Author:
Publication: News Insight
Date: January 9, 2007
URL: http://www.newsinsight.net/archivedebates/nat2.asp?recno=1560
[Note from the Hindu Vivek Kendra: If our
forefathers could cover three places in one day, then they had an advanced
means to transport. Wonder when and why did we regress.]
The PM said something odd yesterday. At the
FICCI annual summit, he gave free rein to his imagination almost like A.B.Vajpayee
. "I dream of a day," said Manmohan Singh, "when, while retaining
our separate identities, we can have breakfast in Amritsar, lunch in Lahore
and dinner in Kabul. That is how my forefathers lived. That is how I want
our grandchildren to live." Pakistan said nothing about this dreaming.
But it poured ice-cold water on another of the PM's proposals. Last month
in Amritsar, and again at the FICCI summit yesterday, he spoke of a peace,
security and friendship treaty with Pakistan. Pakistan was ready with its
reply, which was effectively a riposte or snub or both. The news agencies
quoted a Pakistan foreign office spokesperson to say, "We are working
to normalize relations with India and for that it is important we resolve
longstanding issues between us, Kashmir being most important of them. Once
we resolve outstanding issues, perhaps we can move towards such a scenario."
Mark the Pakistani language and content of the rejoinder. While Manmohan Singh
was flying in the stratosphere about India-Pakistan relations, Pakistan was
rudely grounding him by speaking about "normalization". Which is
rendering an abnormal or less-than-normal situation normal. Second, Kashmir
was brought in as one of the longstanding disputes. Only after resolving Kashmir
was anything possible to be considered, including Manmohan Singh's peace treaty
idea. Was Pakistan being churlish in summarily setting aside the PM's idea
or vision? No. Or perhaps Pakistan was acting out of pique for the cold reception
to General Parvez Musharraf's four-point plan for Kashmir. Even so, Pakistan's
position is aligned with reality. The peace process is in the ditch. Good.
Pakistan has not razed down its terrorist infrastructure. We, therefore, cannot
lower or guard. What sense does the PM's peace treaty idea make then? So-called
out of the box ideas are in fashion today. If this is one, it is stillborn.
Out of the box ideas have a life if a. they sync with reality, b. look seemingly
possible, and c. constitute an advance with continuity. Manmohan Singh's plan
demands a giant leap of faith and trust, and neither is available. He locates
the idea in the future. If you locate an idea in the future, what sense does
it make to unveil it in the present? Is this talk? A hearts and minds offensive?
If it is, it is a flop show. A certain kind of leader, perhaps a statesman,
can carry through such things. Manmohan Singh is neither. And frankly, with
Pakistan, it is victory enough to be secured from its terrorism. Manmohan
Singh surely attaches more value to his prime ministerial time than to indulge
in such dreaming. Of and on, the Indian leadership has suggested a confederation
with Pakistan. Not only is it a reckless, stupid, dangerous idea, which would
fulfill the Lashkar-e-Toiba's mad objective of Islamicizing this country.
In Pakistan, the fear is the exact opposite. That a confederation would unravel
the Two-Nation Theory and Hinduize Pakistan. Nehru had this rash, ill-judged
confederation idea in 1964 by way of a Kashmir solution. Pakistan's then dictator,
Ayub Khan, rejected it out of hand. Then Mulayam Singh Yadav as the defence
minister repeated this. He was targeting the Muslim votebank in UP. Nobody
put money on the scheme. Manmohan Singh's alleged vision is less than a confederation.
But it carries its stink. No wonder Pakistan wants nothing of it. General
Musharraf proposes joint management of Kashmir. We threaten him with an India-Pakistan
quasi marriage. Who wants it? Certainly nobody in India. So what's this all
about? It looks more and more like Manmohan Singh's spin ahead of crucial
assembly elections in Punjab, Uttaranchal and UP. While in Amritsar flagging
off the Congress's election campaign, he debuted his peace treaty idea. Yesterday,
he spoke about cross-border meals and the peace treaty again. Where's the
traction for anything? What's the basis for this high wire act? If it's spin,
he is a dishrag. It is nice in theory to counter spin with spin, and attack
PR with more PR. But leaders with a sense of themselves understand and accept
that they are better off sticking to known things. They leave spinning to
cheapies and generals on the skids. What has a senior UN official, Chris Alexander,
said today about Pakistan and Afghanistan that the PM dreams about? Apropos
fighting Taliban terrorism, he said, "Greater action is needed by Pakistan."
He said Taliban networks were operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan and called
for joint action, not mutual recrimination. "Pointing fingers leads nowhere
when what we really need, what Afghanistan most needs, is constructive engagement
and joint action to tackle various serious security challenges." If there
are "serious security challenges" west of our border in Pakistan
and Afghanistan, what are we going on about "irrelevant" borders?
Is the PM not irresponsible in his repeated stress on making India-Pakistan
borders "irrelevant"? When you ideate contrary to facts, shut your
eyes to the ground situation, scorn the caution advised by military and security
institutions, you commit hara-kiri. The PM by his imaginings is sending mixed
signals to Pakistan, to the Indian population, and to troops guarding our
frontiers. This is of the variety of Nehru's nonsense about Hindi-Chini Bhai-Bhai.
The Chinese won't ever be our friends. The Pakistanis and we have the enmity
between brothers which is the worst enmity there is. We say, let bygones be
bygones. The Pakistanis don't say it. In this cold January, the PM got foolishly
warm about Pakistan. The Pakistanis returned with sentiments dripping with
icicles. The PM does not understand his limitations. So let us point them.
Manmohan Singh is not a politician. He has no political instinct. He has no
memory of the wounds inflicted on this country, though he presumably witnessed
Partition as a boy. He has no political constituency. So he has nothing to
lose. But the Congress has huge stakes in this country. Effectively, the Congress
leadership should seal his lips. The PM is running away with his mouth.
