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Journalism of Courage
There can be no two views that the terrorist attack outside the J038;K Chief Minister8217;s Mufti Mohammad Sayeed8217;s official residence is a despicable act of cowardice in which a number of people were killed and injured. But a very significant basic issue needs to be clarified at the earliest: was the attack actually aimed at the chief minister, or even his residence? The reports convey a confusing message. The director general police, J038;K, Gopal Sharma, is reported to have stated that the attack was not aimed at the chief minister, and implied that their target was the BSF party. In fact the chief minister had left more than three hours earlier for Aligarh. Mufti8217;s daughter and PDP president, Mehbooba Mufti, who was in the house at the time of the attack, has also been reported to have said that she did not think that their house was the target.
Incidentally, the chief minister had spent the night in the house after returning from Aligarh with the terrorists holed up in the building next door; and the courage of the father and daughter deserves commendation. The security forces also performed magnificently in rescuing 30 civilians trapped inside the shopping complex where the terrorists had taken refuge. But we cannot ignore the fact that the attack took place at the high-security zone that marks the residence of chief minister of a state that has been under brutal terrorist attacks for 15 years. The conclusion that there has been a serious breach of security arrangements is therefore inescapable. Access to and on the road along the chief minister8217;s residence ought to have been fully controlled, especially since an attack had taken place two months earlier on Greenway Hotel 8212; 400 yards away. And whether the chief minister wants less security or not should not be the criteria. After all, a successful attack on him/her would have wide-ranging ramifications.
