Time to stand with the government against terrorism (now time has come to stand united and forget all differences, may it be political, ideological or religious to give a befitting reply to terrorism and those who perpetrate it)
Being an intellectual is a good thing! Being a liberal is a good thing! Being an anti-establishment is also a good thing! But NOT ALWAYS! You see, there are times (not always…but just some times) when we just need to put our own petty issues aside and back our nation and our soldiers, who are busy fighting and laying down their lives on the border…in the simple hope that you and I can partake in those intellectual debates…for years to come!
Hence, at a time when both the Indian government and our military establishment has adopted a tough stand against terrorism, it is counter-intuitive for any Indian to doubt their collective intent and argue for the sake of argument. After all, what is the government and the military asking for — but to bring Pakistan to acknowledge that there are non-state actors inside its own territory that is using terrorism as a tool of arm-twist the nation…to get Pakistan to agree that it will take a tough stand against terrorism…to get Pakistan to succumb to international pressure so it would put an end to the proxy war it has been raging against India for decades…
Is India’s request so extraordinary that one can actually dare challenge its stance?!? Then again, in the current scenario, there are only two classes of people who are challenging the offensive stand of the government and the military — the political rivals and the pseudo-intellectuals of our country.
The reason and rationale for the first group of dissenting voice is fairly easy to understand. You see, they are in opposition…thus, they feel they have a need to oppose everything that BJP (or more specifically, Shri Narendra Modi) does…even if it goes against the very spirit of patriotism. For these people, their political ambition holds a far greater interest than their nation, whose interests they would be more than willing to forsake…all for the sake of their petty partisan politics. On the other spectrum are the pseudo-liberals and pseudo-intellectuals, who are afraid that they will lose their relevance if they do not express their contrarian views. [Then again, some just do it…to stay in the limelight!]
But there is a time for everything…and of course, there is a time to question and criticise one’s government. But unfortunately, right now…is not that time! At the time when we are trying to fight terrorism and communicate to the rest of the world that we cannot be taken for granted, we need to maintain a unified stance. In-fighting not only weakens the country, it also makes it easier for the external enemy to use it to their advantage. Thus, if our government wasted all its energies trying to mitigate internal conflicts, it won’t be able to concentrate on aspects that require its immediate attention – that of border security and Pakistan’s proxy war through terrorism.
Besides…let’s be honest, it is fairly easy to debate the issue from the safe confines of our homes…but would we partake in the same polemic if we were stationed to defend our borders and bite the bullet? If we can honestly answer that question, we will know that we need to stand united…at least, for now! Besides, “United, We Stand; Divided, We Fall” wasn’t just a fancy proverb…
