Aman - Om Shanti
I hope I will be forgiven if I come across romantic / idealistic or if I come across as a verbose dreamer in this post. Whatever you construe, I am about to write down something that I have felt very strongly about for a long time. It is an honour for me to be able to post it on this particular form. If you feel that I am a John Lennon fan, you are damn right! imagine that.
Yes there have been conflicts amongst the two nations. The successive governments and leaders have pointed fingers at each other and attempted to brain wash / poison the populace against our neighbours. If the political agendas were not understood by the aam aadmi, religion was easier to use as a stepping stone for fomenting hatred. ‘Pakistan was Islam was Muslim and they ate beef and Indians were all Hindus who hated Muslims’ was a more convenient mantra to preach on either side of the border. Suddenly, the cow stands between Hinduism and Islam. Had the cows not existed, there would be no conflict.
After more than seven decades, thankfully, the powers that be have not succeeded completely, or have they? Dark days are upon us again, I first got a whiff of it about four years ago when on an international forum, I happened to declare my love for ‘Qaumi Taranah’ and was immediately vilified and labelled an ‘Anti National Chu_ _ _ _’. My social media presence was severely trolled till I tightened my security measures extensively. I mean, come on, it is a beautiful song with a haunting melody. What is wrong with appreciating good music? I fail to understand it. I was taught that the Pakistanis were religious bigots?!
1. That apart, do I absolve Pakistan of all blame in the past and ensuing conflicts? No.
2. Am I a patriotic Indian? You bet your *** I am.
3. Do I blame the Pak Defence Forces for the wars? No. They were just following orders.
3. Do I blame our politicians (both sides) for what happened in history? Of course I do.
4. Is Kashmir a real issue? Yes and No it depends if you use Empathy as a yardstick.
5. Who do I blame the most for this bad blood? Lord Mountbatten.
I have family members in the Indian Defence Forces who have served at the border and they have recanted to me several wonderful tales of bonhomie and camaraderie that they had experienced with the soldiers from across the border.
One story goes as such and it happened in the 1990’s. A unit from the Indian Army had replaced another at the border. Most of the members of the outgoing unit hailed form a particular ethnic group from North East India who were rumoured to be omnivores. A day later, a contingent from the Pakistani unit, led by a young Lieutenant carrying a white flag, approached the border and requested to meet the CO of the new Indian unit. Pleasantries having been exchanged, the Pakistanis unveiled a large cache of dry fruits and other savouries as a gift for the Indians. When the Pakistani Lieutenant was asked for the reason behind this warm welcome, his answer was rather sobering.
“Sir we wanted to be sure that ‘they’ had left and that you were a different lot. Woh log sab kuch kha gaya. Chidiya, jungli billi, suwar, kutta - kuch bhi nahin chora, Sirjee chuhaa bhi kha kar khatam kar diya! Humey to dar tha ki woh hummey bhi na kha jaaye. Welcome to the border Sir!”
Doubtless to say, peace prevailed in trust thereafter!
I don’t know if this really happened but I sure would like to believe it.
You just can’t draw a line across the homes of a joint family and separate two families on religious lines and instil hatred. That is just not done! The tragedy is that we have accepted it and that has resulted in misery for all and countless deaths.
I see beautiful and scenic videos of Pakistan on YouTube. It is a beautiful country and the street food looks delicious! One about the potato chips of Peshawar and another about Roomali roti from Karachi are mouth watering. Being a vegetarian by choice, for dinner I will settle for some Roomali Roti, Dry Tandoori Paneer Tikka and Pakhtooni daal followed by Phirni at Karachi, Rawalpindi, Islamabad or Lahore. The wife, however, would dig into the beef and the other non vegetarian delicacies for sure. We yearn to visit you and enjoy ourselves in your company. After all, once upon a time not so long ago, ‘you’ were ‘we’.
I regret that I do not speak for a lot of Indians and I pray that they are not the majority.
May peace and good sense prevail upon us. Insha Allah, Om Shanti.
