India -Pakistan relations often appears
to sand house under construction in seashore. If a rogue sea wave appears in
middle of house construction, entire structure is demolished without traces. Construction
had to begin again from square one. After nuclear tests by India and Pakistan,
whenever their respective governments reach some progress in their talks, rogue
elements inside ISI and some military officials sympathized to Kashmir militants
start making inroads into the peace. With Aug first week incident of killing of
five Indian soldiers along the LoC, again governments of both countries start issuing the statements that blame each
other.
India-Pakistan
talks often appear to be cycle, ending in a place where it started. After 2001
India-Pakistan standoff, Musharraf and Vajapayee reached a landmark agreement,
through which they agreed to halt 14 years of cross-border gun battles in the
disputed Kashmir region. This agreement applied to the 450-mile-long Line of
Control, as well as the international border between India and Pakistan and the
Siachen Glacier. India benefited sufficiently from this ceasefire agreement. It
fortified the line of control with fencing along 550Km.Network of thermal
imaging devices, motion sensors, alarms were installed to stop the infiltration
attempts by militants across the border. With laying of thousands of mines along
this fencing, it made near impossible for the militants who tried to sneak into
Indian Kashmir. Indian army proudly said in 2005 that they are able to contain 80%
of infiltration after this installation.
Though this ceasefire agreement was in
place, there were few ceasefire violations happened every year as it appeared
the Pakistan army tried to provide cover for the militants who try to sneak to
other side of Loc. These incidents appeared to be very few every year. But year
of 2013 happened to be different.
With India – Pakistan friendship series
going to be concluded in first week of Jan 2012 ,some odd news of Indian army unit killed a Pakistan soldier
entering into their territory appeared in the Pakistan news lets. After the day
cricket series finished, some really disturbing news of killing of 2 Indian
soldiers with bad mutilation started to
appear in the Indian media. After that few Indian media went jingoistic,
without showing what had actually happened in last few months in LoC, they sparked
the nationalistic passions of people. Facebook,
twitter flooded with messages to attack Pakistan. Opposition party leader issuing
some war mongering statement happened thereafter.
A news story written by Praveen swami which
appeared in “The Hindu” magazine in
second week of Jan 2012, appeared to show some dirty facts in this secret LoC
war. There was a big interesting story behind these entire incidents which
started from Sept 2012. Early in September 2012, 70-year old Reshma Bi, left
the village of Charonda, near Uri, to live with her sons and grandchildren
across the Line of Control covertly without being noticed by the security
forces. When the JK Police came across this incident they alarmed the
security forces indicating this vulnerable loophole may assist militants in successful infiltration
into Indian side. Security forces understanding the situation started building
a bunker at the vulnerable place to monitor the point. Pakistan army enraged
and issued condemnation after seeing the
bunker construction as there was a some words in ceasefire agreement that “No”
new bunkers will build along the border. With Indian army doesn’t care about the Pakistan concern, was in process of construction of new bunker. With patience
lost, Pakistan army started shelling along the Uri border which killed 3
villagers , 25-year-old Mohammad Shafi Khatana, 20-year-old Shaheena Bano, and
a ninth-grade school student, Liaqat Ali.
On January 6, 19 Infantry Division
commander Gulab Singh Rawat sought aggressive
action as Pakistan troops keep on bombarding their posts. It appears that he
got the permission as Pakistan insists
its post, Sawan Patra, was raided by Indian troops next day killing its soldier.
Deceided to retialite against Indian forces Pakistan chose one of the few
sectors on the Line of Control where its troops have a relative tactical
advantage. i.e Krishna Ghati sector, on
the southern end of the Haji Pir pass. In the
Pakistan raid, 2 indian soldiers had been killed apparently 2 bodies
found to be mutilated and one body decapitated. With this dirty skirmishes
happening along the border, we can understand only half truth appears across
the media of respective countries.
With guns along the LoC felling silent
from Feb 2013, it was again roaring from
July 2013 with killing of 1 pakistani
soldier and critically injuring another. Cross border skirmishes start again
with a Indian army porter killed in cross fire in July end. The incident which
added further fuel to the fire was killing of 4 civilians in Pakistani side by Indian
forces. Pakistan argues that they are innocent herb collectors who strayed into
the other side, but Indian army argues that they are porters who help militants
to cross the LoC. With this, Pakistan border action team raided across poonch
sector with killing of 5 Indian soldiers widening further fissures.
After every terrorist incidents like 2001
Parliament attack, 2006 Mumbai Train attacks, 2008 Mumbai attack, Indian
government is confined to option of attacking the neighboring country as it is
also armed with nuclear weapons. Opposition
parties and few media in India demand stiff action against the Pakistan,
without practically understanding the complex nature of the problem. So much of blood is spilled in
last years for this secret war along LoC. Let the politicians should try pragmatically
to resolve the current tension without flaring further passions among the
public. Mindless national Jingoism propagated by few media channel will end
nowhere destining to collateral damage.Let soldiers too live in peace.Let their
families too live in peace without constantly worrying for them.One of the
oldest and most complex conflict lies in
the subcontinent, so its hard to expect
time bounded solution for this.
No comments:
Post a Comment