by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group
Former External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid dubbed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement from the Ramparts of Red Fort on Balochistan as “Adventurism”. Former Finance Minister P Chidambaram and out-spoken Mani Shankar Aiyer were equally critical of Modi the way he raked up PoK, Balochistan & Gilgit.
The AICC commandeered by Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi lost no time in distancing itself from what was said by Khurshid and others. The AICC spokesman went a step further to say “Whether it is Balochistan or PoK or other parts of Pakistan, there are violations being committed by the Pakistani agencies and armed forces…………India should raise it in bilateral and international fora.”
The reason for the AICC to intervene was simple. The Congress had burnt its fingers badly by its untimely jibes against Modi in the past. Remember what Mani Shankar Aiyer had said at an AICC convention in Delhi in 2014 during the Lok Sabha campaign ! “If Modi wants, he can sell tea outside the AICC. But he can’t be PM.” Aiyer’s one-liner changed the course of history as Modi hijacked the entire campaign. He harped on to the jibe within hours and said, “ Yes, I am a chaiwala.” Modi, BJP & the RSS never looked back. Therefore, the Congress was on the guard this time. It didn’t want to be seen opposing Modi on an emotive issue in a hurry. After all, Modi must have chosen the occasion and venue to attack Pakistan and the Congress didn’t want to take the risk where it is not needed either. The party had been taken off guard when Modi invited Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharief to attend his swearing-in-ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhawan on May 26, 2014. A hawkish Modi joined the club of those Indian Prime Ministers who thought they will drive a change with Pakistan ! It was widely perceived that Modi’s PMO aided by a tough National Security Adviser in Ajit Doval will pursue a hard line. It was widely believed that NDA-II will be different than Vajpayee’s NDA.
But Modi surprised all by show-casing his personal chemistry with Sharief on day one. He reciprocated Sharief’s gesture 18 months later when he landed all of a sudden in Lahore on his way back from Kabul in December, 2015 to attend a family marriage function. Like all the prime ministers including Atal Behari Vajpayee to Dr Manmohan Singh, Modi was also driven by the wisdom of changing the course of history through friendship. Whether he believed in it or was simply showcasing it on the world screen could be anybody’s guess. But he did it a try in his own flamboyant style to forge friendship with Pakistan. In Modi’s own words, nobody knew him in the world when he took over as PM as he was earlier a chief minister of Gujrat. Therefore, he had to run in the shortest possible time to create his own foot prints on the world stage. But within days of Modi’s Lahore trip, Pathankot happened. Pathankot was the turning point, the “chaiwala” moment came handy and he seized it.
Perhaps, Modi was waiting for this moment to walk out of the mess he had put himself in May 2014. He knew he is fast losing his constituency back home in his zeal to win hearts in Pakistan. Nawaz Sharief failed to deliver and Modi was running out of time. Modi had perhaps realized Jingoism wins votes not a big hug. After the Pathankot, he was simply waiting for an opportunity to strike and the opportunity came when an all-party meeting took place on the unrest in Kashmir in the Capital. It was PDP’s Muzzafar Beg who raised the issue of PoK and atrocities in other Pak areas. Modi waited, waited and waited. At the end of the marathon meeting the Chaiwala moment came. Modi stunned the gathering by saying, “The time has come for Pakistan to answer to the world, on atrocities against people in Balochistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.” The die was cast. What Modi said a few days later from the Red Fort was a charted course.
Circumstances have forced even Yashwant Sinha, former External Affairs Minister and staunch critic of Modi for two years, to shower praises on him. Sinha admits, “I have been critical of the Prime Minister in the past for his Pakistan policy. But on this occasion, I would applaud him for this change in India's policy towards Pakistan.” Sinha is not alone in Modi’s praise. The entire Sangh Parivar is having a sigh of relief. The “Gau Raksha” moment may take a back seat now as Pak bashing will dominate the agenda and the BJP cadre is galvanized. It is argued that India had given one concession after the other to Pakistan during the past 70 years. But there is no reciprocity. Rather the terrorism is on the rise and the battle for Kashmiriyat has slipped out of the hands of the people in the Valley and the likes of Geelanis. It’s a direct war that the ISI is fighting in the Valley with the Indian forces. A decisive defeat of Pakistan in 1971 could keep Pakistan in check for 20 years. The terrorism resurfaced after the infamous kidnapping of Mufti’s daughter and subsequent release of terrorists in lieu during the 90s.
Modi’s Pak policy shift has not come all of a sudden. The situation was becoming alarming with the growing China-Pak nexus. It was Modi who took great personal and political risk by forging ties with Pakistan and China after assuming ofice. But both let him down. China’s stand on NSG membership hurt India most. Secondly, China ended its neutrality in the India-Pakistan affairs by joining hands with the latter and agreed to open a corridor that connects its with port in Balochistan. The corridor goes through some parts o the PoK too. The political leadership, seasoned diplomats and those connected with security establishment never voiced their concerns publicly. But Modi is different. He believes in taking a risk. He also believes that the best way to deal with the bully is to confront him.
