Saswat Panigrahi
Julian Paul Assange is giving sleepless nights to world leaders by releasing a series of ‘secret’ US diplomatic cables on his whistle blower website Wikileaks. A few of those cables on India hit the Congress party hard. Let’s read those ‘secret cables’ between the lines.
US cable dated August 3, 2009
A secret US diplomatic cable dated August 3, 2009 released by the whistle blower website quoted Congress general secretary and party’s ‘potential’ prime ministerial face Rahul Gandhi as saying ‘Hindu radical groups’ pose a much bigger threat to India than Pakistan-based terror outfits like Lashkar-e-Toiba.
Look at the context in which the senior Congress leader made such comment. According to the diplomatic cable, the observation was made on July 20, 2009 -- less than eight months after 26/11 – when Indian establishment was busy in pressurising Islamabad to bring the perpetrators of Mumbai attacks to justice and US’s support was crucial to bend Pakistan internationally.
Gandhi made those observations during a conversation with US Ambassador to India Timothy Roemer at a luncheon meeting hosted by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at his residence in honour of visiting US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
While making such sweeping observations, the senior Congress leader forgot that he was talking to the Ambassador of that country whose support India sought to bring the perpetrators of 26/11 to justice. The reckless comment had the potential to weaken India’s 26/11 case internationally. Rahul Gandhi’s statement outlines his deficit of knowledge in international diplomacy. Well, America has its own counterterrorism agencies to make their assessment. Hope, it did not pay much heed to Rahul’s ‘sensational’ claim.
Remember, Rahul Gandhi is the man on whom Congress pins bundle of hopes. The party sees him as the ‘rightful claimant’ for the top job.
Gandhi’s comment demonstrates his half-baked knowledge on the subject of terrorism. Dangerously ignorant about India’s national security concerns, he has failed to recognise the real challenge the country is facing. What is more outrageous is that Rahul went to the extent of singing a ‘popular’ Pakistani tune on terrorism that could give a big leverage to the propaganda of terror groups operating from its soil.
Such rumblings undermine national interest. It will encourage terrorists and weaken India’s fight against terrorism.
LeT is a threat to India as well as to the world. It executed the Mumbai terror attacks which snuffed out the lives of at least 166 innocent people and wounded more then 300. By suggesting Lashkar is a lesser threat than ‘Hindu radical groups’ to score some brownie points, Rahul Gandhi has sarcastically compounded his serious mistake.
It is pertinent to mention that over the few years, allegations have been made against a few splinter Hindu groups about their involvement in bomb blasts. But nothing has yet been proved against any one of them. At the same time, counter allegations are also being labelled against the Congress-led UPA government. It is said that the allegations against those Hindu groups aim at satiating a narrow political goal. It is also argued that there is a deliberate effort to paint terrorism in secular colour and hence some Hindu organisations are being dragged to make that ‘balance act’.
Hindu organisations now have the reasons to read the veracity of those allegations from Rahul’s statement. Prof Surendra Jain, All India Secretary of VHP while talking to Zeenews.com said, “Rahul Gandhi’s comment was part of a well calculated move to defame the Hindus. This vindicates the fact that Congress is deliberately implicating Hindu organisations with terror allegations. The Hindu society out rightly rejects Gandhi’s claim. The strategy of tarring Hindu organisations with fictions will definitely boomerang on Congress”.
He added, “Rahul’s comment smacks of a politics of desperation. To woo Muslim vote bank he has stooped to the level of a LeT spokesperson”.
There is a chasm in the magnitude of threat perception between front line terror outfit LeT and a splinter Hindu organisation accused of being involved in a bomb blast. But Rahul Gandhi brushes aside the reality and went on to the extent of calling ‘Hindu radicalism’ a greater threat than jihadi terrorists. His statement was deliberate and smells of his hatred against Hindu organisations.
Earlier, WikiLeaks revealed that how Congress played communal politics post 26/11 to garner the Muslim vote bank ahead of the 2009 general election.
US cable dated December 23, 2008
According to a confidential memo by then US ambassador to India, David Mulford dated December 23, 2008 released by WikiLeaks, a section of Congress leadership was seen playing religious politics post 26/11, after one of its leaders, AR Antulay, implied that Hindutva forces may have been involved in the Mumbai terror attacks.
"The Congress party, after first distancing itself from the comments, two days later issued a contradictory statement which implicitly endorsed the conspiracy," Mulford wrote in his secret cable to the state department by adding “Hoping to foster the support (of Muslim community) for upcoming national elections, the Congress party cynically pulled back from its original dismissal and lent credence to the conspiracy”.
There was a row over that revelation when Congress general secretary and a known ‘Hindu-basher’ Digvijay Singh claimed that just two hours before the Mumbai attacks the slain ATS chief told him in a telephonic conversation that his life was “under threat” from ‘Hindu radical groups’. Singh first claimed “Karkare called him”, then claimed “he called Karkare” but Maharashtra government says there was no existence of record of the purported telephonic conversation between Digvijay and Karkare.
The sum and substance of Digvijay Singh’s remark suggest that “Hindu groups were also linked to the 26/11 terror seize." Such comment is utterly disgusting and has embarrassed the country. Rahul Gandhi’s comment is no better and was just a flow from the same thought.
As Digvijay continues with his baseless claim, Congress distanced itself from his comment and called it a “private conversation between two individuals” and “the party has no role in it”. But those in know of inside out of Congress strategy say Digvijay was simply endorsing his party’s stand. But, Congress party does not have the guts to disassociate it from Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Hindu terror’ fetish.
It is not for the first time that the Congress party is seen playing communal politics to garner vote bank. The country is witness to minority pandering by Congress ever since India’s partition. But with WikiLeaks reveal Congress’s communal politics has now found its way into the public domain.
US cable dated Aug 4, 2006
Ever since Sonia Gandhi took the baton of Congress, minority appeasement is very much synonymous with the Congress brand of politics.
The reason: Congress is bitterly paranoid by the rise of BJP. WikiLeaks has reiterated the very fact by releasing another US diplomatic cable dated Aug 4, 2006. In the cable titled 'A Garrulous Sonia Gandhi opens up to Maria Shriver', marked 'confidential' which details Gandhi's meeting with the first lady of California, she stated, “The right (wing) was becoming strong in India and Congress weak, tipping her hand and compelling her to enter politics to protect the Gandhi family legacy”
Stung by Wikileaks revelations Congress scurries for cover. The party now says the discloser “is not worth to be dignified”. But imagine, had it been against BJP, the Congress’ reaction would have just been the opposite.
Julian Paul Assange is giving sleepless nights to world leaders by releasing a series of ‘secret’ US diplomatic cables on his whistle blower website Wikileaks. A few of those cables on India hit the Congress party hard. Let’s read those ‘secret cables’ between the lines.
US cable dated August 3, 2009
A secret US diplomatic cable dated August 3, 2009 released by the whistle blower website quoted Congress general secretary and party’s ‘potential’ prime ministerial face Rahul Gandhi as saying ‘Hindu radical groups’ pose a much bigger threat to India than Pakistan-based terror outfits like Lashkar-e-Toiba.
Look at the context in which the senior Congress leader made such comment. According to the diplomatic cable, the observation was made on July 20, 2009 -- less than eight months after 26/11 – when Indian establishment was busy in pressurising Islamabad to bring the perpetrators of Mumbai attacks to justice and US’s support was crucial to bend Pakistan internationally.
Gandhi made those observations during a conversation with US Ambassador to India Timothy Roemer at a luncheon meeting hosted by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at his residence in honour of visiting US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
While making such sweeping observations, the senior Congress leader forgot that he was talking to the Ambassador of that country whose support India sought to bring the perpetrators of 26/11 to justice. The reckless comment had the potential to weaken India’s 26/11 case internationally. Rahul Gandhi’s statement outlines his deficit of knowledge in international diplomacy. Well, America has its own counterterrorism agencies to make their assessment. Hope, it did not pay much heed to Rahul’s ‘sensational’ claim.
Remember, Rahul Gandhi is the man on whom Congress pins bundle of hopes. The party sees him as the ‘rightful claimant’ for the top job.
Gandhi’s comment demonstrates his half-baked knowledge on the subject of terrorism. Dangerously ignorant about India’s national security concerns, he has failed to recognise the real challenge the country is facing. What is more outrageous is that Rahul went to the extent of singing a ‘popular’ Pakistani tune on terrorism that could give a big leverage to the propaganda of terror groups operating from its soil.
Such rumblings undermine national interest. It will encourage terrorists and weaken India’s fight against terrorism.
LeT is a threat to India as well as to the world. It executed the Mumbai terror attacks which snuffed out the lives of at least 166 innocent people and wounded more then 300. By suggesting Lashkar is a lesser threat than ‘Hindu radical groups’ to score some brownie points, Rahul Gandhi has sarcastically compounded his serious mistake.
It is pertinent to mention that over the few years, allegations have been made against a few splinter Hindu groups about their involvement in bomb blasts. But nothing has yet been proved against any one of them. At the same time, counter allegations are also being labelled against the Congress-led UPA government. It is said that the allegations against those Hindu groups aim at satiating a narrow political goal. It is also argued that there is a deliberate effort to paint terrorism in secular colour and hence some Hindu organisations are being dragged to make that ‘balance act’.
Hindu organisations now have the reasons to read the veracity of those allegations from Rahul’s statement. Prof Surendra Jain, All India Secretary of VHP while talking to Zeenews.com said, “Rahul Gandhi’s comment was part of a well calculated move to defame the Hindus. This vindicates the fact that Congress is deliberately implicating Hindu organisations with terror allegations. The Hindu society out rightly rejects Gandhi’s claim. The strategy of tarring Hindu organisations with fictions will definitely boomerang on Congress”.
He added, “Rahul’s comment smacks of a politics of desperation. To woo Muslim vote bank he has stooped to the level of a LeT spokesperson”.
There is a chasm in the magnitude of threat perception between front line terror outfit LeT and a splinter Hindu organisation accused of being involved in a bomb blast. But Rahul Gandhi brushes aside the reality and went on to the extent of calling ‘Hindu radicalism’ a greater threat than jihadi terrorists. His statement was deliberate and smells of his hatred against Hindu organisations.
Earlier, WikiLeaks revealed that how Congress played communal politics post 26/11 to garner the Muslim vote bank ahead of the 2009 general election.
US cable dated December 23, 2008
According to a confidential memo by then US ambassador to India, David Mulford dated December 23, 2008 released by WikiLeaks, a section of Congress leadership was seen playing religious politics post 26/11, after one of its leaders, AR Antulay, implied that Hindutva forces may have been involved in the Mumbai terror attacks.
"The Congress party, after first distancing itself from the comments, two days later issued a contradictory statement which implicitly endorsed the conspiracy," Mulford wrote in his secret cable to the state department by adding “Hoping to foster the support (of Muslim community) for upcoming national elections, the Congress party cynically pulled back from its original dismissal and lent credence to the conspiracy”.
There was a row over that revelation when Congress general secretary and a known ‘Hindu-basher’ Digvijay Singh claimed that just two hours before the Mumbai attacks the slain ATS chief told him in a telephonic conversation that his life was “under threat” from ‘Hindu radical groups’. Singh first claimed “Karkare called him”, then claimed “he called Karkare” but Maharashtra government says there was no existence of record of the purported telephonic conversation between Digvijay and Karkare.
The sum and substance of Digvijay Singh’s remark suggest that “Hindu groups were also linked to the 26/11 terror seize." Such comment is utterly disgusting and has embarrassed the country. Rahul Gandhi’s comment is no better and was just a flow from the same thought.
As Digvijay continues with his baseless claim, Congress distanced itself from his comment and called it a “private conversation between two individuals” and “the party has no role in it”. But those in know of inside out of Congress strategy say Digvijay was simply endorsing his party’s stand. But, Congress party does not have the guts to disassociate it from Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Hindu terror’ fetish.
It is not for the first time that the Congress party is seen playing communal politics to garner vote bank. The country is witness to minority pandering by Congress ever since India’s partition. But with WikiLeaks reveal Congress’s communal politics has now found its way into the public domain.
US cable dated Aug 4, 2006
Ever since Sonia Gandhi took the baton of Congress, minority appeasement is very much synonymous with the Congress brand of politics.
The reason: Congress is bitterly paranoid by the rise of BJP. WikiLeaks has reiterated the very fact by releasing another US diplomatic cable dated Aug 4, 2006. In the cable titled 'A Garrulous Sonia Gandhi opens up to Maria Shriver', marked 'confidential' which details Gandhi's meeting with the first lady of California, she stated, “The right (wing) was becoming strong in India and Congress weak, tipping her hand and compelling her to enter politics to protect the Gandhi family legacy”
Stung by Wikileaks revelations Congress scurries for cover. The party now says the discloser “is not worth to be dignified”. But imagine, had it been against BJP, the Congress’ reaction would have just been the opposite.
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