Have we forgotten Mumbai??

We have come close to one year of that gruesome terrorist attack that went on for 3 days. What happened in Mumbai in November end was unthinkable horror. People who were sleeping at home, people who were stretching on the pavements to relax after a hard day's work n people who were partying in the supposed to be safe and warm environs of five star hotels were riddled with bullets and blown to bits by grenades. Patients and their relatives lodged in a hospital were shot dead and innocent passengers waiting at the city's main railway station were hunted down. The horror of that night was beyond imagination.

I know that it’s already an old story and most people have spoken about it, argued and yawned about it. People have moved on and the extraordinary rage that was witnessed has subsided into the routine calm and carelessness of the great Indian populace. We cried for blood, talked about revenge and blah blah however, now most people won't even bother talking about it because it has been added to another of the dust wrapped incidents of terrorist attacks witnessed by us. However, for a person like me things have really changed. One can no longer feel safe anywhere. You don't know when from which corner a terrorist will jump out and blow you to bits or may kill your dear ones in front of you even when you believed that you are at a place far off from terrorism. Till this incident happened, I used to think that such incidents are fortunately not possible in our cities. When I read about the blowing up of Mariott hotel in Islamabad or read about the routine car and suicide bombings going on in Afghanistan and Iraq, I used to believe that it happened there because those are areas ruled by militants and though militancy is prevalent in India but still that kind of incidents were unimaginable. Now everything is scary because the unimaginable happened right in front of our eyes.

I am still scared, wounded and upset about this and I want things to be done in such a manner that the perpetrators of that night are destroyed and repetition of such acts is not possible. Time has lapsed but my frustration has only increased by seeing nothing concrete happening and mere press releases going on from all sides. Is that all we wanted, are we satisfied or should I say we are waiting for the next live coverage of terrorist attacks which will earn billions for news channels by providing them viewership for the breaking news.

Tell me friends, is my confusion justified or should I also shrug my head, get up and stop talking about it till the location and date changes or should we expect a better deal this time so that we can plan the future by having an assurance that a stray bullet or grenade is not going to hit us anytime. Is it a crime to talk about taking steps which ensure that we don't fear terrorist around the corner when we walk into the street.

I came up witht this write up as I personally felt that my previous post for the series did not have conclusive ending. So this is the final part of War on Mumbai series. It really took me long to complete the series and even more long was the process which I went through in getting all the right content for your reading.

Hope you guys liked my articles and I am waiting for your feedback on the same. Your feedback would help me analyze my own writing and I would make sure I don't repeat same mistakes in my future blogs.

Thank you for being there!!!

War on Mumbai-3

Few lessons from the deadly terrorist attack.

After the horrific terror attacks on Mumbai that were carried out over a period of three days, one was captured alive, Mohammed Ajmal Kasab. He is been treated in the prison like a princes and his demands too are increasing with each passing day. Right from Kababs, to writing a letter, to a perfume, free walking space and many others. What can be interpreted from these? I can only interpret that Indian laws are too lenient that we all are allowing such things happen and the trial of the terrorist is a joke now.

The brazenness of the incident combined with its potential to destabilize the region already has the counter terrorism world searching for lessons learned. Few have emerged.

The public expects competent law enforcement: By any measure, India’s response to the crisis has been underwhelming. Initial news reports suggested that some armed police officers hid rather than shoot at the attackers as they fired into crowds of bystanders. Others were simply outgunned. Meanwhile, the country's elite counterterrorism unit took some 10 hours to attack hostage-holding militants because Mumbai, a city of 13 million, has no SWAT-type group capable of fighting back.

The country's top security official, Home Minister Shivraj Patil, had already tendered his resignation. The prime minister, meanwhile, promised to overhaul the country's counter terrorism capabilities and create four more hubs for the elite response unit, which he did fulfill. But, in fairness to the Indian security forces, several security experts say that even an American city faced with simultaneous attacks at a rail station, major hotel, tourist hub, and religious center would be hard pressed to muster enough commandos.

Low-tech attacks can do tremendous damage. The attack itself appears to have required little specialized knowledge from the attackers. Automatic rifles and hand grenades appear to have done the most damage. Ten guys with guns and hand grenades in shopping malls in 10 different cities—or even spread out in one city—could bring this country to a standstill.

Terrorists can influence elections. From Madrid to Iraq to Pakistan, the fact that major terrorist incidents occur around elections is no coincidence. One particularly poignant half-page newspaper ad from an opposition party features a blood-stained wall and the words "Weak Government." Pakistan is no stranger to election terrorism. Candidate Benazir Bhutto was killed by terrorists during a heated election campaign against former President Pervez Musharraf.

The cure may be more deadly than the disease. India and Pakistan, the nuclear-armed neighbors have fought three wars and been close to several more. The last major military escalation came in 2001, when terrorists attacked the Indian Parliament, killing 15. (The Indian government also laid blame for that incident at the feet of LET.) The group's involvement in the Mumbai attacks could endanger recent cooperation between the nations, which in turn could complicate efforts against al Qaeda in the tribal regions between Afghanistan and Pakistan, U.S. official’s fear.

"There are larger goals here, namely the hope that an attack against India would end intelligence sharing and cooperation in the region and allow [LET] and other terrorist groups, including al Qaeda, greater freedom to operate," says one U.S. military intelligence official. "These were very public, televised attacks designed to force the Indian people to demand a response from their government. Sometimes the response is more important than the actual attack."

Despite promises of reform, don't expect systemic change. In the past year, India has experienced a dramatic upsurge in terrorism. Cities including Bangalore, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, and New Delhi have been on the receiving end of terrorist attacks.

Happy Independence Day!!

Jai Hind!!

Source: CNN-IBN and US News Week

War on Mumbai- 2

Before beginning the article, I would like to state that even after 8 months of the attack, on the eve of Independence Day, three cities have been put on high alert which are Delhi, Kolkata and Hyderabad where LeT (Laskhar- e-Toiba) are suspected to carry out terrorist attack. The fact is that even after attacks on Mumbai of such a magnitude, the government still has no proper plan of action ready and neither the security system for the common people in place. It seems to me that we are still as vulnerable as ever.

Now, I am sure this won’t surprise most of you reading my blog. It didn’t me. So let me not pontificate and let me start telling you more things.

Couple of months back, I went down to the coastline and found a few obliging fishermen who took Riya, Danny (he is my journalist friend working with network 18) and me to shoot the unending ocean. A little chatter later, I broached the terror subject. Once they were sure that I was not implying that they had some prior knowledge of the event, they started telling us about the hapless state of coast security. To their credit and I kind of liked that personally, they were really defending the coast guard with some misguided patriotism, but they did admit that they didn’t really see the coastguard much at all. They don’t remember the last time they had been checked for documents.

Few days prior to our visit to the coast line, we went to Dharavi. The mood there was angry too and although no one from the world’s largest slum had been killed in the attacks, they were offended that this could happen in India. But when it came to the real world- had they even seen an extra policeman in the vicinity? They had not. But that didn’t worry them. They told me very proudly that they were such a tight community that even if a stranger walks in, immediately he/she was asked who-why-when-what. And then they added that we will protect ourselves. We’ll give our lives for each other. But they were all little worried about stepping outside- catching a train- but like everyone in the city, if they had to do it, they would just go right ahead and do it.

What I liked was that the children were well informed and very opinionated- and not like in the main stream media (how children are traumatized by the coverage of the attacks) but they spoke like little adults. That’s when I turned to Danny and said, “This is when you realize why India is such a successful democracy.” Why? Because you had expected them to be more concerned about their own economic struggle rather than national security- but was quite surprised to find out that it was not true.

And that brings me to the real point I wanted to make. We had an in depth interview with one of the top management of Mahindra Group. He was very smart, introspective and very articulate. I would like to briefly recap some of the things he said to me in the middle of a deeply emotional crisis.

Firstly, he hoped that the result of this unprecedented urban anger was not that we secure ourselves and leave out the poorer sections. The fishermen, the people in Dharavi. Them. He also told us why this attack has struck a chord among the world. It’s the ultimate urban nightmare, he said. Ten men running around the streets of a modern urban city with machine guns and hand grenades. Honestly, I was getting the visuals of The Dark Knight in my head when he was talking and it sent a chill down my spine. He also touched upon the fact that because we tried to inject democracy in every aspect of our laws and the Constitution, there is no single unified commander-in-chief in India, and that needs to change. I think many people are echoing these thoughts.

Another interesting observation he made was about the ‘Spirit of Mumbai’. He said that the very people who built this myth following the other attacks were the ones tearing it down right now and that both are extreme emotions, and the only way forward is to find a balance.

After the attacks, the gut reaction of many was that they were scared the fallout of the attack would lead to communal violence. Indians have shown great sense of maturity in distinguishing an attack on India by foreign terrorist and the attacks between Hindu/Muslim factions within the country. This is vital, because it allows us to examine the situation at hand without further endangering the country by having to deal with communal violence as well.

We then visited a village just outside Mumbai. It seemed people there had watched the attacks on TVs, but most of them did not really understand the enormity of the attack. A few of them understood from the news that Pakistan is implicated and still seemed far removed from any urgent emotions. The rest seemed unaffected by what they had seen.

In fact, our search for village was a challenge, because many farmers have sold their lands and concrete structures are replacing them. There is enough construction work in the area to bring the fact that little India is rapidly urbanizing. And that means that the distance between them and the events unfolding in big cities is shrinking with each passing day. What this means that the largely urban anger that we are seeing will slowly penetrate into hinterland. As yet, it is a work in progress but I personally believe that television will be a huge catalyst in changing attitudes as much as changing the landscapes.

But as news channels feed more Indians, what message do they wake up to? It is not just the news anchors I am referring to, because we all know that politicians use the media for their ends too- whether good or bad.

Once Narendra Modi was asked about his reaction to the news item that Modi’s frenzied speeches were used in training camps to charge up these young boys. Dead panned, Modi told him that he had no idea about any such news. Later he had turned to the journalist and asked him whether he had forgotten about Godhra as yet or not.

Modi also categorically stated that he was ready to help the government in its fight against the terror. “At a time of war, there is consensus,” he said.

But there was something he was not telling us? In highlighting security in his future campaign speeches will he be tempted to cut this “India problem” into little pieces of Hindu, Muslim, Sikhs and Christians.

What would allow this division is another factor- as yet a non-entity. If any proof emerges that there were any Indians complicit in planning the attacks- and those happen to be Muslims whose sympathies lay with the extremist factions- then the danger of using that knowledge to play politics will lead to very volatile and most certainly violent situations.

So I have to ask, do we have it in us to further distinguish extremist elements from the majority of the Indian Muslims as we have distinguished between extremist elements and the general population back home. Quite a mouthful, I know, but a question to ponder.

But you see, the moment you ask this question out loud- “will politicians use the Bombay attacks as a platform to incite communal violence”- you expose the hypocrisy of such an electoral strategy.

We talked to people along the way, quite literally. Stuffing ourselves in a local train, we proceeded to a village just on the outskirts of Bombay. While in the train we found people eyeing our camera equipment, and then quickly offering their analysis of the situation. I was heartened to find that within the confines of that compartment, many diverse voices came out. A young boy, studying MBA, told me that he did not link these attacks to religion at all. It’s all about economics, he told me, and these young boys’ who fall prey to terrorist dogma only do so because they are poor and this is a quick way to earn money for their family. It’s quite true- if reports are to be believed then the captured terrorist told the authorities that his family was promised Rs 1.5 lakhs (little under $3000) for his services. That is the extent of this poverty that breeds discontent, he told me. This is not the first time, it won’t be the last.

But we might just come out of this danger.

To be continued...

Disclaimer: The views expressed are solely mine and not of anyone else. The views are based on the detailed reports from various news agencies and my own personal research.

Sources: Danny, my journalist friend, Riya, accompanying me to all the places right from the coast line to Dharavi to small villages, News reports from CNN-IBN, US News Week, People of Dharavi, the fishermen, Niyati in UK and last, but not the least, one of the top management of Mahindra Group whose views have formed the basis of my article.

War on Mumbai

26^th November 2008 began as a normal day for the people in Mumbai. But for some 200 people, it never ended and for the rest of people, the terror attack has left such an imprint which would never be washed away from their minds.

For the nasty terrorists, the November 2008 attack was

It was just a different weekday
It was just a different Team
It was just a different Strategy

But for the Indian civilians,

It was the same old getting gunned down on the road for no reasons
It was the same old getting blasted in the street for no reasons
It was the same old getting handicapped for no reasons
It was the same old getting orphaned for no reasons

And the aftermath.

...........blood filled streets
...........houseful hospitals
...........destructed buildings and towns
..........hour long commando operations
...........death and panic everywhere

War on Mumbai, it’s just another routine nightmare for the Indians that has been continuing for so long.

Consider the following statistic:

1. 112 March 1993 – Series of 13 bombs goes off killing 257

2. 06 December 2002 – Bomb goes off in a bus in Ghatkoper killing 2

3. 227 January 2003 – Bomb goes off on a bicycle in Vile Parle killing 1

4. 114 March 2003 – Bomb goes off in a train in Mulund killing 10

5. 225 August 2003 –Two bombs go off in cars near Gateway of India and Zaveri Bazaar killing 50

6. 111 July 2006 – Series of seven bombs go off in trains killing 209

7. 226 November 2008 to 29 November 2008 - Coordinated series of attacks killing 172.

Governments have come and governments have gone but the nightmare still haunts us, the insecurity continues and the promises continue to be broken.

Excerpts from The Times of India few days after the attack:

There were no blasts in USA after the 11^th September, 2001 attacks, no blasts in UK after 7^th July London bombings, no blasts in Spain after 11^th March Madrid bombings. But for India, the agony continues. As per some statistics, there were around 56 bombings in 2008 alone.

We have brains that could accomplish missions to Moon. We have the bravest men who could just fall down dead fighting for the nation. We have a stable economy that didn’t shiver when banks and other financial institutes in US and UK touched the dust. But we never had a leader that could make strong decisions without considering the vote banks.

There were peace march protests at Gateway of India. People poured in from all parts of the city; and much more than anticipated. At one point, I found myself separated from the city. There was emotion, there was chanting. The calls for Vande Mataram made me want to cry, but those were drowned out by the cries against Pakistan, Deshmukh, Raj Thackeray and all the politicians in general.

Frustration, anger and helplessness were visible among the crowds. It had been an emotional 3 days for me as I watched Mumbai attacked, yet again. And as the attacks unfolded and counter attacks started, I wondered what would be India’s view after all this gets over? Will the usual ‘famed Mumbai spirit’ and the usual clichés of the city’s resilience to get on with the life start ringing again? But this time even the mumbaikar’s shouted back. Life moves on but our life has been taken for granted by the same guys whom we have elected.

The crowd was gigantic, unruly, pushy, enthusiastic, angry, sweaty, patriotic, considerate and unstoppable. But the view that I had allowed me to see things from a distance and brought home the fact that a few days after the terror attack, we were still vulnerable as ever. Our police for most part looked disinterested and fat, and while the crowds throng the Gateway, it seemed to me, from my vantage point, there is still no protection. No clear lines were demarcated, no surveillance of any kind.

The home minister of Maharashtra even had the audacity to state that such incidents happen in big cities’ and that too in a press conference. Does the guy even know the magnitude of the attack? If that’s not all, I wonder what really drove Narendra Modi to even think of having a press conference on Day 2 of the attack. How can someone even think of politicizing the whole issue?

Till few days back, BJP, MNS and the clan were pointing fingers at ATS chief Hemant Karkare and today they have put up boards across the city saluting him as a Martyr and letting the common people know that these boards have been put up by them- with larger than life sized party posters.

It came as a no surprise that Karkare’s family refused compensation from Narendra Modi government. As the NSG commandos mopped up the operations, in process losing out 3 brave men- all from different parts of the country, I wonder what Raj Thackeray has to say now. His sons of soil VANAR SENA didn’t turn up to save Mumbai from the ‘outsiders’. The real ‘men’ were fighting for Mumbai and the so called sons of soil ‘leader’ was playing with his pet dogs.

India, along with its people, is still waiting for that leader who would save their land; protect the people and who could stop the tears of the people.

Mumbai is the city where I have spent wonderful years of my life. It’s the city which is closest to my heart and will always remain so. And why only me, the city belongs to all the citizen of India. And as the city was laid under siege, I just cried in pain in Pune. Clearly the administration has not any lessons and I am sure they never will. Some day the scares on the Taj, Nariman House and the Oberoi would heal, the blood would be washed out; all the signs of the burnt places would be erased but what about the voices of the innocent dead victims? Won’t they haunt us each time we visit these iconic buildings. The time has come for the government to sit up and listen to the growing voices of the angry citizens who have lost the faith in the system.

They say public memory is short. The people who man this system might want to live in this belief but this time it won’t be forgotten soon. The country wants some answer. Mumbai wants some hard answers.

To be continued...