Things These Friends Do:The New Normals

By Zafar Choudhary   Going by Army Chief Gen Bikram Singh’s arguably valid parameter of judgement, the current level of relations between India and Pakistan is though tense but back to normal. Jaipur Literature Festival, Justice Verma’s report and whether Modi should be BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate replacing ‘aggressive patriotism’ in the news channel studio spaces [...]

Of Information Wars and Journalistic Ethos

As a revered journalist responding to our tweets said, “If a story is reported responsibly it falls on the government to clarify what’s happened”. Now that the government has clarified and holes in the story revealed, it should be incumbent upon the media house to reveal their motivation “responsibly”.

Has India Lost the Strategic Advantage?

Pakistan, India and J&K are all headed for elections. There, thus, is great patriotic duty of politicians (military in case of Pakistan) to take recourse to rhetoric based grand standing to garner public support in their respective constituencies. In each country and state this has provided the right fodder to the political class to engage in upping the ante – much against preserving National Interest.

A Surprising Confession on Kargil

We continue to indulge in bloody enterprises, under the hoax of safeguarding national interest. How many more medals will we put on coffins? How many more songs are we to sing? And how many more martyrs will our silences hide? If there is purpose to war then yes, we shall all go to the battle front, but a war where truth has to be hidden, makes one wonder whose interest is it serving?

Au Revoir, Lieutenant Navdeep Singh..

The soldier, who has taken position behind a boulder, simulating the terrorist who shot Navdeep, is just five meters away. This was the distance at which Navdeep was fired at, pulling in his buddy to safety as he fell dying. There could not have been a nobler death. Let us join in saluting this bravest of brave men who gave his today for our tomorrow.

I did at Bagtor. You should salute him, man or woman, from wherever you are.

Kashmir 2011: The Turning Point

Editor’s Note: Kashmir has reached a turning point because of the dint of hard work by leaders and people operating to make Kashmir safe. Personalities are important but secondary to the doctrines and people friendly strategies they have implemented. These strategies need to be evolved further by all stakeholders to make Kashmir what it is [...]

Soothing the Spring in Kashmir

Considering these drivers and likely scenarios that may play out, the stakeholders need to work overtime to implement Hearts with passion and sincerity to ensure the Growing Kashmir scenario gains momentum to the benefit of the nation.

Intent is to Win Hearts Sincerely

Last month, General Hasnain, told media persons on the sidelines of a public gathering in Shopian district of south Kashmir that the Army was ready to extend all cooperation to the police and the civil administration to  trace the people who had gone missing in the last two decades of turmoil. He  also asked people [...]

Harifa, Akhtara, Manzoor and Diabolics

What he and the nation have to understand is that we have to work through the game plan of inimical forces to let the security forces apply the theme of “Heart as their Weapon” after decades of hard fought and won peace in the valley. It takes a lot of wisdom and courage to come thus far.

The Larger Game

There is a bleeding hearts story doing the rounds that Kashmiri youth have been alienated and they have “spontaneously” taken up Intifada to seek justice and may be Azadi. Much against the common perceptions that the events in Kashmir are spontaneous (and labeling them as Intifada), the signatures of Pakistan-sponsored proxy operations have been revived at both the [...]