Opinion
Pokhran-III Prospects Dead
on Pokhran-II Anniversary?
by Tarun Vijay
What difference does it make
who signed the Pokhran files? Brajesh Mishra, the powerful former
security advisor to then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, revealed a
bit too late. There was a time when the Congress must have felt elated
to claim making India nuclear. The first Pokhran test (in 1974) was
their contribution and Indira Gandhi dared the Americans bravely. Should
we be ashamed of it or try to delete that chapter from Indian history
just because she happened to be another party's leader?
If Rajiv Gandhi signed the file clearing the way for Pokhran-II and
Vajpayee did take the final step successfully, should the fight be on
credit or the efforts made for an unanimity on those brave acts to take
the nation on the path of Pokhran-III - if ever required?
Indians should develop a habit of feeling elated to see any other Indian
succeeding for the cause of the motherland. That way the present United
Progressive Alliance (UPA) government has done injustice to the Indian
cause by refusing to celebrate the Pokhran-II anniversary.
It was certainly a great moment. Indira Gandhi did the first Pokhran
blast and while P.V. Narasimha Rao couldn't muster courage after the
leak to the Americans and their subsequent pressure, Vajpayee, like
Shivaji, did the whole operation in such a grand fashion that all
pervasive US satellites failed and the world shook on May 11, 1998,
seeing mushroom clouds over the desert of Rajasthan. A peeved and
bruised US imposed all sorts of sanctions fooled by the Europeans and
the Japanese too. Who cared? We emerged taller and all the sanctions
were removed without our applying for it in their durbar.
Remember the days when Americans were refusing super computers and
Russians were stopped from providing cryogenic engines? The fuel crisis
and the technological components, the essential parts for our nuclear
plants and heavy industry and so on so forth. All tactics were used to
make us bend on knees and say sorry. India refused.
Our scientists did us proud by producing supercomputer Param in less
than half the American cost and as good, if not even better. The spirit
of Swadeshi, self reliance and indigenous brilliance was
recognized. India asserted its sovereign rights and stood tall in the
comity of nations.
But everything has a price, especially to stand firm as a proud people.
The cost India gave is certainly high; we have been longing to get the
best in hardware for our nuclear plants and heavy industry. Even for our
labs and IITs, the supplies got stuck post Pokhran-II and the votaries
of signing the 123 agreement with the US put up the same argument - ink
the agreement and get all what you need. The crowd crying to sign is the
same that advocates beheading the solution for a headache.
A society and a nation doesn't live just on un-interrupted power
supplies and peaceful armed forces de-teethed to please some donors. And
while donor nations keep on arming and financing our deadly enemies in
the neighborhood sitting pretty on their nuclear godowns, the nice sweet
and energy-starved are advised to work on their peaceful purposes.
India did its first explosion in May 1974 and named it 'Smiling Buddha'.
That was Indira Gandhi's time and we had a great patriotic scientist in
Homi Bhabha. Even that time, those who are aggressively campaigning to
cap our nuclear programme were frowning furiously at us and helped
Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto's 'Islamic bomb' dreams get realized clandestinely.
Now India is surrounded by two unreliable nuclear power states and both
of them have been at war with us, both of them have usurped a large part
of our land and still clamoring for more. One of them has been
singularly responsible for killings of more than 100,000 Indian citizens
by way of direct war and proxy-wars through Islamic jihadis in the last
three decades.
Apart from these two worthies, we are surrounded by failed states who
threaten our security and territorial integrity. If Bangladesh, a 'jihad
factory' sends our dead soldiers tied to bamboo poles like animals and
exports its extra heads to become our illegal guests, Sri Lankan battle
fields have cast a bloody shadow on our domestic politics claiming one
prime minister. And look at Nepal. The Red Army rule in Kathmandu means
China reaching as close to us as Gorakhpur, and Badrinath.
In this scenario, it is not to suggest that we shall use tiny bits of
nuclear explosions to silence the dangers, but having the strength to
strike in times of need means having a credible deterrence to frighten
the arrogant and mischievous aggressor. Given the past record, it's only
India on this planet that can be trusted for using nuclear power for
peaceful purpose that includes the purpose to maintain peace and scare
the enemy from becoming the first striker.
The nationalists are not blindly opposed to the nuclear deal with the
US. In spite of the fact that neither the Clinton years nor the Bush era
proved great for bilateral relationship, Clinton pushed us hard to de-nuclearize
and for the first time used a ghastly incorrect term - Hindu terrorists
- in reference to a terror attack in Chhittisinghpura in Jammu and
Kashmir when 35 Sikhs were killed. Bush refused to address our terror
wounds by ignoring Pakistan's support to Taliban and entertaining
Kashmiri separatists.
Still an India-US friendship is always welcome for the present world
scenario where India needs democratic cohesiveness to smoothen its path
to economic progress. But it can't be done by sealing our doors and
keeping the keys with Washington's mercurial masters.
Friendship doesn't mean complete surrender of our future options to the
whims and egos of a nation whose track record doesn't instill confidence
to call him an 'all weather ally'. In fact, we need a prime minister who
would have the guts to go for Pokhran-III, if need be. And why not? We
may wish never ever having to go that way, but that also means wishing
that US and other nuclear club members take a complete Gandhian turn and
empty their nuclear store houses for ever!!
This government neither represents the nationalist spirit of the
Congress' basic identity nor the character of Indian patriotism.
It's a small coterie of people willing to sacrifice greater interests of
the nation for smaller gains. Hence should we believe that the tenth and
an un-celebrated anniversary of Pokaran-II, fell on the death of the
Pokhran-III prospects?
(Tarun Vijay is director, Dr Shyama
Prasad Mookerjee Research Foundation, a right wing think tank. The views
expressed are his own. He can be contacted at tarun.vijay@gmail.com)
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