Are both India and Pakistan puppet nations dutifully enacting a script prepared abroad? This is what evidence suggests.

Ahead of the Thimpu talks of SAARC foreign secretaries, Pakistan raised the issue of Hindu terror involved in the Samjhauta Express train blast. Immediately thereafter on January 11, 2011 it was written in these columns:

“Now India and Pakistan have been put on the same page regarding terror. Therefore both governments can cooperate to fight terror on an equal footing. Is that what the scandalous charade about the purported Swami Aseemanand confession was all about? Was his confession a crude device to set the foundation for a joint fight against terror? If so, nothing more stupid, self-destructive and demeaning could have been attempted by the Indian government.”

Swami Aseemanand’s “confession” provided the basis for India’s National Investigative Agency (NIA) to launch court proceedings against Hindu terrorist groups involved in the Samjhauta Express blast just before the current foreign secretaries talks began. During the talks not surprisingly the issue of Hindu terror in the Samjhauta blast was raised by Pakistan and discussed by both sides.

On Jan 16, 2011 it was also pointed out that “on June 29, the 1267 committee of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), which mandated sanctions on the Al-Qaeda and the Taliban, froze assets, banned travel and imposed an arms embargo on  Arif Qasmani, a Karachi businessman who it described as the ‘chief coordinator’ for Lashkar’s links with outside groups… In its press release the 1267 committee stated: ‘Qasmani has worked with LeT to facilitate terrorist attacks, to include the July 2006 train bombing in Mumbai, India, and the February 2007 Samjhauta Express bombing in Panipat, India…Arif Qasmani has also provided financial and other support to Al Qaeda…Al Qaeda provided Qasmani with operatives to support… the February 2007 Samjhauta Express bombing in Panipat, India’.”

The names of the four Lashkar operatives who carried out the Samjhauta attack were provided by the UNSC report. The four named were Arif Qasmani, Fazeel-A-Tul Shaykh Abu Mohammed Ameen al-Peshawari, Mohammed Yahya Mujahid and Nasir Javaid.  It was further stated in these columns: “If Aseemanand is correct, the UN was wrong. If the UN was correct, Aseemanand is wrong.” 

Doubtless Hindu terror outfits are active. Doubtless India and Pakistan should jointly fight terror. But must the government lie to achieve this goal? If the government is speaking the truth regarding Hindu terror behind the Samjhauta blast it should follow the honourable course. It should inform the UN and the US that Lashkar was not involved in the blast and poor Hafiz Saeed and his followers are needlessly being demonized.

How is such glaring contradiction being ignored in an official investigation? Sadly, it is. Despite it the government, the opposition and the media remain dumb.

Truly we live in Incredible India!