The Hindu Business Line : Words, words, words

The new Union Home Minister has struck the right chord when he said immediately after taking charge of his new responsibility that what happened last week in Mumbai was a “threat to the very idea, the very soul of India that we know and love”, namely, “the idea of a secular, plural, tolerant and open society”. He added: “Like everyone, I’ve heard the anguished voice of India”.

But what is this “anguish” all about? In other words, what is it that is “threatening” life in India, the nation’s and the polity’s very “soul”?

Is it the increasing incidence of terrorism, or is it the way the Government of the day is trying to combat it? Some will say both, which possibly may be the correct view to adopt. But to this writer there is a major difference between the two scenarios, the requirement for remedial measures also being different in the two cases.

Religious and political

Briefly, terrorism has become a part of international and domestic life for reasons not connected with the basics of any individual national society.

The mainsprings of such behaviour draw their sustenance from factors enmeshed in international politics and the growth of religious fundamentalism worldwide.

Admittedly, political extremism has also played a role, such as the incidents in the 1990s and even earlier (1970s, for example) taking place in places such as Israel, Spain and in the Commonwealth of Independent States in Europe.

The major point of difference between the two streams of behaviour — the religious and the political — is that while the former has spanned continents, the latter has been confined to areas and regions affected by specific political issues leading to the violence. What this means is that, as far as remedial measures are concerned, while tackling the political issues by the affected Governments is a feasible proposition (because the issues and the people involved in associated acts of terrorism are known), this is not so with terrorism springing from religious fundamentalism, the nerve-centres of which are spread out all over the planet.

international terrorism

The sort of terrorism plaguing India is, with exceptions, mainly fundamentalist, its perpetrators being controlled by elements based outside the country.

What this basically means is that the authorities in New Delhi have no chance at all to get at the roots of terrorism springing from religious fundamentalism.

After all, Washington and other Western capitals have till today failed to do so even after major disasters such as the destruction of the World Trade Centre twin towers at the beginning of the decade.

If New Delhi cannot apprehend those providing leadership to the planning and execution of terrorist events, quite clearly, it will have to deliver (if only to justify the people’s mandate) by frustrating and aborting implementation of such projects.

The problem is that, in a country as populous and geographically as large as India, this is much easier said than done and, come to think of it, for no fault of those in power.

This is because battling effectively international terrorism today means getting into the entrails of Indian society, closely examining its contours, identifying the tainted areas, and taking preventive action.

At the very least, this implies that the authorities have at their disposal a totally committed, highly disciplined and well-oiled security force on which the nation can rely to foil the best plans of the enemy.

Does India have such an internal civil security set-up which can protect the lives of its citizens?

This is the issue that is leading to a lot of “anguish” in the minds of the average Indian citizen, a subject which the new Home Minister would do well to focus on.

But what can he do in five months to “solve” a problem which has matured over the decades?

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