Posted: 26 Dec 2009 07:20 AM PST
Dear Friends,
These days the gubernatorial postings have become too controversial and a matter of hot debates, often getting disgusted comments. Here is a note, that I found while browsing the literature of Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee regarding how the selection for such high jobs is done in a faulty manner, often driven by considerations other than the real merit. I am sending it, for your reading pleasure. This para is taken from Dr. Mookerjee’s illustrious book ‘Awake Hindusthan’ first published in 1944 and republished by Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee Research Foundation (foreword by Shri Mohan Ji Bhagwat, Sarsanghchalak, RSS).
With regards
Tarun Vijay
Selection of governors
It is common knowledge that a Governor of an Indian province is selected not always, on the ground of merit or breadth of outlook but very often for personal considerations and political patronage. Thus a man who by reason of his administrative and personal qualities may not even be competent to become a head clerk in Clive Street or who by reason of his capacity for carrying on intrigues and setting one against the other may at best adorn a modest chair in Elysium Row finds himself raised to the giddy height of Governorship of an Indian province. Shielded as he is from public criticism, forgetful of his own obvious limitations, he is encouraged to do acts behind the scene which render him positively dangerous to the peace and tranquility of the province under his charge.
(Excerpts from the book 'Awake Hindusthan'- page no. appendix-29)
Tarun Vijay
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Obama turns heat on Pakistan
Obama turns heat on Pakistan
Posted: 12 Dec 2009 04:07 AM PST
Islamabad is having the last laugh
By Sunita Vakil
It was in the fitness of things that Obama Administration warned Pakistan that Washington will be left with no option but to expand drone attacks on Pakistani soil if it did not act swiftly against Taliban groups. After all, it is a well known fact that Islamabad has been hunting with hounds and running with hares on terror. The latest American activism, though laudable, can be seen as the sign that the country has at last woken up to the pointlessness of Pakistani duplicitous game ever since the latter became its ally in the war against terror. The fact remains that while making a show of fighting against Taliban and Al-Qaeda, Pakistan is clandestinely aiding some of the terror outfits to carry on their proxy war in India and Afghanistan. While this blunt message will hopefully push Pakistani leadership to act, it also gives an inkling of Washington's realization that it is high time to do away with this fatalistic attitude.
"The US was prepared to take unilateral action to expand predator drone attacks beyond the tribal areas and if needed, to resume the raids by special operations forces into the country against Al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders", says a New York times report. The terse rebuke was probably the outcome of Obama Administration's questioning of Pakistan's commitment to attack the Taliban groups. The message to shape up or ship out was delivered by National Security Advisor James Jones and White House counter terrorism Chief John. O. Brennan when they met heads of Pakistan's military and intelligence service in Pakistan, before President Obama announced his new war strategy. The report further said that the US didn't mean it as an ultimatum but as a blunt warning to prod recalcitrant Pakistani military to deliver on its promises.
It appears that Washington is unhappy with Islamabad for acting aggressively towards Pakistani Taliban carrying out terrorists acts within the country but failing to deter the Afghan Taliban who attack US forces from its side of border. The US wants Pakistan to aggressively attack the two groups that most concern it as far as Afghan operation is concerned, the Afghan Taliban owing allegiance to Mullah Omer and the Haqqani network based in North Waziristan. In fact, the American special operations forces had attacked Qaeda militants in a Pakistani village near the border with Afghanistan in September 2008. But with the country's top Generals condemning the attack, such planned strikes were put on the shelf. Though the American commanders had earlier indicated that they were prepared to expand drone attacks in Pakistan's tribal areas, but this is the first time that the US has bluntly told Pakistan to go after Taliban insurgents or step aside to let Americans do it. This is a clear sign that Washington's patience is running out and it is no longer prepared to give Pakistan the benefit of doubt.
It is no coincidence that Mr. Obama's blunt intimation endorses India's perspective on handling terror outfits. After all, the country has borne the brunt of terrorism for long. While it is heartening to see international pressure, particularly from the US mounting on Pakistan to act against the perpetrators of terror, it turned a blind eye to what India had been pleading for. Inarguably, Terrorism is no longer a local issue but a global one. It ought to be viewed as a worldwide problem rooted in extremism. India has always acknowledged that the war on terrorism could not be won without hitting the root source of violence. Distinction between terrorists on the basis of their targets serves no purpose. So, as long as Pakistan is in the iron grip of the military and the ISI, it is futile to rely on it to fight terror. All terror groups, be it LeT whose hand was discovered behind the 26/11 attacks or Jaish-e-Mohammed, irrespective of whether they harm Indian or American interests need to be annihilated. Indeed, all countries have a stake in putting an end to terror to guarantee a safe future. The shocking details unveiled in a Chicago court regarding Davin Coleman Hedley's involvement in the 26/11 terror attack on Mumbai establish the global nature of contemporary terror and the sophistication acquired by the terror groups to carry out their devious plans from foreign countries. Earlier also, the arrest of Hedley, his Pakistani Canadian associate Rana and many others of Pakistani origin in Italy had revealed widespread terror links. These and other such disclosures rightly point out that it does not pay to be selective in our fight against terror. While some countries provide logistic and financial support to such groups, others are too soft on them unless it hurts their interests. There must be global cooperation and intelligence sharing in dealing with terrorists. What we have done so far is obviously not adequate. Asking Pakistan not to be selective against terrorism, India has pointed out that the chargesheet against Hedley showed that outfits like LeT, HUJI and al-Qaeda have not stopped plotting against India so far.
There is no doubt that US president Barack Obama has rightly snubbed Pak president Asif Ali Zardari asking him to stop using terror as an instrument of state policy. Though it is encouraging that the US is now unequivocally echoing Indian stand on terrorism, it turned a blind eye to the country's security concerns when it suffered a heavy death toll and its financial capital was held hostage for over 60 hours on 26/11. Despite knowing fully well that Pakistan is the international hub of terrorism, the US has been pumping billions of dollars into the country on the pretex of fighting terrorism. It cannot be unaware of the fact that a greater portion of that assistance is diverted to finance terror outfits against India. It is an open secret that the ISI is playing a major role in executing the diabolical plans of the LeT. Even Mr. Zardari had earlier refused to acknowledge Ajmal Kasab as a Pakistani national. Such badly fragmented response to dastardly attacks is a sign that America is guided only by self interest. The US needs to wake up to the reality that global nature of terrorism needs a global response.
Posted: 12 Dec 2009 04:07 AM PST
Islamabad is having the last laugh
By Sunita Vakil
It was in the fitness of things that Obama Administration warned Pakistan that Washington will be left with no option but to expand drone attacks on Pakistani soil if it did not act swiftly against Taliban groups. After all, it is a well known fact that Islamabad has been hunting with hounds and running with hares on terror. The latest American activism, though laudable, can be seen as the sign that the country has at last woken up to the pointlessness of Pakistani duplicitous game ever since the latter became its ally in the war against terror. The fact remains that while making a show of fighting against Taliban and Al-Qaeda, Pakistan is clandestinely aiding some of the terror outfits to carry on their proxy war in India and Afghanistan. While this blunt message will hopefully push Pakistani leadership to act, it also gives an inkling of Washington's realization that it is high time to do away with this fatalistic attitude.
"The US was prepared to take unilateral action to expand predator drone attacks beyond the tribal areas and if needed, to resume the raids by special operations forces into the country against Al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders", says a New York times report. The terse rebuke was probably the outcome of Obama Administration's questioning of Pakistan's commitment to attack the Taliban groups. The message to shape up or ship out was delivered by National Security Advisor James Jones and White House counter terrorism Chief John. O. Brennan when they met heads of Pakistan's military and intelligence service in Pakistan, before President Obama announced his new war strategy. The report further said that the US didn't mean it as an ultimatum but as a blunt warning to prod recalcitrant Pakistani military to deliver on its promises.
It appears that Washington is unhappy with Islamabad for acting aggressively towards Pakistani Taliban carrying out terrorists acts within the country but failing to deter the Afghan Taliban who attack US forces from its side of border. The US wants Pakistan to aggressively attack the two groups that most concern it as far as Afghan operation is concerned, the Afghan Taliban owing allegiance to Mullah Omer and the Haqqani network based in North Waziristan. In fact, the American special operations forces had attacked Qaeda militants in a Pakistani village near the border with Afghanistan in September 2008. But with the country's top Generals condemning the attack, such planned strikes were put on the shelf. Though the American commanders had earlier indicated that they were prepared to expand drone attacks in Pakistan's tribal areas, but this is the first time that the US has bluntly told Pakistan to go after Taliban insurgents or step aside to let Americans do it. This is a clear sign that Washington's patience is running out and it is no longer prepared to give Pakistan the benefit of doubt.
It is no coincidence that Mr. Obama's blunt intimation endorses India's perspective on handling terror outfits. After all, the country has borne the brunt of terrorism for long. While it is heartening to see international pressure, particularly from the US mounting on Pakistan to act against the perpetrators of terror, it turned a blind eye to what India had been pleading for. Inarguably, Terrorism is no longer a local issue but a global one. It ought to be viewed as a worldwide problem rooted in extremism. India has always acknowledged that the war on terrorism could not be won without hitting the root source of violence. Distinction between terrorists on the basis of their targets serves no purpose. So, as long as Pakistan is in the iron grip of the military and the ISI, it is futile to rely on it to fight terror. All terror groups, be it LeT whose hand was discovered behind the 26/11 attacks or Jaish-e-Mohammed, irrespective of whether they harm Indian or American interests need to be annihilated. Indeed, all countries have a stake in putting an end to terror to guarantee a safe future. The shocking details unveiled in a Chicago court regarding Davin Coleman Hedley's involvement in the 26/11 terror attack on Mumbai establish the global nature of contemporary terror and the sophistication acquired by the terror groups to carry out their devious plans from foreign countries. Earlier also, the arrest of Hedley, his Pakistani Canadian associate Rana and many others of Pakistani origin in Italy had revealed widespread terror links. These and other such disclosures rightly point out that it does not pay to be selective in our fight against terror. While some countries provide logistic and financial support to such groups, others are too soft on them unless it hurts their interests. There must be global cooperation and intelligence sharing in dealing with terrorists. What we have done so far is obviously not adequate. Asking Pakistan not to be selective against terrorism, India has pointed out that the chargesheet against Hedley showed that outfits like LeT, HUJI and al-Qaeda have not stopped plotting against India so far.
There is no doubt that US president Barack Obama has rightly snubbed Pak president Asif Ali Zardari asking him to stop using terror as an instrument of state policy. Though it is encouraging that the US is now unequivocally echoing Indian stand on terrorism, it turned a blind eye to the country's security concerns when it suffered a heavy death toll and its financial capital was held hostage for over 60 hours on 26/11. Despite knowing fully well that Pakistan is the international hub of terrorism, the US has been pumping billions of dollars into the country on the pretex of fighting terrorism. It cannot be unaware of the fact that a greater portion of that assistance is diverted to finance terror outfits against India. It is an open secret that the ISI is playing a major role in executing the diabolical plans of the LeT. Even Mr. Zardari had earlier refused to acknowledge Ajmal Kasab as a Pakistani national. Such badly fragmented response to dastardly attacks is a sign that America is guided only by self interest. The US needs to wake up to the reality that global nature of terrorism needs a global response.
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