S P E C I A L   E D I T O R I A L

At stake is the nation's honour
Hari Jaisingh

THE daring storming of the high-security Parliament House by half a dozen terrorists armed with AK-47s is a challenge to the world's largest democracy. The most serious terrorist strike after September 11 is nothing short of an open war on the Indian state. Are we supposed to take it lying down? Certainly not. The situation demands national unity and action. Brave words cannot tilt the scales against terrorism but a decisive counter-strike can. President Bush has shown the way. We have suffered at the hands of mercenaries for over two decades. Apathy of Indian leaders seems limitless.

Why we should have allowed the situation to drift speaks poorly of the quality of governance. A soft state, if stretched beyond a point, becomes a curse. What we saw on Thursday morning in New Delhi is part of the wages of drift. Though the worst possible scenario, mercifully, was averted by the brave but ill-equipped policemen, serious chinks in the intelligence and security set-up are all too obvious. Of course, terrorists could always spring a surprise. All the same, it is a fact that they only take advantage of a weak or lax security system.

Warning signals have been very much there in the air. Even the Mumbai police had conveyed the possibility of such an attack on Parliament a month ago. Apparently, the Central authorities have their own priorities. They did not learn from earlier strikes at the Red Fort, near the Army headquarters and the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly. Whose failures are these? Perhaps these are a part of a casual approach we specialise in even in critical areas of national life.

The country has so far failed to rise as one nation, as America did, to the terrorist threat. There is too much of an obsession with trivialities and politics and that too of the gutter variety. The main pastime in the country's politico-cultural bazaar these days has been the politics of iftar. Whose cause these VVIP hosts are serving? Surely not of Muslims. These public shows have become a farce — a sort of political tamasha. Equally disgusting is the revelation of trading in coffins meant for Kargil martyrs. This cannot be pooh-poohed. Facts are before the people as highlighted in the latest report of the Comptroller and Auditor-General (CAG). Instead of prompt correctives, the entire official exercise has been reduced to defending the indefensible! As for the Opposition, the less said the better.

The matters raised above may not have a direct-bearing on Thursday's terrorist strike but these show the extent of drift that underlines the absence of political will to govern the nation efficiently. The answer to terrorism is simple: a firm resolve and timely action to eliminate all those who wield the gun. This nation cannot be silenced by sponsored mercenaries and terrorists, whatever might be the shortcoming in governance. India is stronger than what terrorist outfits might think it to be. All the same, Indian leaders will have to pick up courage, show guts and follow the example of President George W. Bush. Is Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee prepared to play Mr Bush?

The nation has enough resilience, resources and military and police power. It is capable of fixing terrorists, mercenaries and their harbourers. But the lead has to be given by the persons at the helm. It is a pity that the Prime Minister has of late been pre-occupied with non-essential tasks. There is more to India than UP elections. India's political leaders have to put the nation before party politics and their personal agenda of wheelings and dealings. We also expect the opposition leaders not to indulge in cheap gimmicks which dilute the nation's resolve to take on terrorism with full force and determination. At stake is the nation's security and honour, and the future of democracy. Mr Vajpayee must act for once.