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Sunday, September 14, 2008

Yet another bomb blast...what is the big deal?

Yesterday, it was Delhi's turn. Not that it never had its chance before. And, nor did it have to wait for too long. Every time a bomb goes off (these days it seems to be a few at the same time. Can we call that "progress?”) the reactions are pretty much the same.

The leaders of the government wag their fingers say something like "... this cannot break our resolve... we are committed to being secular...we will catch the perpetrators." They used to blame the "foreign hand" and ISI. That has reduced a bit these days since we no longer need to "import" this expertise but have managed to develop a large pool of well-trained resources with local and foreign expertise.

The leaders of the various political parties point fingers at each other, blame it on "minority" / or, "majority" appeasement, failure to implement anti-terror laws like POTA/TADA or, the implementation of it as the cause.

The leaders of the police claim almost immediately that they have strong/ vital leads. Now, don't ask how they who were totally clueless about the blasts suddenly have strong leads to solve it.

The media expresses outrage, sheds crocodile tears, and waits for the next big thing to increase their circulation or rating. And, the people carry about their daily lives as if this is something they expect in regular intervals.

Why is it that there is no sustained effort at all levels (from individual citizens to the leaders of the government) to tackle the problem head-on? Or, have we succumbed to the "karma" concept and think that we "deserve" this? Unless people of all walks of lives and political colors take to the streets and make an issue of this and keep it sustained there will be no political will. The politicians are so wrapped in figuring out how to complete the current term and possibly win the next term that they do not care a bit about the country or its citizens. The law and order establishment does things to the bidding of their political masters. So, little wonder that those "strong leads" do not resolve the case in the next five years. And, if they manage to "solve" then the judgment is still reserved. As for the media, they will only focus on stuff that bring them revenue/ ratings - things that keep the interest of the public for long time. Little wonder why cricket is discussed and shown a lot more than anything of importance to the society and the nation.