Don’t get taken for a ride

The terror attack in Pathankot within one week of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi paying a “surprise visit” to Pakistan now threatens to derail a renewed India-Pakistan peace process. Indian government and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are maintaining as of now that the talk will go on. It’s possible that the two nations may backtrack from their new initiative and thus giving the militant organisations the golden opportunity. The attack was carried out to take the two nations away from the discussion table.

The series of events leading to the attack have generated lot of question and the same could have been averted had Punjab police not shown what they are best known for – their lackadaisical attitude. Credible information given by the Superintendent of Police (SP)  Salwinder Singh was handled casually and authorities failed to act timely. The terrorists barged into the SP’s vehicle, tied up and thrashed the three occupants before commandeering it for an hour. They threw the SP out of the moving vehicle and used the GPS to find their way to the Pathankot air base nearby. The SP is reported to have been travelling in a private vehicle with two others and his mere surrender to militants not only brings his conduct under suspicion but also raises question on the collaboration of events, especially when another civilian cab driver laid down his life resisting the attempt of the militants to kidnap him and hijack his car.

The police officials did not stop abducted senior policeman’s vehicle barrier located near Pathankot; as always the police vehicle was accorded the status of the VIP vehicle. Had the police stopped the vehicle the kidnappers might not have moved further.  The SP called his senior with a villager’s help and informed his seniors about the young, heavily armed terrorists with backpacks and their plans to attack the air base. The SP was told to call the Control Room! He tried and the call was never picked up! Another lapse came in the manner the abandoned vehicle was handled by the terrorist. The vehicle was left without sanitising as no dog squad was called. The security lapses and poor handling of the case provided a friendly feeling to the attackers and paved the way for the attack on the airbase. Punjab police came into picture only after good twelve hours, and that was the time the attackers needed to launch the massive attack. Such lapses happened when the central government had alerted the state governments of a possible attack. How can an ascertained intelligence input be ignored? Why was the first information of the armed infiltration, given by a Punjab Police officer who was abducted by the terrorists, disregarded? What was the Border Security Force’s role? Where are the surveillance equipment and night vision devices? Why the central government is not initiating any action against the Punjab government? The inputs from the SP were perhaps not taken seriously because of his track record. He is facing an inquiry after five women constables levelled charges of sexual harassment against him. Media in India have not ruled out the linkage of the drug cartel with the militants and the probability of having used the SP as a “courier”!

In the light of the attack, India must not stop taking to Pakistan. The scheduled talks for January 15th should be taken forward. India must confront Pakistan with evidence in terror attacks on India. Sit across the table, and ask them –“How can we normalise relations when you do this?” Calling off talks now would be to walk away just when India needs to confront, talk and seek answers.

A country that walks away from a peace talks, is perceived as the country that doesn’t want to talk peace. Pakistan keeps saying it wants to talk to India without preconditions, brining in the disputed Kashmir factor at the right moment thus getting exposed on its duality of purpose-Instead of allowing itself to be seen as the country that doesn’t want to talk and resolve issues. India should go ahead with the talks and let Pakistan be seen as the one that is up to terror strikes to derail talks. These talks pose an opportunity for India to bring the spotlight on Pakistan and its India centric terrorism as a state policy.

While India can take on Pakistan at the meeting table, it would have to get its state police to pull up its socks. Punjab police is facing flak for number of reasons: shoddy handling of the lynching of two dalits at the house of an Akali leader’s farmhouse; involvement of senior police officer of Sangrur who injected petrol and forced a wooden stick into the private parts of a young boy at the behest of a youth Akali leader and now failing to rise to the occasion to come to the rescue of the SP of Gurdaspur and thus letting a free run to the terrorist. India will have to get its act together both at home and on its foreign policy with Pakistan.

And will someone please remind Prime Minister to please show the same kind of urgency to visit the homes of the martyred soldiers that he showed to pay a visit to Nawaz Sharif.