Pulwama puzzle
As the nation remembers the 40 CRPF bravehearts who attained martyrdom in Pulwama on February 14, 2019, there’s no escape from some troubling questions: Could the terror attack have been averted? Who were responsible for the intelligence and security lapses that led to the tragedy? And why was the movement of an unusually long convoy of 78 vehicles allowed? An internal inquiry conducted by the CRPF remains shrouded in a veil of secrecy. According to reports, this probe pinpointed a couple of key reasons for the suicide bombing: The absence of specific intel inputs; the convoy’s excessive length. The Central Government has also been evasive about what went wrong. The serious allegation that the Home Ministry turned down a request by the CRPF to ferry its personnel by air has not been countered by a strong rebuttal.
Apparently, no lessons were learnt from two major terror attacks that took place in 2016 — at the Pathankot airbase and the Army base in Uri (J&K). Both involved armed terrorists who had infiltrated into India from across the border. The post-Uri surgical strikes were expected to force Pakistan to mend its ways, but that did not happen. Infiltrations continued, and so did the recruitment of locals by terrorists to pursue their nefarious designs. An investigation by the National Investigation Agency revealed that the Pulwama attack was the result of a conspiracy hatched by the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad, a proscribed terrorist organisation. A Pakistan minister, Fawad Chaudhry, had the audacity to brag before the National Assembly: “Humne Hindustan ko ghus ke maara.”
India’s fierce retaliation in the form of the Balakot airstrikes underscored its enough-is-enough stand against Pakistan-sponsored terrorism. It is comforting that there has been no major cross-border attack on Indian soil since the Pulwama carnage. However, there is no room for complacency. In the interests of national security, all the unanswered questions should no longer be brushed aside. The nation owes it to those 40 martyrs.
