Prime Minister Narendra Modi wanted anti-China war theaters in television and print to take a break. That was the basic import of his stunning "no intrusion" remark to political leaders in the all party meeting. His audience listened with devotional silence. But limitations of a video conference didn't work with argumentative Indians. And, thus, followed a clarification within 18 hours. Modi and his men since then are working overtime to push Galwan valley to the exclusive ownership of the Armed Forces, and unleash the politics of economy and trade.
IT has taken the BJP a full six years to know the financial details of Rajiv Gandhi Foundation. The Jawahar Bhavan, housing the think tank headed by the first family of the Congress, is at a stone's throw distance from the Parliament of India.
Tales of the Gandhi family and its (mis) deeds in the Indian politics have been told too many times in the recent years. The larger audience has mostly been yawning. People have demonstrated clarity of understanding of the first family of the Congress. That it's most undeserving to lead India.
Yet, whipping a dead horse is the most convenient political craft of the BJP. The demon must remain alive to scare the masses to run to the shelters of the gods. The demon must also be bloated to hide smaller foes who are territory bound. So, the BJP chief J P Nadda has suddenly popped up in the midst of barrage of questions flying post June15/16 violent clash in the Galwan valley and India's raging battle with the Corona virus to turn the spotlight on the Gandhi family.
THE Balakot and surgical strikes in the wake of Pulwama and Pathankot terror attacks respectively whetted the appetite of the popular discourse for instant levelling (gratifications). The 20 brave-hearts of India who fell on the intervening night of June 15/16 set the television studios ablaze with the men of uniform talking war strategies at great lengths.
Similar anguish in China is also apparently spreading after the relatives were finally handed over the bodies of their fallen men. But China is a private limited enterprise where a regime lords over one and a half billion people. The regime has one sentence statecraft -- power flows from barrel of the gun, a copyright of Mao Zedong, ruler of China from 1949-1976.
India is a democracy irrespective of the streaks of a few to lord over the people with iron grips. Democracy entails questions, and plenty of them are being asked now. The Narendra Modi led dispensation knows well that the Galwan valley skirmishes aren't going to go away soon. The foe here is not a moth-eaten Pakistan. The fighter jets cannot just go raiding in the Chinese territory and drop a few bombs. Within the ruling dispensation this reality is well understood.
"It looks like some media houses, so called experts, think tanks & politically loaded ex-defence officers are hell bent on Indo-China war & Indian forces ultimately getting defeated. Commies were doing it in 1962. Left liberals have started it now," tweeted the BJP's organisational secretary B L Santhosh.
Santhosh may not be speaking Modi's mind, as he in the past has let go his frustration on social media, with an illustration of his rant, the tweet was soon deleted, against Bernie Sanders when he was on a roll against India.
INDIA and China have an LAC (line of actual control) of almost about 4000 kms. History has seen many ups and downs in over 100 years. The line of control has been pushed down, deep into Indian territory over the decades, principally on account of the timidity of the Indian leadership.
The adventurous British India of the 19th century had grown weaker at the beginning of the 20th century. Freedom from slavery of centuries led the baton of the leadership pass onto the hands of the pacifists who were more than willing to believe in the virtues of their counterparts in the other countries. India learnt too many lessons of the leaders' follies. Barring 1965 and 1971, India allowed bureaucratic arms to overwhelm strategic urgency to safeguard India's frontiers, which most steadfastly was done in the days of glory of Ashoka, Akbar and the British.
Modi broke the spell of slumber by giving hard slaps to Pakistan after the Pathankot and Pulwama terror attacks. The western foe may not dare for a few years to force its tactical weapon of inflicting 100 cuts onto India. With China, India may need to embark on a journey of decades. Instant gratification is only in the realm of fantasy.
The saffron auxiliary forces have already been let loose to identify the Chinese goods and build the public opinion against them. The Chinese trade surplus of over $48.7 billion annually in bilateral trade with India in the last financial year, which slightly came down, has over the years nourished the muscles of Beijing. The Corona virus may potentially change terms of trade. India will need to make attitudinal and policy changes to become the recipient of the gains.
ON the rocky terrains, the Armed Forces should be allowed full freedom to push back the intruders, and the leadership should unhesitatingly put the facts in the public domain to cut the scope for the Galwan gladiators in the studios dictate the popular narrative. Speculation on the state of affairs of India's frontiers will only harm the national interests.
Let the Chief of Defence Staff CDS) Bipin Rawat give the full accounts of the Galwan valley to the people. Democracy ordains facts of the day in the public domain, not speculation on India's strategic interests.
