Opinion Weak State
India is not a weak state where anyone with a few bullets can take the nation to ransom
Weak State
The former prime minister Indira Gandhis decision to not yield to Kashmir terrorists in 1984 and proceed with the hanging of Maqbool Bhatt was praised by the RSS,as it criticised subsequent Congress and even BJP governments at the Centre and the state for negotiating with terrorists and extremists.
The RSS perspective was articulated in an editorial in the Organiser,in the context of the Orissa governments offer to free 27 Maoist prisoners in various jails for the safe return of Italian hostage Paolo Basusco and BJD MLA Jhina Hikaka.
Criticising the Orissa governments decision,the RSS maintains that there must be a well thought-out strategy to convey that India is not a weak state where anyone with a few bullets can take the nation to ransom.
Whether when negotiating the release of Rubaiya Sayeed in J&K,daughter of then home minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed who was kidnapped,or then foreign minister Jaswant Singhs decision to accompany Kashmiri terrorists in 1999 to secure the release of a planeload of Indians,the RSS alleges that there have been few instances when the government has stood its ground. It argues that the majority of kidnapping cases by Maoists have been in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand,both currently governed by the BJP.
Praising Indira Gandhi,the Organiser says that she was an exception. Capitulating to the extremist threats and demands is becoming the done thing in India, the Organiser says,adding that a clear policy on dealing with such situations needs to be evolved.
Indias obama
An article praising Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in the latest issue of the Organiser makes a case for Modi being given the chance to serve one term as prime minister,saying that in these trying times,India needs a strong,non-corrupt and efficient leader to hold the country together… Modi is the need of the hour not just for the BJP,but the country as a whole,which is close to bursting at the seams due to pressure from its teeming millions on its infrastructure and civic services.
The article suggests that Modi be declared the BJPs prime ministerial candidate now,so that he can win in the Gujarat assembly elections scheduled early next year. Projecting Modi as the candidate would give the party an ideal opportunity to counter the allegations that it is the party of traders and upper caste communities. The other parties would find it difficult to attack Modi the way it does now,as it could be interpreted as an attack on a member of the backward class, claims the article.
The article,however,states that Modi has had little support from his own party,especially while battling the perception war in the media. Modi has had little support from his own party,except for some braveheart senoritas who take up the cudgels for him on television talk shows. The BJP and their allies would have to back him to the hilt,if he is to emerge as a credible candidate, it says. The article argues that Modi has carried Muslims,Hindus and members from other communities in Gujarat with him,and his ability to do this nationally should not be doubted. It contends that the Indian electorate would reject him if he does not deliver or if he shows that he is divisive.
He can be the Obama of Indian politics. But it is for the party to project this factor as Modi as a true statesman has never tried to cash in on the same and would probably never will, the article says.
CIVIL-MILITARY DIVIDE
The Panchjanya has targeted the media over the recent controversy relating to the army chief and the armed forces.
An editorial in the latest issue argues that the manner in which the conflict between the army chief and the government was projected,the leak of the army chiefs letter to the PM and the attribution of a political motive to a routine army exercise were unfortunate and went against the interests of the nation. The Indian army is one of the best armies in the world. It is this army which defeated Pakistan four times. It also fought valiantly against China and lost not because of any inadequacies but because of lack of farsightedness and faulty military strategy by our leaders,especially prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru. In every way,the armed forces have served to preserve the unity of the country, the editorial said.
Contending that the media is in the dock,the Panchjanya alleges that the arms lobby in India has links in the government,and the it considers the army chief to be a hurdle in furthering its interests.
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