Editor,
It is gratifying that India has hit some terrorists camps across the Line of Control (LoC) but this is not enough to teach Pakistan a lesson. What is more important is that India should strike the main hideouts of the JeM and LeT especially where Masood Azhar and his cohorts are taking shelter in Pakistan. The main purpose should be to cause total destruction to the main hideouts of the dreaded terrorists that have inflected heavy damage on India which include those who masterminded the 26/11 attack on India. As long as the enemies of India are roaming free in Pakistan, the job is not accomplished and India should not rest. If the US can finish Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan why not India do likewise to Masood and other dreaded terrorists?
Yours etc.,
Philip Marwein,
Via email
Can we remain calm?
Editor,
The Indian Air Force has done a commendable job of offloading 1000 kg of payload on strategic targets. The manner in which the operation was executed was extraordinary because of the surprise element. After the attack, India’s Foreign Secretary, Vijay Gokhale gave a very diplomatic statement that did not reveal much but stated exactly what was achieved by the operation. This maturity is much appreciated. It is the television channels that are falling over themselves to give the audience a blow by blow account of the operation, which to my mind, reveals the complete operational strategy that India adopted in the early hours of Tuesday. Is this revelation necessary? Can’t the defence forces be allowed to do their work without micro-scanning their activities? And those who are hectoring in TV studious about what India should and should not do vis-à-vis Pakistan are doing a great disservice to the nation. It is important to remain calm and not indulge in hyper-nationalism at this juncture.
Yours etc.,
AK Singh,
Via email
Aerospace Safety
Editor,
The tragic jet accidents at AERO India, Air Force Station Yelahanka where two Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team collided in mid air killing Wing Commander Sahil Gandhi, followed by a fire accident that gutted nearly 300 parked vehicles parked nearby reminded me of the importance of flight safety. The writer is an ex air warrior, where we are bombarded about aviation safety from every corner of the Ops Room. There is a saying, “Great pilots are made not born”. IAF pilots fly four sorties a week and at least 200 hours a year but they aren’t flying enough to hone the full spectrum of skills. A huge chunk of training cost is involved on sophisticated aircrafts. Risk is inherent in military aviation but at the same time operational goals cannot be achieved if pilots and aircraft are lost. To enhance safety measures, specific initiatives are to be strictly followed. There are systems of errors to accident probability factors. Beside proactive corrective measures like Foreign Objects Damage, Bird Hazard incidents do take place in aviation. In case of civil aviation, the human loss is enormous. Should India cancel air shows following such fatal accidents even while it enhances aerospace safety measures.
Yours etc,
Kamal Baruah
Guwahati
Mehbooba Warns Centre
Editor,
PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti on Monday (Feb 24) warned the Centre over Article 35A that gives the state legislative powers to define the residents of Jammu and Kashmir and their privileges, asking it not to play with fire else people might witness something that they haven’t since 1947. Speaking to the media, Mufti reportedly even said, ”Don’t play with fire; don’t fiddle with Article-35A, else you will see what you haven’t seen since 1947. If it’s attacked then I don’t know which flag people of J&K will be forced to pick up instead of the tri-colour. Such statements from Mehbooba merely exposes her jaundiced favour of Pakistan-sponsored terrorists.
She is completely mistaken. In fact the state has not been attacked and the Government’s intention is to make the state of J & K terrorist free. Her pronouncement that she does not know which flag people of J&K will be forced to pick up instead of the tricolour is a direct provocation for communal inflammation. Mufti Mehbooba should refrain from such titilation and of issuing dire threats to the country with re-enactment of the “Great Calcutta Killings” of August 1946.
Mehbooba’s statement comes amid intense speculation that the central government might favour abrogation of Article 35A when the petition challenging its constitutional validity comes up for hearing in the Supreme Court later this week. Mufti Mehbooba is incompetent to dictate to the Judiciary when the subject is sub-judice. Her irresponsible statement on the subject constitutes contempt of court
According to the DGP of J&K, Pak-sponsored terrorism shows no signs of decline and as such Mehbooba has no business at all to condemn the arrest of leaders of the Hurriyat Conference, a fanatic separatist party funded by Pakistan. A citizen of India has to have integrity and loyalty to the country and nation and cannot be a separatist.
It may be recalled that when Syed Mufti Mohammad was a Minister in the Union Cabinet of Morarji Deasai a fake story of abduction of his elder daughter, a medical doctor was sinisterly designed and fan-fired. More than half a dozen dreaded terrorists had to be released from Indian prisons/jails in the blackmailing/bargaining process to Pakistan. Who engineered such a heinous anti-national plot needs to be investigated. Which Chief Minister of J&K took the initiative to enact a law in the state assembly to deprive women from their right to property after their marriage outside the state of J & K? Which political party of the state took the lead to drive out the Hindus from Jammu and make them refugees twice over after the Partition of India in 1947, needs to be probed and placed in the public domain.
Yours etc.,
Samares Bandyopadhyay
Via email