Never before has Mass Terror been so orphaned by an abject lack of desire for publicity or claims of responsibility
It is 2 days since the serial blasts in Hyderabad. There is a palpable change in the news media reporting in the last 48 hours. Praveen Swami in The Hindu and the Indian Express have not just confirmed Offstumped’s Correlation of Muslim Appeasement and Attacks of Mass Terror but have also started to don an investigative role to connect the dots from a jail in Uttar Pradesh to Dhaka and beyond.
While the media and the investigators sort out the terror trail Offstumped focuses its attention on a different angle to this wave of Mass Terror.
The current wave has something unique to it in that it has been orchestrated by unnamed groups with no attributable political motive not even an odd claim of responsibility. Contrast this with the acts of the various separatist outfits from Kashmir to the North East who dont lose out on an opportunity for bombast after all every such claim is not without its dividends from burnishing terror resumes to attracting new recruits. Given that is the case it is inexplicable that these groups have been so selfless in their cause that they have been resisting the temptation for television martyrdom, glory, fame or publicity.
So who is orchestrating this wave of mass terror ?
Some in the media have offered the rather cliched hypothesis of groups opposed to progress in India-Pakistan peace moves and hence have tried to explain away these attacks as attempts to derail the peace process. This hypothesis doesn’t hold much water given that the India-Pakistan peace moves have lost momentum without much outside help thanks to the events in Pakistan and the rather precarious position of its President General Pervez Musharraf.
So if one were to discount the India-Pakistan anti-peace hypothesis where should one look for answers ?
For possible clues to answer this question Offstumped turns its attention to another aspect of this wave of terror which is also unique.
The deliberating targeting of Muslims in known flashpoints like Malegaon and Old City of Hyderabad as well as a train packed with Pakistani Muslims.
Starting with the blast outside Jama Masjid in New Delhi just before the New Delhi Blasts to Malegaon blasts followed by Samjhauta Express Blasts and then the Mecca Masjid Blasts almost all of the victims in these blasts were Muslims. Contrast this with the rather secular nature of the Mumbai 7-11 blasts, the previous blasts in Mumbai in 2003, the New Delhi blasts, the Varnasi blasts and most recently the Hyderabad blasts. Except for Varnasi there was no deliberate targeting of Hindus in known flashpoints.
It is intriguing to say the least. If one were to go by the current hypothesis of investigation as expounded by Praveen Swami in The Hindu and the Indian Express it gets all the more intriguing that Muslims outfits are deliberately targeting Muslims in India.
In forwarding a possible hypothesis Offstumped draws attention to a Feb 14th 2003 audiotape released by Bin Laden where he justifies terrorism against other Muslims by militant Islamists with the contention that any Muslim who helps “infidels over Muslims” is no longer a Muslim.
The Indian Express today quotes Ajit Doval a former IB Director
What is lesser known and more serious is HUJI’s intimate and old Al-Qaeda linkages
Ajit Doval’s comment merits further attention. B. Raman in this 10th Aug paper makes an important observation that there were no references to India and Hindus in Al Qaeda messages till March-April 2003. Raman then goes on to chronicle the multiple references to India in assorted Al-Qaeda messages over the years. The first attack of mass terror this decade occurred in Mumbai in Aug 2003. Since then we had one in 2005 and the rest in 2006 and 2007. While it is premature to correlate specific Al-Qaeda messages to specific attacks in India the franchise model of terror being attempted in India could very well be an innovation and a long term project. This 12th Aug news story in the Indian Express surprisingly didn’t make much news subsequently but the equation of India to Israel and USA was significant.
Offstumped had yesterday highlighted how Muslim Appeasement hurt Counter-Terrorism operations and subsequent Investigations. It is unfortunate that after 3 incidents were Muslims were deliberately targeted and after the fact that a significant number of Muslims died in the latest blasts in Hyderabad there has been no voluntary moves in the Muslim Community to demand that the Government not pay lip service to the Muslim cause through appeasement and instead conduct Counter Terrorism operations with no political interference of any kind.
Offstumped Bottomline: This wave of terror is unique in its abject lack of attributable political motive.
Never before has Mass Terror been so orphaned by an abject lack of desire for publicity or claims of responsibility.
The deliberate targeting of Muslims can only be explained away by a warped logic of the Bin Laden kind.
The Government with its head in the sand on Muslim sensitivities is missing this big picture.
Muslim Victims of Mass Terror must stand up and demand not just accountability of this Government but a coherent counter terrorism strategy for all Indians.
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Offstumped: People are paying attention to Ayodhya, Varanasi, Delhi, Mumbai, Hyd, Blr blasts for reasons that can be understood.
But people are not talking about HUJI and how big big base it has made in West Bengal where it runs 1000s of Kharizi Madrasas.
West Bengal, thanks to CPIM’s patronage has become a bigger base, transit point of Jehadis.
They are using those to further attack targets in India, and not attacking West Bengal at this moment. But when they will start changing their tactics, WB will unravel.
BJP does a flip-flop :-
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And, what do these outfits gain by targeting Muslims in India? Their support against Bush and the ‘war on terror’. It is a tad too simplistic.
I am not yet able to understand the ‘warped’ Bin Laden logic behind this. But I do get what you are suggesting – The Muslims should stop supporting terrorists (assumption – that have not been doing so; a portion of them is doing so directly or indirectly), the government should have a coherent anti-terrorism strategy (that includes POTA, TADA and other such strong laws, I presume) and if not please throw this government out (get the BJP in). Your ideas are dangerous in their assumptions and undertones!
I can not agree with your line, although I do admire your intelligence and disingenuousness in propagating this theory. If you may permit my lack of insouciance, a lot of your ‘insights’ are pedantic in nature (largely supported by opinions in media, but not based on facts as reported). If you could spell out the ‘big picture’ a bit more lucidly, it would help. A brief note on a coherent counter-terrorism strategy (with egs and models say Israel), would also help clear my mind. More intellectual rigour and due diligence!
I hope you will take my criticism of your thoughts in the spirit it is made. It is not a criticism of you but your ideas. Looking forward to a strong rebuttal!
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“The deliberate targeting of Muslims can only be explained away by a warped logic of the Bin Laden kind.”
Another possible hypothesis: I would say the primary objective is this infiltration of terror groups into the country before they start making any demands. Such targeting of muslims would give the “pseudo-secular” and votebank politicians, a reason to interfere with the police and intelligence work, and thus allow undeterred growth of these terrorist cells. This at one end and the communal groups at the other end leading to alienation of people would provide a good recruiting scenario for the terrorists.
It is unfortunate that after 3 incidents were Muslims were deliberately targeted and after the fact that a significant number of Muslims died in the latest blasts in Hyderabad there has been no voluntary moves in the Muslim Community to demand that the Government not pay lip service to the Muslim cause through appeasement and instead conduct Counter Terrorism operations with no political interference of any kind.
This is bcoz the Muslims just dont believe that their own would target them. They still believe Malegaon was the handi work of Bajrangis.
Ching Chong – Your simplistic conclusions are your own I have not made any suggestions on why, I think it is premature to conclude on “why” but a possible hypothesis lies in the Praveen Swami article in The Hindu on Jihadi newspapers in Pakistan. Bin Laden’s justification is well explained in the wiki link so not sure what you dont get about his warped logic “if you are not with us but part of their system then you are against us”.
As far as your assumption on what I am suggesting you have got it terribly wrong. Your assumptions seem to reflect your own anxieties on the subject which is perhaps why you draw an alarmist and dangerous conclusion.
Rest of the feedback is welcome part of it is perhaps misdirected. The big picture however is that there is a pattern here that neither the media nor the government has so far acknowledged, this article is about as lucid it can get on that pattern both on the orphaned nature of the attacks and the deliberate targetting.
Keep visiting your challenges are welcome they are a window to a different world that this blogger is not directly privy to.
RS – The state of denial is definitely there
Jujung – Bingo I think you hit it, this is a long term project and right they are in recruitment phase
Yossarin – Another non-sense article !
Muslim Victims of Communal Genocide commited by the BJP goverment must stand up and demand not just accountability of BJP leaders but a coherent counter genocide strategy of orchestrated BJP/RSS.
Right OR Wrong – We have always had high expectations on your ability to add levity to this otherwise serious forum and allow me compliment you by saying you have never disappointed, keep them coming.
Yossarin – your next article should be on the “new twist by BJP” on the Indo-US nuclear deal political drama !
The appeasement for Muslim votes has come to a dangerous precipice, especially in Andhra Pradesh and in the center.
I hope that Muslims stand up and say no to the appeasement. It’s an insult to them to be considered part of terror infrastructure. But if Muslims don’t see and the politicians don’t see it, we are going for a severe internal conflict that the mullahs and generals in Pak and Bangla would be happy about. Whether they are happy are not, if things don’t change we will be in a precipice.
We NEED TO HAVE SOME INDIAN SPONSORED BLASTS IN PAKISTAN AND BANGLADESH.
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Yossarin,
Like many others, I take your insights very seriously. Of late, they have actually been too narrow in their focus and the conclusions seem to be overdrawn (based on flimsy evidence).
Pardon my saying so, this is what the media in one of our neighbouring country to the west specialises in – Conspiracy theories.
I see huge potential in your posts to influence the opinion, if you place them in a milder, saner and more logical tone. Being unduly harsh and overly critical only raises passions. It ends up with all sides eventually ‘digging in their heels’.
But, keep it coming! It is nice to ‘read between the lines’ of what an intelligent (wo)man says. True, they might be my anxieties getting reflected in reading the undertones; but then these are the ‘unsaid’ things most of your loyal readers seem to be reading in your posts as well. I am basing it on the comments (their tone and tenor included) that I read on the posts.
Thanks for your rebuttal and the politeness. I appreciate that because decency and decorum has been so easily forgotten by many other readers. Cheers!
>>Of late, they have actually been too narrow in their focus and the conclusions seem to be overdrawn (based on flimsy evidence).
Righto Wrongo/Chingo Chango,
Instead of passing editorial comments on this blog, why not make some reasoned counter-arguments to the arguments presented by it so that you can persuade others to your point of view?
Or is reason your weak point and delivering editorial judgements the strong one?
>>I see huge potential in your posts to influence the opinion,
I envy you, Yossarin. None other Righto Wrongo himself certifies that your blog has potential! Given how the blog world craves for his certification, you must be feeling pretty proud!
Chingo Chango made a grandiose proclamation:
>> Your ideas are dangerous in their assumptions and undertones!
Question: Why are they “dangerous”?
Answer: Simple. They are dangerous because Righto Wrongo says so. QED.
>>If you may permit my lack of insouciance, a lot of your ‘insights’ are pedantic in nature
Question: Why are they “pedantic”?
Answer: Phew, you guys don’t learn what. When the Great Chingo Chango says they are pedantic, they gotta be pedantic, period!
>>Looking forward to a strong rebuttal!
Question: But how can you “rebut” editorial proclamations such as “your ideas are dangerous!”, “your ideas are pedantic!!” etc?
Answer: You can’t! THAT is the beauty of the Righto Wrongo Logic! You can’t prove that it’s wrong!! It’s more than being logical, it’s tautological!!
11/10/07
Right or Wrong says:
“Muslim Victims of Communal Genocide commited by the BJP goverment must stand up and demand not just accountability of BJP leaders but a coherent counter genocide strategy of orchestrated BJP/RSS
Thiagan says:
You are worried about 1000 muslims died in Gujarat riots. The Hindu population in Pakistan and Bangladessh was around 18% in 1947; today it is hardly2%. How do you account for it?
Islam treats its minorities shabbily; Hindus in the above two places, Copt Christians in Egypt and elsewhere and Buddhists in Malaysia. Why the Hindu India, Christian West and Buddhist China treat the muslims differently?
When in majority impose theocracy and when in minority demand seularism and Sachaar commission; this is unacceptable.
Replace appeasement by justice and equilibrium
Pradeep Gawande
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