What was BJP’s Policy towards Pakistan – war or peace? Mukul Sinha September 27, 2013 | 1 Response The Kathua-Samba free run of the Pakistani desperadoes killing nine Indians including a Lt Colonel of the Army has once again put the nation of 1.2 billion people in a tizzy. Coincidentally this has put poor Manmohan in a sticky situation of holding a scheduled talk with Nawab Sharif in America when they are supposed to meet in UN! In August this year, few militants (allegedly backed by Pak army) crossed the LOC and killed five of our Jawans. The country heard the usual dose of super-nationalist sentiments and political rhetoric from both the opposition well as the ruling party. Modi in his first meeting in Rewari after being named as the BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate, uttered his quota of unintelligible gibberish that he passed of as his policy vis-a-vis Pakistan. Modi ofcourse glorified the Atal Behari Vajpayee era of Governance as of India. Immediately after the Kathua-Samba encounter, Yashwant Sinha of BJP ruled out the talks between our Prime Minister and the Pakistan Prime Minister. Modi, who was in distant Kerala and thereafter in Trichy, in his usual drame-baaz style told his audience that while Pakistanis were causing a river of our blood, somewhere else the river of love was flowing (referring to Manmohan’s insistence to talk with Nawaz). He then asked his audience thrice whether Manmohan should speak to Nawaz? Three loud “NOs” from the Trichi audience decided the foreign policy of Modi! We are once again constrained to look at the Atal era to find out what BJP was doing under a much more provocative situation than the present one. Vajapayee on the bus to Pakistan Vajapayee on the bus to Pakistan Vajpayee-Nawaz Sharif floated the idea of Lahore Delhi Bus Service. The bus had made its trial runs on January 8. Vajpayee’s bus arrived in Pakistan on 20 February, 1999, and was met with much fanfare on both sides of the border. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif opened the gate of Pakistan to receive the Prime Minister of India and his delegation of eminent persons who had boarded the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) bus at Amritsar airport. Vajpayee-Sharif-Lahore While on one hand Vajpayee was taking his Bus ride to Lahore, the Pakistani Army backed militants had already started planning the Kargil infiltration – there are even claims of Musharraf having addressed Nawaz Sharif about the Kargil plans in the first week of February 1999. Indian army units were rushed into Kashmir in response. Operation Vijay (1999), launched in June 1999, saw the Indian military fighting thousands of militants and soldiers amidst heavy artillery shelling and while facing extremely cold weather, snow and treacherous terrain at high altitudes. Over 500 Indian soldiers were killed in the three-month long Kargil War and after heavy sacrifice, the Indian forces could regain a large part of the area captured by the Pakistan army. The Bus Service was not suspended despite such a treacherous attack that left 500 Jawans dead! Once again on 24th December 1999, Indian Airlines flight (IC 814) en-route from Kathmandu to New Delhi was hijacked by five Pakistani terrorists and flown to Taliban ruled Afghanistan after refueling in Lahore. The hijackers the release of certain Kashmiri terrorists like Maulana Masood Azhar from prison. Jaswant Singh, the Indian External Affairs minister, flew with the terrorists to Afghanistan and exchanged them for the passengers. The Bus service was still not suspended. The Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the Visitng President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Gen. Pervez Musharraf holding one-to-one talks at Jaypee Palace, Agra on July 15, 2001. The Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the Visitng President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Gen. Pervez Musharraf holding one-to-one talks at Jaypee Palace, Agra on July 15, 2001. In the meantime, Gen. Musharraf had overthrown Nawaz Sharif and declared himself the President. Shockingly, Vajpayee found this man eminently suitable to make peace with – who was squarely responsible for the Kargil war and supporting cross border terrorism. Musharraf was invited to come to Agra and hold peace talks. The Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the Visitng President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Gen. Pervez Musharraf held one-to-one talks at Jaypee Palace, Agra on July 15, 2001. On 13 December 2001, a group of masked, armed men with fake IDs stormed the Parliament building in Delhi. The terrorists managed to kill several security guards, but the building was sealed off swiftly and security forces cornered and killed the men. After three such major blows, Atal Behari had to give up his Bus and the service was suspended after the Parliament attack. The era that BJP’s celebrated Prime Ministerial candidate believes to be the golden era is nothing but the most humiliating and disastrous buckling down before the armed bullies without making any effort to reach out and strengthen the democratic forces within Pakistan to counter the rule of the military and its subsidiary extremist forces. The election of Nawaz Sharif this year appears to be supported by the nascent democratic forces that fought and removed Gen. Musharraf. Restored Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry (C, without tie) celebrates with lawyers in Islamabad, capital of Pakistan, March 16, 2009. Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Monday announced the restoration of all judges including Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry deposed in 2007, in a bid to end political turmoil in the country. Restored Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry (C, without tie) celebrates with lawyers in Islamabad, capital of Pakistan, March 16, 2009. Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Monday announced the restoration of all judges including Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry deposed in 2007, in a bid to end political turmoil in the country. It may be recalled that the main movement against Musharraf was led by the legal fraternity of Pakistan, especially after the removal of the Chief Justice of Pakistan Supreme Court, Mr Iftikar Qureshi. Nawaz Sharif has in fact appointed Mr Munir, who led the anti-Musharraf movement since 2004, as the Attorney General of Pakistan. The trade unions, civil rights organisations and lawyers fraternity are trying to build the democratic Institutions and isolate the militants and the army. Manmohan Singh would therefore to do a historic job if he can reach out to such democratic forces through Nawaz and help build a new Pakistan. The Kathua-Samba attack was therefore a desperate bid to stall the talks between the two Prime Ministers, but BJP lost in its own extremist ideology does not want to build any long term peace with Pakistan since they will have no enemy left to instigate the people of India against!
Posted on: Tue, 01 Oct 2013 01:47:19 +0000
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