Pakistani army soldiers surrendering to Indian army after the 1971 Bangladesh war. I want to tell Imran that our army knows better how to end a war.

In 1971, Pakistan started the war, and the end result was: Pakistan was cut into half. In 1999, Pakistan started the Kargil conflict, and the result was: Pakistani army had to withdraw from all the heights it surreptitiously occupied, after suffering heavy casualties. Till date, since independence, India never waged war against Pakistan, but ended all wars by scoring victories.

India presently faces two challenges, one, China, and two, Pakistan’s nuclear power. It is easy to make big statements on television, but entirely different when we face ground realities. And yet, we all have full faith in the capability, valour and strategy of our armed forces. It is the army, which will decide how, when and where to strike. It may be that our army may manage to regain Pak Occupied Kashmir.

I want to issue an appeal to all: Kashmiris are our brothers and sisters. Some Kashmiris may have taken up the gun, but to view every Kashmiri student and trader in different parts of India with suspicion is uncalled for. It is our duty to protect our Kashmiri brothers and sisters in this hour of crisis and tension.

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Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan today flatly denied any role of his country in the Pulwama killings and asked India to provide ‘actionable evidence’ of his country’s hand in the suicide blast. In the same video speech, Imran Khan has warned that his country would retaliate if India attacked. He said, ‘If India attacks, Pakistan will not think of retaliating, it will retaliate’.

Sabre-rattling notwithstanding, Imran Khan should know, India has never waged a war against Pakistan in the past, whether in 1948, or 1965, or 1971 or during the Kargil conflict. In all these four instances, it was Pakistan which first attacked India. This time, with the Pulwama killings, Pakistan has once again provoked India, and Prime Minister Modi has been left with no other option but to strike back.

It was Modi who took the peace initiative in inviting the then PM Nawaz Sharif to attend his oath taking ceremony. He tried to extend a hand of friendship to Pakistan on every occasion. After he visited Lahore to attend Nawaz Sharif’s birthday celebration, Pathankot air base was attacked. When he had talks with Nawaz Sharif, the terror attack in Uri happened. Clearly there are many hawks in the Pakistani establishment who do not want peace with India, and Imran Khan should identify and sideline such hawks.

The situation has now come to a pass where Prime Minister Modi has clearly said that the time for dialogue is over and it is now time for action. It is with this in mind, he has said that the armed forces have been given a free hand to plan and execute any such plan.

Since the Pulwama killings, the question that is being asked at bus stops, inside Metro, at street corners and in the drawing rooms of the elite is: Will India take a major punitive strike against Pakistan?

Instead of replying to this, I would prefer to rephrase the question: Is there any option other than a strike left for Modi? The answer is a big NO. The only option left before a grieving nation is: We have to teach Pakistan a lesson. Prime Minister Modi cannot afford not to take action. And if he can’t take on Pakistan, no one else can.

Modi has clearly read the public mind. He told a rally in Bihar that his “heart is burning” like the hearts of the common people. He has also said, the blood of every Indian is “boiling”. Today Modi said, the time for talks is over and action is the need of the hour.

The problem is, Modi does not have much time left in hand to carry out a strike against Pakistan. Elections are knocking at the door. Modi cannot afford to go to the people seeking their votes with the scars of Pulwama killings still fresh. As an astute politician, Modi would rather go for elections after he has taught Pakistan a proper lesson.

Normally, any war is neither declared nor fought by giving prior notice to the enemy. But in the present situation, the option of a war is no more secret. Not only the enemy (Pakistan), but the whole world is aware that Indian armed forces are going to strike at Pakistan soon. And this time, the action may be targeted not only at militant camps inside Pak Occupied Kashmir. It’s Pakistan, which is on the radar of our army.

The second challenge that I foresee is from China. Both China and Pakistan claim they are “all weather friends”. China has been opposing a resolution at the UN Security Council to declare Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar as a terrorist. We will have to ensure that China now falls in line and backs India’s demand for a collective action against terrorism.

The third challenge is the fact that Pakistan is a nuclear armed country and we must have the ability to counter the enemy effectively.

In the Indian establishment presently, there are three strands of thought; one, PM Modi can’t afford to go for general elections without striking back at Pakistan. two, a limited action seems to be current option available, and three, there is a strong lobby that is demanding that India must reoccupy Pak Occupied Kashmir and abrogate Article 370 of the Constitution, since the will of the Indian people is in favour a pro-active stand on Kashmir issue, that has brought untold miseries on the common people for several generations.

As the entire nation paid respects to the CRPF jawans martyred in the cowardly suicide attack in Pulwama, Kashmir, it is gratifying to note that the whole nation, irrespective of ideology, region or religion, is one on the need to teach our neighbouring country a lesson that will be remembered for generations.

At the Palam Air Station on Friday evening, with Congress President Rahul Gandhi, the three Armed Services chiefs, and senior ministers watching, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid wreath on the mortal remains of martyrs, and then silently walked around the coffins with folded hands, his face grim with grief and determination. Hours earlier, the Prime Minister had remarked that “the blood of every Indian is boiling”.

Clearly, the people of India want a swift and precise retaliation, and they have full faith in the determination of our Prime Minister. I have heard many Prime Ministers in similar situations in the past, but Prime Minister Modi, with his balanced choice of words has endeared himself to many. Pakistan needs to be taught a lesson and the Army has been given a free hand. The Prime Minister clearly said that Pakistan has committed a grave mistake and it must bear the consequences.

Modi’s words has brought a sense of relief in the minds of Indians, but the real challenge remains. Millions of Indians will get a true sense of relief only when the retaliation against the perpetrators of Pulwama massacre is carried out in a precise manner. India has the right to self-defence, and it must teach a lesson to Pakistan on its own soil, whatever may be the fallout.

India had been and is a peace loving country, but a country seeking peace does not mean that it must cower in the face of heinous attacks. India follows the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi, but it also worships Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Bhagat Singh and Chandrashekhar Azad, who hit out at the nation’s enemies without fear. India follows the teachings of Gautam Buddha, and yet it honours its brave heroes like Chhatrapati Shivaji and Maharana Pratap, who hit out at their tormentors with valour. The Pakistani leadership did not chose to understand our message of peace, and India has no option but to follow the footsteps of its brave national warriors.

The most satisfying part is that Prime Minister Modi understands the pulse of 130 crore Indians. All the political parties are united in this hour of national grief. Pakistan has committed a big blunder, and the call of the poet Chand Bardai rings in our ears. Chand Bardai in a famous couplet had guided the blinded and imprisoned king Prithviraj Chauhan of Delhi, how to shoot precisely to kill Sultan Muhammad Ghori sitting on his resplendent throne.

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It is with a deep sense of grief and sorrow that I pen these lines. There is outrage across the nation over the suicide attack in Kashmir that took the lives of 44 CRPF jawans sitting inside a bus. The nation stands with the families of martyrs in their hour of grief. A grieving nation expects Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government to take revenge against the perpetrators of this heinous act. Our Prime Minister has clearly said today that neighbouring Pakistan has made the biggest mistake and our army has been given full freedom to strike back at a time and place of its own choice. Modi has said, “sacrifices of our martyrs will not be in vain, and the perpetrators of this heinous attack will be given an unforgettable lesson”.

Already, after the meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security, the government has decided to withdraw MFN (Most Favoured Nation) rights from Pakistan with immediate effect. The Pakistani High Commissioner in India has been summoned by Ministry of External Affairs and a tought message will be conveyed.

Let me tell what happened on Thursday afternoon in Kashmir valley. Our CRPF jawans were going in a massive convoy from Jammu to Srinagar after the reopening of the highway after a spell of snow. There were 2547 CRPF jawans in 78 vehicles, and they were hardly 30 km away from Srinagar, when the suicide bomber struck. He drove an SUV laden with large amount of explosives and rammed into a CRPF bus, blowing it and his own vehicle into bits. Later, Jaish-e-Mohammed, the terror outfit led by Masood Azhar claimed responsibility for this attack. Masood Azhar and his cohorts are based in Pakistan, helped and trained by ISI, the Pakistani spy agency.

Jaish had prepared a video showing the suicide bomber Adil Ahmed Dar, a youth from Pulwama, declaring his intention to strike The video was released within minutes of the attack on social media. India TV has shown a letter from Intelligence Bureau sent on February 8 to DIGs of CRPF in both North and South Kashmir in which it was clearly said that terrorists could target their convoys with improvised explosive device (IED). The letter was shared with district SSPs in which information was given about an explosive expert of Jaish, Abdul Rashid Ghazi, who had entered Pulwama with two of his associates.

Already the National Investigation Agency has begun to probe as to how the attack took place. The entire nation is in mourning and there is clamour for taking revenge against Pakistan. The common man in the street wants our armed forces to give Pakistan a befitting reply. To predict what the armed forces will do can be a bit premature. Our army prepares its own plan so that it can be execute with precision at a time and place of its own choice, like it did when it carried out a surgical strike soon after the Uri terror attack.

The martyrdom of our jawans will not go in vain. Burying all our political differences, we should focus on how to repay Pakistan back in its own coin. If we fail to take action now, our future generations will never forgive us.

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The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report on acquisition of 36 Rafale aircraft from France was tabled in Parliament on the last day of the session. The report clearly states that the contract to acquire 36 aircraft was 2.86 per cent cheaper than the price that was being negotiated by the UPA governent in 2007, but not nine per cent as claimed by the Modi government.

In a comprehensive evaluation of the Rafale aircraft deal with the French government, the report said that the deal was better on price, but the NDA government could have driven a better deal if it had not offered certain concessions.

Now that the CAG report on Rafale deal has come, it should be time for Congress president Rahul Gandhi to stop his continuous tirade against Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the Rafale issue.

The Congress president on Wednesday said that the report “is not worth the paper it is written on”. He said, the CAG ignored the dissent note from the members of the negotiating committee that clearly contradicts the government’s position on prices and delivery. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the CAG report has vindicated the government’s stand and “it has blasted the big lie that was being spearheaded by the Congress”.

Now that Rahul Gandhi has rejected both the Supreme Court’s verdict and the CAG report, it is quite clear that he wants to make Rafale an election issue so that some amount of mud could stick to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. My view is that one can find flaws in the functioning of PM Modi, one can disagree with his policies, his statements and his style of working, but the allegations that he is corrupt or his honesty can be doubted in this deal, will not go down well with the common voters.

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Samajwadi Party workers went on the rampage in several cities of Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday after police prevented their party supremo Akhilesh Yadav from going to Prayagraj. Yadav was to address his students’ wing supporters there, but was prevented from boarding the aircraft at Lucknow airport. The reason given was that Yadav’s meeting with students in Prayagraj could create law and order problems.

It is true that nobody can justify the need to prevent Akhilesh Yadav from addressing a public meeting. He is, after all, a mass leader in his own right. Ironically, it was the UP CM Yogi Adityanath, who when prevented from addressing a BJP rally in West Bengal by Mamata Banerjee’s administration, had levelled charges of dictatorship on her government. Simiiarly, Mamata Banerjee has no right to allege that opposition leaders are being prevented from addressing public meetings. In 2015, the then UP CM Akhilesh Yadav had similarly prevented Yogi Adityanath from visiting Prayagraj to address a rally.

I believe all these three instances, of preventing leaders from addressing rallies, go against the very grain of democracy. Opposition and the right to dissent have a rightful place in a democracy. Every political party and leader has the democratic right to address public meetings.

Ensuring law and order is the prerogative of the administration and police, but if political gatherings are disallowed on grounds of law and order, it does not augur well for a democracy. No matter which party’s government is there, or the ideology it follows, all political parties should trust the public at large. After all, it is the people who listen to everybody and then elect leaders, whom they think can serve them well.

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