A shameful silence - A Romantic Realist

A shameful silence

Raju Narisetti - Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:58 AM

As I write this, it is now 14 hours since news of terrorist attacks in Mumbai started trickling in and the situation remains both volatile and confusing. Since then, George W Bush, US President-elect Barack Obama, Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso, Pakistan Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown,  Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd have found time to speak out, condemning the attacks and offering all the support India needs.

And who have we heard from in India?

Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh has held a press conference. The leader of India's opposition LK Advani has gone on national television talking of a national crisis and telling viewers that he had spoken to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and that they both plan to visit Mumbai. India's many business leaders--KV Kamath of ICICI Bank Ltd, Rahul Bajaj of Bajaj Auto, Vijay Mallya of Kingfisher--have all talked on national television about the impact on business and assuring audiences that they intend to do everything they can to restore normalcy in their spheres.

And where are India's government leaders so far?

President Pratibha Patil, Vice President Hamid Ansari and Prime Minister Singh have issued statements but are yet to be seen or heard. Congress President and Chairperson of the ruling United Progressive Alliance Sonia Gandhi has apparently spoken to Deshmukh but is also yet to be seen or heard. And CNBC is reporting Finance Minister P Chidambaram, who found time to speak about Reliance Power Ltd IPO on its debut and is constantly speaking about India's stock markets, apparently has refused to comment on the terrorist attacks.

Indeed, it is important for leaders to let the police and security forces do their job in such a volatile situation. But leaders can't go AWOL in a national crisis as Manmohan Singh, Sonia Gandhi and P Chidambaram have done so far. To this Romantic Realist, it is a combination of character and competence that makes people trust leaders. And character is first among equals, especially in a crisis. And so far both courage and character have been invisible. 

30 November 2008 Post Script: When the PM speaks it is often like an OpEd writer anyway. Here is a new blog post:

 

 

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From anshu

November 27, 2008 1:09 PM
Yes the finance minister has definitely lost it. Instead of talking about the impact of the economic recession and how best to cope with it, he is almost in denial. as for character, is there one politician you can name who has it?

From divya

November 27, 2008 1:28 PM
Dear Mr. Narisetti, With all dur respect, I do not agree with the statement that courage and character is reflected by political personnel issuing statements and condemning terrorists. In retrospect, that's all they ever do. Has anyone wondered why our defence forces are finding it difficult to deal with a dozen miscreants?(i think the word terrorists is abused - these are just a bunch of cowards who create as much "terror" as a set of rabid dogs on the loose). Ideally. they should have been able to take pre-emptive action, failing which they should atleast be good with corrective measures. What would catch my attention would be a leader who came out, maybe 48 hours later, declaring training sessions in terrorist combat for our defence personnel, the ATS in special, in Israel, bullet-proof vests for police and allied forces across the nation and sophisticated weaponry out of the huge allocation made for Defnce in our acclaimed budget sessions. And to be truthful, all of us can condemn blasts and firings but why do they have additional powers as politicians? Certainly not to pose in front of the shutter-bugs issuing 'all about you' statements that mean as much as a pile of decaying worms!

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November 27, 2008 1:35 PM

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From Ayeshea Perera

November 27, 2008 2:03 PM
I agree that leaders should not go AWOL at times like this. Making a statement doesn't necessarily equate condemning terrorists! At the very least the government should tell its people where it stands and what it plans to do (or is doing even to a small extent). Oh and a special mention to Kamal Nath who found time to insist that the blasts would not affect investment. Plus ten to him for sensitivity to the massive loss of human life.

From Raju Narisetti

November 27, 2008 2:16 PM

Divya--we are essentially saying the same thing. As I noted PM et al HAVE issued statements. But now almost 16 hours later, the Indian govt is yet to issue any official response, send anyone in front of national tv, has cancelled a cabinet briefing (after cabinet met to discuss this issue), has the leader of opposition telling me what the PM might do (though looks like that visit to Mumbai has been cancelled too)...so I am asking, Where are the leaders when we could use some leadership? Where is a semblance of the union government reassuring the people of India that they are still incharge of this country on a day like today? Raju

From Sandeep Parekh

November 27, 2008 3:17 PM
I think one of the reasons why our intelligence and police delivery is so weak is because almost all resources are spent in VIP protection and worse still decorative duty. We should be grateful that most of them didn't turn up at the site, otherwise resources would have been divided even at the sites of ongoing violence. Thank goodness for small mercies. Sandeep

From Deepan

November 27, 2008 3:26 PM
The UPA government is handicapped. Sonia doesn't act because this is happening in India & not in Italy. Manmohan singh is not acting because he is a economist. Shivraj patil can't act because he doesn't know how to act. Lalu & Amar singh won't act because they can only dream of becoming PMs if Hindu's become minorities. Media will not act because they can increase TRPs on every attack. Then who will act???? It's we the people who have to act. Brothers terrorism is not new to us. Our country is facing this from past 1000 years. Don't be holy cows. It's time to act now.

From Raju Narisetti

November 27, 2008 3:47 PM

17 hours after attacks started, Reuters reporting:

India PM to address nation on Mumbai attacks

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will address the nation at 4.30 p.m. local (1100 GMT)

From Niranjan

November 27, 2008 3:51 PM
Raju, I can never quite decide which is preferable: politicians making pious but inane statements or politicians keeping their trap shut. What I find interesting is that all those hotheads who treat Mumbai like their personal jagir have suddenly gone quiet. Not one of them has the guts to ask their cadre to go to railway stations etc and help stranded Mumbaikars in case there is more trouble.

From xyz

November 27, 2008 4:28 PM
I am waiting for this seige to be over and then local political parties going back to playing their political games like vultures feasting over dead bodies. They must have already put plans in place to announce bandhs, strikes etc to get maximum political mileage and increase their party base. Thereafter they can get back to start the clean up drive to make Mumbai for Maharashtrians. We lucky Indians are blessed with such caring politicians ! Do we need enemies from other countries? God Bless India.

From V.B.N.Ram

November 27, 2008 5:56 PM
According to an analyst, who happens to be a former intelligence official, the source of terror appears to be emanating from Pakistan, and the terrorists entered Mumbai through the Arabian Sea. If that were indeed the case our Coast Guard and the Navy have much to answer for. I am of the opinion, that India as a nation, treats terrorists with kid gloves ( I for one can't fathom out, why those convicted of the Parliament attack still remain unpunished, even though several years have elapsed, after this incident ) There must be no faith/ religion based appeasement of terrorists merely to promote political vote banks

From Raju Narisetti

November 27, 2008 6:08 PM

And what the PM Manmohan Singh finally had to say, as reported by Reuters:

“The dastardly terror attacks that took place in Mumbai last night and today leading to the loss of many precious lives and injuries to many others have deeply shocked the nation.

“I strongly condemn these acts of senseless violence against innocent people, including guests from foreign countries.

“I offer my deepest condolences to the bereaved families and sympathies to those injured. The Government will take all necessary measures to look after the wellbeing of the affected families, including medical treatment of injured.

“The well-planned and well-orchestrated attacks, probably with external linkages, were intended to create a sense of panic, by choosing high profile targets and indiscriminately killing foreigners.

“I salute the courage and patriotism of the police officers, including the Chief of the Anti-Terror Squad, Shri (Mr.) Hemant Karkare and men who have laid down their lives in fighting these terrorists.

“I assure the country that we will attend in an urgent and serious manner to police reform so that the law and order authorities can work unitedly, effectively and in a determined manner to tackle such threats to national integrity.

“We are not prepared to countenance a situation in which the safety and security of our citizens can be violated with impunity by terrorists.

“It is evident that the group which carried out these attacks, based outside the country, had come with single-minded determination to create havoc in the commercial capital of the country.

“We will take the strongest possible measures to ensure that there is no repetition of such terrorist acts. We are determined to take whatever measures are necessary to ensure the safety and security of our citizens.

“Instruments like the National Security Act will be employed to deal with situations of this kind. Existing laws will be tightened to ensure that there are no loopholes available to terrorists to escape the clutches of the law.

“Most importantly, it is essential to immediately set up a Federal Investigation Agency to go into terrorist crimes of this kind and ensure that the guilty are brought to book.

“We will take up strongly with our neighbours that the use of their territory for launching attacks on us will not be tolerated, and that there would be a cost if suitable measures are not taken by them.

“We will take a number of measures to strengthen the hands of our police and intelligence authorities. We will curb the flow of funds to suspect organisations. We will restrict the entry of suspects into the country.

“We will go after these individuals and organisations and make sure that every perpetrator, organiser and supporter of terror, whatever his affiliation or religion may be, pays a heavy price for these cowardly and horrific acts against our people. “In this hour of tragedy, I appeal to the people to maintain peace and harmony so that the enemies of our country do not succeed in their nefarious designs. All concerned authorities are on alert and will deal sternly with any attempts to disturb public order.

“I am confident that the people of India will rise unitedly to face this grave challenge to the nation’s security and integrity. Courtesy REUTERS

From Suree Sharma

November 27, 2008 6:15 PM
We need a very stringent law like POTA and the political conviction to implement.POTA was good how does it matter who made it. More improtant is that the citizens of this nation felt secured. We must rise above partisan politics and work in the interest of the nation. Act in a manner to show ZERO tolerance to perpetuators of terrorism. Let not the congrees believe and be deluded that they are the only partriots(not sure, except for pre 1947 era). Hope the citizens can see political maturity.

From Jayant Karve

November 27, 2008 6:16 PM
So what's YOUR agenda, Raju? Why would you be saying these kinds of things? What is the WSJ's agenda? You are saying that the top leaders of India are AWOL. You're calling into question their character and courage. I'm sorry, but I can hardly call THAT patriotic. Reading your column in America (where I live) I am embarrassed by your words. How stupid can you get?

From Famous Grouse

November 27, 2008 6:22 PM
Mr. Karve - Don't hold a fig leaf for our leaders. They don't deserve it. And what do you mean by 'character and courage'. 99% of our national politicians have neither of that, even in the most dilute form.

From suree Sharma

November 27, 2008 6:36 PM
Jayant, Israel is a fit case of study as to how we should approch terror. It requires a strong political will and a policy of appeasement.

From Vincent Kurien

November 27, 2008 6:37 PM
The media has been crying aloud the past few weeks and has used the term 'Hindu terror' repeatedly. The usage turned out to be so bad and vicious that I started taking it as a joke. As a Christian, I only found this usage amusing and the only message it sent me was that the Communists in the media (yes, Prannoy Roy is the brother-in-law of Brinda Karat and Rajdeep Sardesai comes from the same stable) spew venom and really hate our Hindu sisters and brothers. The question now is will Rajdeep Sardesai and Prannoy Roy use the term 'Islamic terror?' You only have to look to Kerala to see the negative effects of Communism. We should nip this dangerous force in the bud and nationalize NDTV and CNN-IBN. They want Communism? Give them Communism! They are also extremely dishonest people. Notice how they suppressed the video in the cash-for-votes scam. Shame on that gang consisting of Rajdeep Sardesai, Ramachandra Guha, Brinda Karat, Sitaram Yechury, Sardesai's moll Sagarika Ghose, Barkha Dutt and Prannoy Roy.

From Raju Narisetti

November 27, 2008 7:01 PM

Mr Karve--My agenda? To quote Nelson Mandela and to reiterate what this blog tries to stand for: "My mind is calibrated to cause the best kind of trouble: the trouble that forces us to ask how we can make the world a better place."

And in doing so, as Martin Luther King once said, I am afraid "I am bound by allegiances and loyalties which are broader and deeper than nationalism."

As for WSJ's agenda, you should ask them since they don't decide what my agenda is and vice versa. And, to make this a lot more interesting and conspiratorial for you, I am a US citizen. So, there you go.

From Vincent Kurien

November 27, 2008 7:13 PM
I should mention how Prannoy Roy first came into prominence. Bhaskar Ghose used to be the head of Doordarshan in the 1980s. Sagarika Ghose is his step-daughter and Prannoy Roy was connected to Bhaskar Ghose. So Prannoy Roy got to have his own program called the 'The World This Week' on DD. Then, he was given the deal for covering elections. Essentially, he was propped up on a channel that had the monopoly of the airwaves through banning the existence of other channels. It is the Sagarika Ghose connection that got Rajdeep Sardesai into the TV world. India is in a mess, especially with the English media. I have to say that I was initially happy with Mint, but I have seen in the recent past that it is becoming leftist. The writers it has chosen lean to the left and far left and so it is no different from other magazines and newspapers. If this is going to be a business magazine, why not publish those opposed to the left?

From Confused By Rhetoric

November 27, 2008 8:50 PM
Where did Vincent get the idea that Mint is a publication of the far left? I have my disagreements with them, but I remember these guys strongly supporting free markets, tough on terror, more balanced in their assessment of Narendrabhai Modi than most mainstream media and critical of various policies of the UPA. I usually agree with their right-of-center reasoning.

From Vincent Kurien

November 27, 2008 9:09 PM
I did not say that Mint is a publication of the far left. I said that the writers it has chosen are from the left. I should have added that this was not the case in the beginning. I have started noticing this tendency in the recent past. Two examples of its leftist writers are Dilip D'Souza and Salil Tripathi. Regarding Mr. Narendra Modi, forget the "balance." Anyone who calls the riot as a genocide is flat out wrong. It is the same with portraying the Muslims as the victims of the riot. That is just bad journalism. After all, there were people killed among Hindus too. Which brings us to another point - even Manmohan Singh and Shivraj Patil do not believe that there was a pogrom sponsored by Mr. Modi. If they did, they would have arrested him by now! Isn't this a question that good journalists should have pondered? Personally, I would like to see Mint not give space to pseudo-analysis of those who bash liberalization. It is so clear that things were extremely harsh until the 1980s. I would also like to see Mint be objective and not give space to conspiracy theorists and apologists of Islamists.

From jayati

November 27, 2008 10:25 PM
Have been following this debate with interest. It's not a rhetorical question that I'm asking - I want to know why it's important that the PM come on TV and address us. Is there anybody who looks to them for succour? I mean, yes, I want the police and Army to rescue me if I'm affected, but am I looking for a politician's public posturing? Not sure. Every blast, this is what they say, and the blasts keep happening. And Kurien - How's it relevant what Sagarika is to Rajdeep, moll or wife or friend? It's prejudiced and chauvinistic. She's an individual and she gets to decide what to say and whom to back. Raju, maybe 'moll' is one word that could be auto-asterisked!!!

From Vijay Jamwal

November 28, 2008 12:12 AM
I feel at the end of all this crisis, the sad part is that all these politicians , including so called Thackeray n his men, will come out of there hideout n start playing the dirty game of politics.It's really hurtning that all the brave solders/police officers who lost there lives in savings others' life, will be forgotten behind the political rallies of these politicians. Pitty these politicians. N god save our country from them. My heartly condolences to all the families of the killed and brave solders of the soil who fought for us. Vijay

From Nalin

November 28, 2008 10:45 AM
There is a sense of indignation and frustration getting evident from the discussions.But would the same indignation sustain one week down the line, all else would become hunky-dory. A new drama of election results would unfold on the television and we all would be engrossed in the same. Would we pause and give a thought to the soldiers who laid down their lives, has anybody thought it fit to provide some solace to the grieving families, any leader of any variety. Suddenly a curfew seems to have been declared on the mouth zone of the leadership.

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November 28, 2008 11:18 AM

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From Melissa Bell

November 28, 2008 12:21 PM
Jayati, during the morning of September 11, 2001, on the streets of southern Manhattan, scared, confused, injured people clustered around car radios and store fronts as Rudy Giuliani came on the air to talk to them just an hour after the attack began. It was a simple speech, advising people to stay calm and head north. Eight years later, I don't even remember the words he used. On Wikipedia it reports he said "Tomorrow New York is going to be here. And we're going to rebuild, and we're going to be stronger than we were before...I want the people of New York to be an example to the rest of the country, and the rest of the world, that terrorism can't stop us." For a moment, I felt safe again, that the world wasn't falling down around me. I needed desperately to hear that my government was supporting me, fighting for me, caring for me. I made that awful two hour walk home and I didn't feel so all alone. Yesterday, in a state of shock, I watched another city I love fall down around us. Only this time, no one told me that it would be alright. That we would perservere. No one gave the victims just a few words of support, to let them know they weren't going through this alone. And no one told the rest of the nation, those of us sitting miles away, that we were unified, that we were going to fight through this, that we would not let this incident cripple us. Sometimes, it's not public posturing, sometimes, it's just words from someone who has access to the public stage that gives the rest of us a little needed comfort.

From mkm gen

November 28, 2008 3:00 PM
Expecting character, courage and public service from the likes of maha moorkh singh (aka mms aka man mohan singh), sonia amma (she of wordly renunciation fame) and PC is like expecting the ISI to publicly denounce terrorism. Ain't ever going to happen, mate ! Raju-bhai, the only remedy is to kick these nincompoops out of power in the next elections.

From Deepblue

November 28, 2008 3:30 PM
Bible says that the meek shall inherit the earth and that is proven right. Most timid, meek, spineless person is ruling india as its PM for last 4 years a.k.a Manmohan Singh.

From Veena

November 28, 2008 4:35 PM
A shameful display Dear Mr Narisetti, As a prolific proponent of ethical and responsible journalism and media practices, why is there no word from you on the front page advertisement of your sister (parent ?) newspaper, The Hindustan Times? The terror impasse in Mumbai slips into Day 2 and HT carries a tasteless ad from the BJP exhorting 'Mindless Terror Strikes at will. Weak government unwilling an incapable'. A bright splotch of red rounds off the insensitive monstrosity. Even the financially beleaguered Indian Express had the good sense to carry it in an inside page. Are ethic violations worthy of being pointed out only when someone outside the family commits it?

From Raju Narisetti

November 28, 2008 4:59 PM

Veena--Even if one assumes for a minute that I could have had the same reaction that you did to a paid ad and not journalism (I didn't), it is hard to be my brother's keeper--at least for every perceived "ethics" violation.

To me, what was interesting to think about for a second this morning (in addition to the hypocrisy of BJP's leaders in claiming on Thursday that they won't use the terror attacks for political gains, something we actually flagged in Mint's Page 1 story on 28 November)is that most people who know the Delhi newspaper market think Hindustan Times is a pro-Congress paper, in part because its owners have strong ties to the party. If that were true, then hard to imagine an ad like this would have run, let alone on Page 1, isn't it?

Anyway, I don't know what decision tree, if any, was used in HT Media last night. But the way newsrooms work (including Mint) is that pages are released with ad space marked off, as in that space is not available for news to use. End of story as far as newsroom is concerned. What goes in that ad space is really up to the ad department and usually not something that the news side gets to have a say on (since there are generally accepted guidelines on ad content that are applied by ad department).

I don't know if the BJP asked for Page 1 in Indian Express or was willing to pay the usual premium for Page 1 in that paper. I don't know if the paper that espouses "Journalism of Courage" had a choice and refused to carry it on Page 1 and if so what might have been the reason. And whether the "ethics violation" is less if a reader sees the ad on page 4. And I don't know how a paper's ad department running an ad is an "ethics violation" by its news department. If, as editors we insist that we ought to have a say in what ad runs and what doesn't, I have a strong suspicion that the ad dept would be keen to have a say in what news runs and doesn't. A better way to manage this complex relationship is to draw the boundaries and keep those Chinese walls high and firm. And then be accountable for ethics violations on your news side of the Chinese wall. Raju

From Malini

November 29, 2008 1:41 PM
Dear Mr. Narisetti, I agree with your sentiments reflected on 'A shameful silence'. Only in the behaviour of our politicians but ironically, I belive, 'a shameful silence' has indeed been communicated by our intelligence services too. Certain channels have been aggressive in pinning down which 'region' could be held responsible. But what of our internal systems? Its difficult to belive that such a high level plan of terror could have been practiced and tested for over a month without our intelligence services not beeing able to get a whif of it? What 'nuclear super power' do we attempt to become if we cannot get out acts together internally? I was also amazed to see such poor mob management around Nariman House where throngs of people decended even before operations concluded.Even at the Taj. Or did the security / maharashtra Police force 'forget' to declare curfew? We've been quite a laughing stock honestly. A shameful silence indeed that Mumbai is perhaps too resilient and bounces back in no time! We dont want to bounce back and 'pretend' all's well! I truly wish we all could do something to communciate to politicians that they are holding office for the general good of the nation and its people and NOT for their own coffers or security. I thought that in all the coverage we saw, we missed a point somewhere...some officers and politicians did a dishonest job sleeping over the month while terrorrists planned destruction! Its high time they were pulled up in public...after all we pay taxes so that the goverment can function properly.

From KVKS CHOUDARY

November 29, 2008 3:29 PM
WHAT DID YOU EXPECT OF SONIA GANDHIs, CHIDAMBARAMs OF THIS WORLD. WASN'T RAHUL GANDHI SAYING DAY BEFORE IN M.P THAT "TERRORISM IS NOT AN ISSUE. TERRORISTS DO NOT STOP CHILDREN FROM ATTENDING SCHOOLS AND THEY DID NOT STOP BUILDING OF ROADS." - WHAT A GREAT INSIGHT. AND OF COURSE THEY DID NOT STOP QUOTROCHI BEING HANDED OVER MILLIONS OF DOLLARS ON A PLATTER. FURTHER ANY HARSH WORDS AGAINST TERRORISTS MAY HURT THE FEELINGS OF THEIR DEAR FRIENDS LIKE AMAR SINGH, LALOO, SHAHABUDDIN ETC. THANKS TO WHOM THEY ARE YET IN POWER. SO LET US FACE IT THAT POWER & MONEY IS MORE IMPORTANT FOR GANDHIS AND CHIDAMBARAMS OF THIS WORLD, COUNTRY CAN GO TO HELL AS LONG AS THEY HAVE WHAT THEY WANT.

From naarayanan

November 29, 2008 4:48 PM
My fellow country men, do not expect politicians to set examples. a Kerala channel Asianet and a few newspapers in Kerla has recently posted photograph of a person who was recruiting terrorists to kill Indian forces in Kashmir standing behind the Home Minister of Kerala. Political morality and decency should have made him resign from the position or at least come clear on the subject. But what we saw is that I could not care attitude. A party like CPM who is headed by a tough and no nonsense leader like Pinarayi Vijayan is keeping quiet Possibily due to inner party politics. I am not suggesting that the Home Minister is implicated but in a state where terrorists have known to have recruited and trained with impunity should have a HOme Minister who is above suspicion. We cannot expect our leaders to rise above petty politics nor to have political morality. Ironically both India's strength and weakness stems from its democratic Institutions. As long as such kind of partisan politics score ovr national interests , we will be subject to such humiliation as Mumbai recently witnesseed. What about Raj Thakeray, the tiger The Big cat became a small rat the moment shooting started . I am sure he must have been hidding some where to come out once things are over to start his hate politics all over again. There are committed and tough leaders in all parties but the compulsions of inner party politics keep them away from taking the reins and also forces them to tolerate many compromised men.

From Varun

November 29, 2008 7:09 PM
Where is the MNS and its brave Sena. Hasent any one told them that their Mumbai needs to be saved and not from North Indian students this time, but from terrorists.

From Raman

November 29, 2008 8:32 PM
It is surprised to see that Raj Thackrey and R R Patil were totally missing from the scene. R R Patil who was on all TV channels few weeks ago telling to reply bullet by bullet for killing an innocent youth from Bihar was missing this time. Probably when going gets tough, tough takes a cofee break

From kmn

November 29, 2008 9:27 PM
Well this is easily one of the worse governments in terms of administration in the country and the silence, Indian governments always have been the more silent than other governments round the world. But what about media's loud voice(sometimes or in India tv's case always senseless)...giving out operational information and bringing out the same point again and again...there have been responsible media but there have been bad...there s a Mumbai article and even a india tv report where they said that Indian coast guard officers were killed and their vessels hijacked...and that the terrorists were carrying automatic revolvers..huh?...do they even know how low their credibility would stand with cases like that. and i don't understand whats the fashion of criticizing the government...people get the government they deserve....just like its important to have a intelligent and responsible media as people inform themselves through the fourth estate..and if you have dumb press you'll have you know... look i don't support the government in certain ways...but does one think that it was a government 20 years ago created NSG, i mean things work slowly in the government...like the people reforms acts or federal legislation. and while intelligence needs to be beefed up and we do need better security and a long term security stance needs to be taken...people and the press need to understand that for their desired results,you'd need sacrifice and commitment...how about we start from voting (from a moral perspective)only national parties(failures of this government has been mainly cause of its arrangement)

From kmn

November 29, 2008 9:30 PM
By the way Mr.Nasseriti, is it possible to take some kind of action against wrong information by the media, especially talking falsely and wrongly on sensitive matters such as death of coast guard sailors?

From Narayanan

November 29, 2008 10:49 PM
Yes the media is equally culpable. But one thing the readers should understand and try to make others understand is that security is the responsibiity of every citizen. Our cities are so crowded and the means of communication like mobile is with everyone. We should take it as our duty to alert when we see dubious things. Eternal vigilance is the price of our lives. Keep our eyes and ears open. Let all of us consider ourselves to be the security guards of this nation. That way we can better protect ourselves

From Naveena

November 30, 2008 8:43 AM
Well written Mr.Narisetti. It is indeed shocking that the Govt. is so inept and corrupt. It seems that all they care about is their power and the elections. Gee! a wrong word from them may alienate their precious voters so they search for the opportune moment and the right words and let the atrocities slide!

From Raju Narisetti

November 30, 2008 9:48 AM

KMN--Live television, especially in a fast moving story, does have its downside as anchors and producers tradeoff between getting news out, trusting their reporters to have done some due diligence and not being behind the curve. So some mistakes are legitimate. The problem is when irresponsible anchoring in studio takes over as seems to be the case. Unfortunately, there is no self-policing mechanism in Indian television nor are industry bodies powerful or influential enough to monitor their own. Not sure govt regulation (witness the temporary blackout strategy in Mumbai from the police) is the answer, but there is clearly a breakdown of accountability and self-scrutiny. It is mostly the same in print with the rather useless Press Council of India and Editors Guild. The unfortunate part is the Indian print media has successfully convinced the Indian government and large sections of population into believing that volunteer industry policing is working and TV not print is the problem. The reality is both these print policing organizations are a joke--ineffective and often missing-in-action. The answer ultimately is that each media outfit needs to police itself. But in a country where media outfits don't often have a written code of conduct--let alone actually living it each day--there is currently little hope for false information to be corrected and processes put in place for reducing chances of such false information reaching readers/viewers. Raju Narisetti

From zzz

November 30, 2008 12:18 PM
The Indian constitution, which is our bible to define our great democracy, provides every Indian citizen with the right to life, and now that basic fundamental right is under threat. A bunch of terrorists can walk into our country with stacks and stacks of arms and ammunition and hold India for ransom for three days and our entire political system failed to live up to our expectations. Kudos to the Indian army, the NSG, the fire fighters and all those who were in the line of fire trying to save our lives so that we can enjoy the basic fundamental right that was under threat few days ago. Questions have already been raised over intelligence failure, or even if intelligence was passed to the respective authorities, the central and the state government failed to act and the worst that political parties are looking to take mileage from innocent lives that have been lost to gain votes. But, even as answers to these are being found, I doubt how many of us can sit back and say that this government or new government or a particular political party or a particular leader will be able to give us the assurance or the comfort that our basic right to life is not in danger. Are we sure that system will give us an environment which is SAFE? We will continue to live in fear when you or your loved ones leave homes for work or schools, when we go out to eat with our families and friends. The train's and buses we commute, the flights we take or the mall we shop will they be SAFE.? I guess, it is time that someone gives an answer to the basic question. "WILL MY RIGHT TO LIFE BE SAFE-GUARDED.?" Although, I am miles away, the events of past three days have engulfed me, my family and I can take the liberty to say many Indians living abroad that a tragedy has fallen on our respective families. I know things are bad and like all Indian's I am confident that we will come out stronger, but I doubt, if our political system will learn from the mistakes. BUT ONE MORE TO OUR POLITICIANS: "PLEASE DON'T BOTHER MUCH ABOUT SUSTAINING 9% GROWTH, GOOD INFRASTRUCTURE, GOOD QUALITY POWER, BUT AT LEAST GIVE US RIGHT TO LIVE SAFELY. WAKE UP FROM SLUMBER."

From Rajni Kanth

November 30, 2008 1:08 PM
It is painful to see a lot of breast beating and sermonizing across the country on what we did not do and should have done. The unfortunate truth is Indians have become very good at pulling down each other and turning vulnerable to one and all, and our politicians have made brilliant examples. The US form of conscription is the need of the day. Every citizen must know how to defend oneself, and help others. How many of us know how to administer even first aid to someone lying injured in a road accident, let alone in a blast? The sad thing is you are forced to look the other way than help anyone in distress: maybe because you will be accused of having hurt them, or be exploited by someone because you were naive enough to offer help. What a society we are degenerating into! You need an iron hand to rule a billion-plus people, but then we shall be cited China. A benign dictatatorship in a country that has irrevocably gravitated away from discipline...unthinkable when goons are armed to the teeth and the police wields sticks and hides behind barriers and sandbags, picking on inccocent defenceless citizens because the ones with contacts need scapegoats. That's today's India. There's some icing on a cake of bitter truths... You will occasionally find a helping hand that will bail you out and never expect a word of thanks even. Maybe that's what keeps India going.

From narayanan

November 30, 2008 2:19 PM
We are talking in circles. Let this forum send out a clear message that as some of the participants said that security comes to a responsible citizenry. The media is surviving on hype. They dont care what is truth and untruth but many a time dramatic depiction of police brutality without caring to get even a shred of evidence by media has led to demoralisation among law enforcement agencies.Let us be on the look out for unusual things , suspicious activities, and alert some one around. That is all required to deal with such crimes which are pepetrated because you are off guard.

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From Yogesh

November 30, 2008 6:43 PM
It’s all over now. As an aftermath, Shivraj Patil has resigned. Many things are to follow. I am here to admit rather bluntly that I am unmoved by all. Yes, none of my keen died or injured in the attack. I was not even involved in the reporting of entire incident. The initial eagerness turned into fatigue. Television watching became intermittent thereafter. I cared to know, but little and not from the heart. Actually when rescue operation was on, I had started imagining the political fallout of entire episode. Karkare & Kampte’s death did initially shock me. But that shock did not last much. I missed the usual “spirit of Mumbai” & “Mumbai Meri Jaan” rhetoric. Perhaps that ‘spirit’ wasn’t alive this time. I also missed much of the political action. They shouldn’t been so inarticulate this time. Journalists’ action was interesting. I discovered many Maureen Dowd wannabe who updated the country bullet-by-bullet from warfront. Bachchan and his licensed .32 revolver under his pillow should have been played rather prominently, I felt. I also felt bloggers’ anguish was unjust. But I enjoyed Ramu and Ritesh Deshmukh accompanying Vilasrao Deshmukh at Taj during his first visit as a part of stock-taking. I saw frames of keens of deceased. Often short of words, the struggle while searching for words to express was anticipated. But nothing came out. Later I discovered, I have lost sensitivities. Grappled further to know how this happened ?. Answer came without many efforts. I realized that people losing their life has become routine here. And letting them lose their life is also a part of that bigger routineness which we see among our rulers. So I thank our rulers for taking my sensitivities out. (Comment is a reproduction of latest post on my blog)

From KMN

November 30, 2008 8:38 PM
Mr.Nasseriti,am very pleased by your reply, i do understand you'd be tied down with work but took time to reply, so thank you. i do agree that most things in this country are disorganized but let's put ourselves as someone who has a immediate family member in the coast guard, and when you hear news like that, imagine the trauma? or what about the role of media in linking a role of Pakistan and acting against Pakistan in military terms?... the media needs to tell the public that a direct military confrontation with Pakistan is not in India's interest, a war is not in the table except in unavoidable circumstances due to the nuclear deterrent (never even heard this in the media, especially that India's biggest strategic failure was Pakistan going nuclear) and for economic reasons. and that any instability with increasing mobilization of troops due to Pakistan diverting it's military from NWFP to the east, is not ideal, instead India should look at increasing it's military and intelligence presence in Afghanistan, nothing will hurt Pakistan more than that.. it's radical but its more strategic. But for now the media must put pressure in ways of police reform(the current act is dated 1869), that's the most important thing to do, have a federal agency (the government would have to simply combine IB and CBI with more teeth), a federal agency(like the homeland security) only to fight terror with independent charge and powers like the election commission.ch (by the way, i have been a keen reader of Mint, i live in Bangalore, and even before it was launched here i used to read it online, and when it did, my school library did not get mint, so i used to carry a copy of it to read it in school (school was pretty early) during the day, and i read 5 newspapares and a tv news junkie and rate Mint as very good.

From narayanan

December 1, 2008 12:22 AM
I am a bit amused at the earnestness with which we all debate non issues. It is one thing to talk in general terms but another to be precise. There are important issues that should worry us in the context of Mumbai events. We all know that in mumbai, there were accomplices and sympathisers for these terrorists. We were also told that a large number has landed. Have we fully accounted for them. If not what are we doing about it. The media, however good their mission of informing public has been behaving in a highly immature fashion. Every time coming out with the so called exclusives, not even explaining earlier discrepancies in their reporting and also pretending to be live telecasting the information the captured terrorist has been gladly giving police. Are police doing their job seriously or are they only being mere informant of a sensation hungry media. Is Narsi becoming a bit narcissist and readers massaging his ego liberally. Serious questions need to be asked and answered in the context of immediate practical requirements philosopy and prescriptive statements are no substitute for hard , fast and practical action on the ground. Please those who may read this writing disseminate the one thing that we all can do.Please keep your eyes and ears open. Dont take things for granted. If you are not responsible for your security no one else will be. Let us all be very effective and responsible intelligence gathering machines for India. The potency of a alert responsible citizenry is the best intelligence machinery that India can think of.

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From sapience

July 20, 2009 12:49 PM
Friends, Indians, Countrymen,Lend me not thou ears but thou souls,not you senses but your conscience. What a pity for country of more than 100 million people that we are waiting for the so called leaders to respond on the issue, it has therefore become our fate and destiny to bear the trauma and the misery of what we are directly responsible why not to yell together so as to make the people sitting in delhi and in washington listen to us and to work for us. Dont you know that India is the largest market for US let us all take a pledge that we would not consume any product which is any how related to US or its allies and they will hear us all. Rick

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