Blasts, firing, encounters, ambulances, people injured, people dead.
Bombs and hostages and firing at Taj and Trident Hotels, firing outside Bombay Hospital, outside Metro Cinema.
Reports of blasts in Vile Parle and Santa Cruz, near the airport. Bloodshed on the streets.
Here in Bombay.
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8 comments:
Dilip - Our thoughts and prayers go out to all you & your family and all the Mumbaikars and Indians on this ghastly terrorist attacks.
Kulla
Jeez, don't know when this is going to end. You suddenly realise you have very little control over the events in your life.
Dilip, I was expecting to see you comment on how the terrorists are just that and why, although it espouses from it, their religion doesnt matter (somehow). But then I realized that the new buzz word is Hindu terrorism and I see why.
I have my own suspicions that it was the VHP that planned this as to "divert" the attention off them. Especially after I realized that a mob of 50 VHP-ites surrounded, insulted you (and let you go scott-free). Incidentally, I didnt get to see the minutes of the meeting. Or was that part of dont-give'em-publicity thing?
@Daniel, I realize that very thing when I watch this thing called news!
Stupendous!
@Prakash M Kini: Those that are most likely to benefit from these incidents definitely are the accused in the Malegaon bomb-blast case and the BJP.
The attention of the news-media, as you've mentioned has been completely diverted.
The death of the officer leading the investigation in the Malegaon blast case i.e. Hemant Karkare is also likely to benefit the accused and the BJP. The new chief of the Mumbai Police's Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) might not be as upright an officer or simply might not be as keen on pursuing the investigations and taking those to a logical conclusion.
The BJP had initially tried to distance itself from the accused like Sadvi Pragya Thakur, but when it seemed to realise that conclusive evidence had so far not been gathered against them, it took up their cause in a major way with L. K. Advani and Rajnath Singh making public statements defending the accused.
Of late, however, the ATS led by Mr. Karkare had been able to collect material evidence in the form of video footage and audio recordings of meetings in which the accused in the Malegaon bomb-blast case are said to have planned and discussed their nefarious designs, as reported recently by the NDTV 24x7 television news-channel. These were found on the laptop computer of one of the accused.
The ATS, as reported by NDTV 24x7, expected to go public very shortly with all that information, after tying up a few loose ends. If that had happened, obviously, the BJP, in general, and Mr. Advani and Mr. Rajnath Singh in particular might have found themselves at a loss for words. Now, however, the BJP does not really have to worry about any of that in the near future, perhaps, since the focus, as you've rightly mentioned, has been diverted.
So, the Malegaon bomb-blast case accused and the BJP are likely to gain in a major way from the attacks in Mumbai that are still in progress at the moment.
I am sorry, Dilip, for what your city is experiencing right now. As someone who was in Manhattan on September 11th, I can imagine the feelings of helplessness and worry that must be afflicting the residents of Bombay at present. May your spirits and your democracy remain strong in the face of this.
Thank you Kulla. Will write to you separately.
Prakash, I don't understand. I do believe that terrorists have no religion, and we should not fall into their trap of seeing them that way. That applies to Malegaon as it applies to Bombay's Taj and Trident Hotels.
As for my meeting with the VHP folks, you're welcome to read anything you like into it. After all, you were not there. What it has to do with this tragedy, I have no idea, but I'm sure you do.
Thanks, Michael. As also for your thoughtful reaction.
Dilip,
the rightwingers were angry with the ATS chief only a week or so ago and now they have a different tune.
But, as Sidhusaaheb noted, this really is going to help the principal opposition party. There is a small swirl of support building for Modi, even among people I hadnt considered very Hindutva, and ultimately that may be the biggest achievement for these attackers- getting an even more hardline BJP govt installed will help them.
I dont know how but the UPA does need to communicate a tough on terror stand. At least stop going out of the way to declare that "nothing like POTA is required". Much better to have a UPA version of POTA and slam the Malegaon guys in first to reassure everybody its evenhanded.
Maybe you can do some posts on the overall run of terrorism under both NDA and UPA regimes, I kind of suspect the NDA wasnt very effective either, even leaving aside Guj 2002.
regards,
Jai
PS: did you actually meet that VHP guy later after that station encounter? did he at least apologize on behalf of "Tyson".
My gut feeling is that these types think they have large majorities- whichever way thats being cut, religion, language etc.- and get really angry when they are NOT able to translate this supposed majority into getting their writ done. Thus, the women being Hindu angers them *more* not less. I dont think there would have been anything worthwhile to discuss with these types.
Great,
when they do it, suddenly these doers have no religion.
Can we stop pretending?
We all know where these guys get their inspiration and rationalization.
I am applaed. I am an atheist & liberal but I don't have blinds on my eyes as far as which religion time and again instigates and inspires these ruthless killers.
Obviously you won't agree.
I don't see disgruntled Kashmiri hindus blowing people up, but again their background and ethics have nothing to do with it.
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