By G Harishankar
Edited by Anandita Malhotra, Senior Editor, The Indian Economist
I had a half brother, Paki (meaning pure) was his name. I hated him, for he was the second seed of my mothers womb. My father wanted to keep the family together, his father wanted to break apart and he had his way. We still remained neighbours. My mother had left behind her ancestral land. Kashmir, the land of heaven it was called. I and my half brother frequently fought over it, so as to who would inherit it and who held its rights. Sometimes he or the dog he groomed would trespass my property and I would retaliate to push them back. In the month of November, 6 years ago he littered my garden with weeds and killed my lovely plants. I am furious to date because of the shameful act he committed.
Today, he stands bruised. The dog that he fed with bones, to bite me had bitten his arm. He bled profusely and wailed for help. Should I? But he groomed Taliban himself! But he did kill Indians in Mumbai.
Maybe I should not. But we do also originate from the same womb….
At least 141 people, including 132 children, have been killed in an attack by Pakistani Taliban fighters (TTP) on a military-run school in Peshawar in Pakistan’s northwest. Tehrik-e-Taliban call the sabotage their revenge, the Pakistani army views it as an insult, PM Modi termed it dastardly, but I view it as a collective shame. Is it not shameful that two countries having nuclear level advancement have sacrificed their brave men in futile wars against each other and not the extremists? Did anyone ever benefit from them? Taliban did. Taliban- the scavengers, merrily feed off the aftermath of sibling rivalry. Among the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan’s stated objectives are resistance against the Pakistani state, enforcement of their interpretation of sharia and a plan to unite to destroy NATO -led forces in Afghanistan. Resist, enforce and destroy- Three negative objectives of this vagabond organisation. They call themselves the sons of Islam. It appears though that they have subscribed to partial and subjecting reading of the Holy Quran.
Do not kill any child, any woman, or any elder or sick person. (Sunan Abu Dawud)
Quran-e-Pak prohibits any form of aggression against the buds of humankind as plucking them mercilessly is the gravest sin. The truth is that, this extremism does not speak the language of any religion or region or faith. All it does is speak the language of Satan. The 7 members of the militia killed by the Pakistani army are in no way capable of Shahadat. Neither Allah, nor humanity shall forgive these perpetuators.
When the harsh heat of sun scorches the land, lions and sheeps shall rest under the shade of the same tree
Taliban has not succeeded in its pursuit. It rather has integrated the whole of Pakistan internally and also the historically hostile nations of Hindustan and Pakistan.
Modi called for a 2 minute silence in all schools to mourn the death of their counterparts. This not only extends goodwill but also inculcates in tender young Indian minds the love for their indispensable neighbours. Hundreds of Indians took to twitter to extend their support to Pakistan using #IndiaWithPakistan thereby chanting it out aloud to the world that the people of the two nations indeed have Aman Ki Asha. This however is not the first incident of such symbiosis between the two warring nations. Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf sent a plane load of relief supplies from Islamabad to Ahmedabad that carried 200 tents and more than 2,000 blankets when Modis Gujarat reeled under the Bhuj Quake. It is payback time now when we reciprocate the gratuitous act to our neighbours.
In Charleston, South California, citizens of the two countries subsist together with each others help and support. Kishore Challa and Mohammad Yousafs families live together in Charleston and live symbiotic lives. Why cannot the same people live like brothers here? This forces me to ponder on the facts that if people on both sides of the border want peace, do the antagonistic factors yield enough arms to disturb it?
Its time both nations pulled out of Siachen and reconciled on the Radcliffe line and rather focus our energies on vanquishing the enemies of mankind.
…that whoever kills a single soul for other than a soul(killed) or for corruption in the earth, it is as though he had killed all of humanity together, and whoever saves the life of a single soul, it is as though he had saved the life of all of humanity together.. -QUARAN SURAH AL-MAIDA AYAH 32.
Yes, we must ameliorate our bleeding brothers in these harsh times and forget our differences. We must keep nationalism at bay and adopt Humanity.
G Harishankar, is a first year student of Sri Ram College Of Commerce where he is pursuing B.Com Hons. He enjoys balancing the various hats donned by him. He is an active participant of his college Nukkad Natak Toli and is a sketch artist. Friends are his only prized possessions and he loves writing poems and reading and reviewing poetry. He is a nerd of the highest order and his hardworking qualities complement this nature of his.