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Friday March 29, 2024

Let’s ‘fight terror with terrorism’

As the world laments over the lives lost, the spread of physical and psychological trauma inflicted on innocent beings and the valuable resources being wasted to defeat the coarse dogma of terrorism, our neighbour India’s Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar is of a different and incongruous view. He believes in fighting

By Syeda Mazhar
June 03, 2015
As the world laments over the lives lost, the spread of physical and psychological trauma inflicted on innocent beings and the valuable resources being wasted to defeat the coarse dogma of terrorism, our neighbour India’s Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar is of a different and incongruous view. He believes in fighting terror with terrorism.
Vowing to take ‘pro-active’ steps to prevent attacks of terrorism in India, the Indian defence minister hinted towards a new proxy war last Friday. He questions the fact: why does an Indian soldier have to be the one to face the dangers of being on the frontline facing the terrorists? A minister of an elected government openly advocating the use of terrorism against another country to protect its land was not only bizarre but it also resulted in a strong reaction from Pakistan. Sartaj Aziz, the Adviser to Pak PM on National Security and Foreign Affairs, said that the Indian defence minister’s recent remarks confirmed Pakistan apprehensions that India has been fueling terrorism inside Pakistan.
Repeatedly, Pakistan’s security agencies have been pointing out RAW’s hand behind terrorism in the country. Traditionally, the authorities were uncommunicative about the proofs of Indian backing the insurgency in Balochistan and other parts of Pakistan. However, this year the government decided to take a tougher approach towards the matter. It forcefully raised its concerns over the alleged Indian involvement. The change has been forced by Delhi’s continued terrorism allegations for building a narrative that India was a victim to Pakistan-sponsored terrorism. The hue and cry was to cover Indian involvement in global terrorism and to make sure that its ‘pro-active’ planned steps are executed properly without getting international attention. While deceitfully accusing Pakistan of terrorism, RAW has been indulging in terrorism in Pakistan since at a massive scale.
Irrefutable evidence has established that RAW has been an active participant in instigating militancy in Pakistan. It has been consistently providing financial and weapon support to Baloch militant groups; Balochistan Liberation Army, Baloch Republican Army and Balochistan Liberation Front for carrying out terrorist activities in the region. These outfits are pursuing a separatist agenda and are responsible for playing havoc in the province. Further evidence proves that Baloch militants have been harboured at various places and training camps administered by RAW since 2006. After committing heinous crimes these militants go to the RAW offices along the Afghan border and show the videos to the official, collect money and get directions for further operations.
Indian agencies have not only been exporting terrorism to Pakistan, these have also been training militants in the Tibet region and forcing them to cause instability in China. An NGO has been established by RAW in Badakhshan solely for the purpose to destabilise and defame China through a variety of plans and recent wave of riots in Tibet. This NGO persuades Chinese nationals to join where they will be trained for carrying out subversive acts and use of small and big arms and ammunition and other relevant activities that also include self-immolation and even suicide attacks on the pattern of Japanese Hara Kari while mob attacks and violent rallying was also taught.
Worse, the blatant admission of sponsoring terrorism in Pakistan has been made before by the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who on April 2014, talked about conducting an operation on the Pakistani territory. Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) is now under direct control of Modi. RAW has expanded its budget to Indian Rs1500 crore, alternately estimated at $145 million. The war on terror has concreted the way for RAW to conduct clandestine operations.
These stealthy terrorist activities in Pakistan are being conducted in conjunction with the Indian government’s consent. A newspaper has reported that the three arrested militants of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan namely Khurram Ishtiaq, Ghulam Mustafa and Shamim have disclosed that RAW has been funding suicide bomb attacks in Pakistan and that the Indian intelligence agency has channeled Rs680 million through its links with the Afghan secret agency. There is no denying that India has been practising the worst kind of state terrorism in Indian occupied Kashmir. Even the human rights representatives were not being allowed to visit the occupied valley. Furthermore, India has continuously been taking advantage of the porosity of the borders to spread terror and militancy. It had kept Pakistan busy with the skirmishes on the eastern border to divert its attention from the ongoing war on the western border and the terrorism within. The lack of Indian foresight is surprising if it thinks that creating more militant groups to cause instability will not eventually leak into the Indian land itself and cause destruction. The world needs peace, but India is talking of using terrorists. Or, is it just talk?