Media Double Edged / Security Forces Sandwiched

Media – Irresponsible though a necessity

Most of us remember Amitabh Bachann’s coin with tail on both sides from Sholay. Its an interesting parallel with Indian media. They play with a coin having tail on both sides. Media can never be wrong, so if 26/11 happens they have the right to question the police/ army why action was not swift enough. Than incident like in Bangalore happens where unfortunately 19 year old gets killed because Army is swift, media goes on overdrive to ask why army was so swift.
We have reels of papers infact complete two pages only on this story in Times of India, the second paper I buy is Deccan Herald and that also seems to contain atleast full one page on this, and tone is as army is on fault.
Take the case of this boy, he is running from the police. So despite police asking to stop he didn’t. He runs into army compound, hides himself on the roof of the top army brass in the state and hides himself. He is confronted by none other than army, now he runs again. What is army/police suppose to do at 1.00 AM in night.
If he runs away in night, the newspaper will be intruder (or better terrorist) ran away from army / police despite state being on high alert.
So here media is playing with a coin that has tails on both ends and media knows it very well.
Few questions by media
1. Can’t they over power him?
2. Can’t they shoot him in his legs?
3. He was unarmed?
4. Didn’t they hear him talking to his family on phone?
Answers
1. at 1.00 AM a man running next in army compound? Overpower him where and how, by first going close and checking out whether he shoots or blows himself up and kills few army jawans with himself. May be media is just too unhappy since they wanted exactly that, what a juicy news and great trps.
2. Try shooting a running man late night at 1.00 am, I am sure the person who asked this question has great brains though decided not to use them before asking the question.
3. How sentry does know he is unarmed? May be he should have put his life in danger and if killed like six police man on train station in Mumbai, than may be by God’s grace his other friends would have caught him. Again great news and photo opportunity for media, grieving family of a slain soldier is great news, as well his picture with garland on it makes great emotional picture.
4. Now this one for sure is intellectual question. Army should have gadgets to listen that its mom on other side, how do security guy knows that he isn’t talking to his contacts in Karachi, give me a break guys.

Some simple questions I know most of the families ask the young kids
1. If you are 19, what are you doing out of house after 10.00 PM, for God’s grace it was 1.00 AM, and family was not even trying to find out where is he. Not my call to make how a family should keep there young. Though if you take such risks of not knowing where your 19 year old is is at midnight, you run the risk of losing him out, unfortunately.
2. Unfortunately freedom doesn’t come free and we Indians will be well off realizing it as soon as we can. Sorry we can’t be doing free wheeling on MG Road when it’s prohibited. Sorry once you break a law, and you get police asking you to stop you don’t run away. Sorry you don’t jump in army compound without telling at midnight. Sorry you need to know difference between areas of security forces and civilian area, Sorry once you are in security area and challenged by none other than army, you don’t run. Sorry if you do this all you may lose your life.

Very unfortunate, sad and heart almost bleeds seeing a 19 year old go down like this. Though if anybody is responsible for this death. It’s his parents/ family relatives, who taught him
• You are breaking the law by free wheeling.
• You can run from police
• You can be out of house at 1.00 AM without intimation.
• You can run from army and still blame them.

If any body is crying on an age of 19 years, just as a reminder, the only terrorist caught after Mumbai terror carnage is Kasab, and his age is 19 years.

In nutshell our security forces are under pressure of democratically elected government and its compulsions. Don’t question them when they seem to have acted in right manner the way they should have acted. It’s fortunate that it was just a boy who have been brought up with wrong groundings, and unfortunately shot dead.
I shudder to think had it been another Kasab with two other accomplices in other parts of army campus, and army would have acted the way media is asking them to, trying to overpower him. A dead brigadier and his family in middle of an army camp under siege would have made great news, and would have almost assured a full scale war.
My advice to army please please do act exactly the way you acted this time, when you see a unidentified man running in your campus, I don’t want another Mumbai or Kasab running alive on our land.

Its not a country but a corporate we are dealing with

This is more of a random blog, we all remember good guy, bad guy team in corporate world during negotiations.
Pakistan seems to be playing that game for long long time with us, and the diplomatic world doesn't know how to manage this. There is a bad guy in Army, and good guy in elected government.

This completely works for them since both good guy and bad guy make money like this. There is President/ Prime Minister and most who have made careers outside the country, Last finance minister was in running for Citi's head post against Mr. Pandit, so they look at current posts as another job/career move.
There is army which anyway controls and benefits from eveything within the country. They own ladn, head all the institutions (including cricket control board).
So now for both to profit, they need to tango, and that's what is happening.
One creates blood bath, other says not me. When other passes the line first one takes over.
Good guy, anyway has not control over bad guy. Bad guy, one you can't talk to, other why me, I work under good guy.
Where do you go from here......
This isn't a corporate, where you can leave the table or you can sack somebody..
In between Pakistani people are losing all they have, though they are fed like many communicst states on propoganda of hate and intolerance, which they are lapping up big time. They have nothing else to go to.
This helps both good guy and bad guy. So good guy won't do anything to stop the propoganda of hate and Islam and bad guy will use it to keep legitimacy.

May be only thing one can wait for, is that its not a finite transaction like a corporate. Its eating into country and may lead to its falling apart.
Though like many corporate, would this impact on the top, no they will still take bonuses.
Its people of Pakistan, who will be impacted. They need to see this design. It will impact neighbors llike all stake holders of a corporate.
Though when this corporate comes down it will take many down with it.
Just ensure that we aren't going down with it.

How Many Will You Detest And For How Long

My take on angry outbrusts after Mumbai attacks is to get involved in governance, go join a party or start one. We have a system, and we haven't nurtured, goons did, and now we have goons running it. Politicians come from the system, we don't want to be part of, though that's what is going to run our lives. As much as I agree with people on state of polity and state of MPs in our country. Though you kill these 540, you have another 540 may be even bigger scums ready to take over, and another 540, and another. We all have seen fights for MP/MLA tickets. The challenge for us isn't about eliminating 540 and another 540 and another 540, but to choose the right 540, so there isn't next 540 lining up, since we got the best one's in. Now either we be part of those 540, or we be part of process to choose those 540, or make it easier for people to choose which 540 are best. If we educated aren't doing any of this, than we get scum of 540, and we get the scum in return.
Kapil Gupta