By Zulfiqar Ali Malik
How Pakistani leadership responds to Indian threat? Gutsy or Gutless?
Today a belligerent 81 year old man in New Delhi said that there is no scope of Pakistan winning a war against India in his lifetime. The statement was quickly picked up by the media of both the countries. Reading this statement has made me angry but it also made me laugh at the same time. Manmohan Singh is 81. What else can we expect from a man this old. But he might be right too. Maybe it is not possible during his lifetime. But how can we expect him to live when he is already 81? This statement has come out as a response to the statement of Pakistani PM who has allegedly said that he wants to see Kashmir free from India during his lifetime. And that Kashmir dispute can bring the two nuclear powers at the brink. This statement of Pakistani PM is not any hostile statement and in fact is a very positive statement but his office has denied this statement. What a shame?
Indians are very smart by nature, yet cowards. When they see a coward sitting in Islamabad trying to save his own dynasty, it always makes them mock Pakistan. When they see a General sitting in Islamabad, such statements are rarely issued and when they are, they get a full response for that.
We all remember what General Ayub Khan said on 6th September on Radio Pakistan. Who can forget the famous threat General Zia gave to Rajiv Gandhi on Indian soil in Chennai. He had the guts and manly courage to go to India uninvited and said:
‘Mr. Rajiv, you want to attack Pakistan, go ahead and do it. But keep in mind that after this the World would forget Hulagu Khan & Gengis Khan & will only remember Zia-ul-Haq & Rajiv Gandhi. Because this will not be a Conventional War but a Nuclear War. In this situation, Pakistan might be completely destroyed, but Muslims will still be there in the World, but however with the destruction of India, Hinduism will vanish from the face of this earth’.
Talking about Generals of Islamabad, who can forget how General Musharraf used to slap the Indian leadership, army and media. On many occasions during border tensions he said that let India start the war and we will take it into Indian Territory. On one occasion during his interview while he was sitting inside India and wasn’t even in power he said confidently:
“Wherever you strike there will be a strike back, if I am a soldier, I won’t be worth my salt if I don’t strike you back.”
Talking about the Generals of Islamabad again, we must not forget the Generals who successfully countered the famous hostile and threatening Cold Start doctrine of India and converted it into the cold storage doctrine. Commenting on the Cold Start (read: Cold Storage) doctrine of India, General Kiyani said: we plan on adversaries’ capabilities not intentions.
Since this article is intended to highlight Pakistani responses to Indian threatening statements and gestures, it will be unfair if we do not mention how the “Democratic” leadership responds to Indian threat. Who can ever forget the famous love letter written to US-Ambassador in India Peter Gailbraith by Benazir Bhutto in 1990 in which she actually invited Indian army to engage Pakistan army on border so that it can “pave her way to the power” and also in the same letter she said that nuclear arsenal is not safe with military and also she said and I quote, “the suspension of F-16s will bring army to its senses.”
Let’s also have a look at how our current PM responds to India. First example of his cowardly behavior can be seen today by his denial of his own alleged statement. Nawaz Sharif is now in his 3rd term. His attitude towards Indians has not changed in 20 years despite learning so many lessons. When we look at his history, he actually has love affairs not only with Indian Bollywood actresses but also with India and his Indian counterparts. His ancestral village is in India and he named his Raiwind Palace after it, “Jaati Umra.” No matter how hostile his counterparts are, he always wishes to have candle light dinners with them and keeps on inviting them. Despite Manmohan’s repetitive rejections to the invitation, Nawaz Sharif still says that we will send him another invitation.
The only difference between Nawaz Sharif and Benazir’s gameplan is that she played more smartly and knew how and where to hit. Whereas Nawaz Sharif plays in such a way that he gets himself and the whole nation humiliated. Nobody can forget how he gave secrets of Mujahideen fighting for Kashmir cause to his Indian counterpart I.K Gujral and how sad he was when Gujral died.
Imran Khan, the chairman of the party which was expected to bring revolution to the country is apparently the biggest ally of Nawaz Sharif and is just waiting for his turn which is unlikely even in the next elections. With no solid response to Indian threat and with running after drone attacks ignoring the real issues Pakistan is facing. So apparently he looks belligerent towards the US but is different when it comes to Indian threat and real issues. He should be given an anti-air craft gun and should be allowed to shoot down US drone from the highest peak but must be asked before shooting down that how many drones will he shoot down and what will he do next after shooting down.
Imran Khan is not in power and has never been in power but the point of mentioning him here in this comparison is that when Indian politicians need to seek popularity during their election campaigns, they target Muslims and Pakistanis. Both Congress and BJP speak against Pakistan to gain popularity. However in Pakistan, when a party wins the elections, the first thing its leader does is invite Indian PM to his oath taking.
A simple comparison between the gutsy and the gutless leadership by comparing their simple statements and actions.
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