Geopolitics

Stable Pakistan not in India's interest
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Issue Vol 23.3 Jul-Sep2008 | Date : 31 Oct , 2014

Map depicting export of terrorism from Pak soil

Indians pose the biggest threat to the union of India. The reason is simple. An average Indian does not constitute a nation but is merely an individual. His personal well-being overrides all other considerations including the national interests.

Therefore, many have begun to propagate parting of Kashmir in their write-ups, since it does not belong individually to them. However, imagine the hue and cry if their personal property and family is held hostage by the terrorists. They will sing a different tune!

Many conveniently propose the myth that a stable Pakistan is in India’s interest. This is a false proposition. The truth is that Pakistan is bad news for the Indian Union since 1947-stable or otherwise.

The blame lies with New Delhi. For the past sixty years, instead of consolidating the Union, leaders encouraged divisiveness on the basis of religion and caste for sheer vote bank politics. Instead of unifying its citizenry with good governance and increasing their stakes through prosperity, so that they may serve the cause of the nation with honor, it has treated its citizens with unprecedented shabbiness. The result is groups of citizens have risen against the state, mostly for lack of economic progress and denial of justice. Such disgruntled groups are being taken advantage of by the external forces inimical to India.

There can never be unity in diversity. Unity requires a fair amount of uniformity in laws throughout the Union.

That New Delhi is its own enemy became obvious, when it permitted the creation of a pure Islamic State on its borders. This nation-state contradicts every democratic and multi-cultural values dear to India.

Therefore, if New Delhi has not slept a wink since the creation of Pakistan, it has no one except itself to blame!

Islamabad, besides the wars it imposed on New Delhi, extended its so-called Islamic purity to the Kashmir Valley by instigating the locals to carry out ethnic cleansing of the minority communities.

The self-destructive path that Islamabad chose will either splinter the state into many parts or it will wither away-a case of natural progression to its logical conclusion.

Hence, first we created a state with inbuilt characteristic of fundamentalism, and extreme philosophy contrary to our professed beliefs; then the monster in it started ethnic cleansing in the Valley; and engineered demographic changes through Bangladesh in West Bengal, Assam and the Northeast. Saudi Arabia and other Islamic oil-rich countries pitched in with the petro-dollars in support. All in the cause of the illusion called Ummah and establishing the Caliphate!

The Indian leadership for its personal vote-bank gains helped these inimical forces by bringing the IMDT in Assam. Later, it was slammed as illegal by the Supreme Court. Too late – the damage was done, as the Union’s overburdened security forces, grapple with 15 million illegal Bangladesh infiltrators creating mayhem in the society.

Islamabad, Dhaka, and now Kathmandu, spurred on by  Beijing, have united with the singular agenda to unhook the Valley and the Northeast from the Union. In addition, they are instigating the Maoists who control almost forty percent of the Union’s territory, to set up a parallel government, and ultimately, like the Maoists in Nepal, win the elections in pockets of their influence, and impose a regressive authoritarian governments in tune with their own regime. Simple. Brilliant. And yet, New Delhi, instead of consolidating and unifying the Union, continues to divide its citizenry in religious or caste denominations.

In the past sixty years, New Delhi’s muddle-headed policies encouraged separatism.

With China’s one arm, i.e. Pakistan disabled, its expansionist plans will receive a severe jolt.

Instead of ensuring diffusion of secular pan-Indian culture, and integration of the society by encouraging Indians from all over to buy and develop land and industry in the Valley and the Northeast, it imposed restrictions on such settlements. Meanwhile, Pakistan and Bangladesh exported their fundamentalist populations to change the demographic hues in their interest. The ugly separatist face of the agitation in the Valley today is the consequence of the dereliction of the fundamental duty by the Union.

The trend needs to be reversed forcibly by integrating the Valley firmly into the Indian mainstream by creating a secular mix of population through industrialisation.

Many conveniently propose the myth that a stable Pakistan is in India’s interest. This is a false proposition.

The truth is that Pakistan is bad news for the Indian Union since 1947-stable or otherwise.

Pakistan’s breakup will be a major setback to the Jihad Factory, as the core of this is located in Pakistan, and functions with the help of its army and the ISI. This in turn will ease pressures on India and the international community.

It is factually correct that Islamabad has enjoyed brief periods of stability in the span of sixty years of its existence. However, during these phases of stability, it continued to export terrorism, fake currency, narcotics, and indulged in attempts to change demographics on our borders, cultivated sleeper cells and armed groups inside our territory to create an uprising at an appropriate time. Also, it aligned with Beijing and other powers, in a mutually beneficial scheme, to tie-down and ultimately cause a territorial split of the Union.

With Pakistan on the brink of collapse due to massive internal as well as international contradictions, it is matter of time before it ceases to exist.

Multiple benefits will accrue to the Union of India on such demise.

If ever the national interests are defined with clarity and prioritised, the foremost threat to the Union (and for centuries before) materialised on the western periphery, continuously. To defend this key threat to the Union, New Delhi should extend its influence through export of both, soft and hard power towards Central Asia from where invasions have been mounted over centuries.  Cessation of Pakistan as a state facilitates furtherance of this pivotal national objective.

The self-destructive path that Islamabad chose will either splinter the state into many parts or it will wither away-a case of natural progression to its logical conclusion. In either case Baluchistan will achieve independence. For New Delhi this opens a window of opportunity to ensure that the Gwadar port does not fall into the hands of the Chinese. In this, there is synergy between the political objectives of the Americans and the Indians. Our existing goodwill in Baluchistan requires intelligent leveraging.

Sindh and most of the non-Punjabi areas of Pakistan will be our new friends.Pakistan’s breakup will be a major setback to the Jihad Factory, as the core of this is located in Pakistan, and functions with the help of its army and the ISI. This in turn will ease pressures on India and the international community.With China’s one arm, i.e. Pakistan disabled, its expansionist plans will receive a severe jolt. Beijing continues to pose primary threat to New Delhi. Even as we continue to engage with it as constructively as possible, we must strive to remove the proxy. At the same time, it is prudent to extend moral support to the people of Tibet to sink Chinese expansionism in the morass of insurgency.For a change, let us do to them what they do to us! The chances of Central Asia getting infected with the Jihadi fervour will recede. Afghanistan will gain fair amount of stability. India’s access to Central Asian energy routes will open up. With disintegration of ISI’s inimical activities of infiltration and pushing of fake currency into India, from Nepal and Bangladesh will cease. Within the Union social harmony will improve enormously. Export of Islamic fundamentalism, with its 360-degree sweep from Islamabad, will vanish. Even a country like Thailand will heave a sigh of relief!

With disintegration of ISI’s inimical activities of infiltration and pushing of fake currency into India, from Nepal and Bangladesh will cease.

Above all, the gathering storm of threat from a united group of authoritarian regimes along our 14,000 km borders, orchestrated and synchronised by Pakistan will dissolve. At the height of the recent disturbances in the Valley, when a general asked me for a suggestion to resolve the issue, I said: “Remove Pakistan. The threat will disappear permanently.”  Today the collapse of Pakistan as a state is almost certain. All the King’s men cannot save it from itself.Looking ahead, New Delhi should formulate an appropriate strategy for ‘post-Pakistan scenario’ to secure India’s interests in Central Asia.

It is intriguing, therefore, to hear New Delhi mouthing the falsehood that stable Pakistan is in India’s interest. Perpetuation of such illogic for vote-bank politics is harming consolidation and integration of the Union. Short-sighted politicians as usual are overlooking the national interest for the short-term personal gains of few votes!

This article was first published in IDR Jul-Sep 2008 issue, (Vol 23.3).

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The views expressed are of the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions or policies of the Indian Defence Review.

About the Author

Bharat Verma

A former Cavalry Officer and former Editor, Indian Defence Review (IDR), and author of the books, India Under Fire: Essays on National Security, Fault Lines and Indian Armed Forces.

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22 thoughts on “Stable Pakistan not in India’s interest

  1. Concept of nation is not internalized by indians nor we have done anything positive to inculacate it or our policy makers felt the need 2 do so, inspite of being surrounded by unfriendly countries our leaders do not take us into confidence and neither tell us actions to be taken by us or them. Nationalism is stronger in countries where threat perception is high and enemy is strong. Compare america and china against vietnam and understand nationalism and quality of its leadership and then compare to indian leadership.

  2. Leaders encouraged divisiveness on the basis of religion and caste for sheer vote bank politics. Instead of unifying its citizenry with good governance and increasing their stakes through prosperity, so that they may serve the cause of the nation with honor, it has treated its citizens with unprecedented shabbiness. The result is groups of citizens have risen against the state, mostly for lack of economic progress and denial of justice. Such disgruntled groups are being taken advantage of by the ..
    There can never be unity in diversity. Unity requires a fair amount of uniformity in laws throughout the Union.

  3. as i prophecised earliar also islamic terror willl be mostly threat to whole of europe the recent french attack shows also srilanka new president sirsene is a buddhist hardliner , which shows the tamil minority shaivite hindu worshippers will not get there rights it is a bleak future , the trident which strikes everyone who comes on is path as predicted by nostradamus shows this leader being a shjaivite worshipper also the ltte goal of greater eelam which encompases whole of tamil nadu state, south karnataka , parts of kerala , parts of andhra pradesh , malaysia, singapore , thailand , indonesia a nostradamus prediction of man from east or a new hindu leader from ltte organisation who as greater ambition who will bring troble to countries of east . after capturing all such regions this new hindu leader will bind asia under is rule and slowly attack islamic countries nostradamus prophecies strikes everyone with rod . two cities in middle east burning most probably mecca and medina, this hindu leader most probably from ltte will become so strong that other hindu organisation like bajrag dal , vhp will join forces to attack islamic countries . many nostradamus prophecies have come through

  4. INDIA should make defence ties with isreal stronger to counter growing islamic

    terrorism at the same time INDIA SHOULD LIFT BAN ON LTTE OF SRILANKA THOUGH DEFEATED AND DEFUNCT TO PUT PRESSURE ON ISLAMIC TERRORISM IN SOUTH ASIA. EUROPE WITH SOME COUNTRIES LIKE ALBANIA, KOSOVO, BOSNIA HERGEGOVINIA BEING ISLAMIC COUNTRIES AND BULGARIA , HUNGARY , FRANCE , GERMANY HAVING MORE THAN 11 PERCENTAGE MUSLIM POPULATION ANDE MUSLIM MAN MARRYING PROSTITUTES IN INDIA , ATTICING HINDU , CHRISTIAN GIRLS FROM RICH FAMILIES IN EUROPE AND INDIA A GLOBAL LOVE JIHAD TO CONVERT AND INCREASE ISLAMIC POPULATION. IF WE DO NOT LIFT BAN ON LTTE WORLD MIGHT SLIP TOWARDS ISLAMICSTAN , LTTE CHIEFS PRABHAKARANS DEATH IS STILL A MYSTERY IS BIRTHDAY IS STILL CELEBRATED BY IS SUPPORTERS. REMEMBER NOSTRADAMUS PROPHIECIES A MAN FROM THE EAST WILL COME OUT OF IS SEAT TO STRIKE EVERYONE WITH IS ROD WITH THE BATTLE TAKING PLACE IN MIDDLE EAST WITH CITIES OF MIDDLE EAST MOST PROBABLY MECCA AND MEDINA BURNING WHEN THIS EAST LEADER ATTACKS IT REMEMBER NOSTRADAMUS CALLS MUSLIMS .MOORS , MAHUMADENS BUT NOT EAST ,THIS MAN FROM EAST IS MOST PROBABLY FROM INDIA OR CHINA VERY RARELY CHINA WITH THE COMMUNIST MENTALLITY WHICH IS AKIN TO ISLAMIC MENTALITY. LASTLY I WILL REQUEST NARENDRA MODI TO LIFT BAN ON LTTE IE LIBERATION TIGERS OF TAMIL EELAM.

  5. INDIA SHOULD MAKE DEFENCE TIES WITH ISREAL STRONGER TO COUNTER GROWING ISLAMIC TERRORISM. AT THE SAME TIME INDIA SHOULD LIFT BAN ON LTTE OF SRILANKA THOUGH DEFEATED AND DEFUNCT TO PUT PRESSURE ON ISLAMIC TERRORISM IN SOUTH ASIA. EUROPE WITH SOME COUNTRIES LIKE ALBANIA, KOSOVO, BOSNIA HERGEGOVINIA BEING ISLAMIC COUNTRIES AND BULGARIA , HUNGARY , FRANCE , GERMANY HAVING MORE THAN 11 PERCENTAGE MUSLIM POPULATION ANDE MUSLIM MAN MARRYING PROSTITUTES IN INDIA , ATTICING HINDU , CHRISTIAN GIRLS FROM RICH FAMILIES IN EUROPE AND INDIA A GLOBAL LOVE JIHAD TO CONVERT AND INCREASE ISLAMIC POPULATION. IF WE DO NOT LIFT BAN ON LTTE WORLD MIGHT SLIP TOWARDS ISLAMICSTAN , LTTE CHIEFS PRABHAKARANS DEATH IS STILL A MYSTERY IS BIRTHDAY IS STILL CELEBRATED BY IS SUPPORTERS. REMEMBER NOSTRADAMUS PROPHIECIES A MAN FROM THE EAST WILL COME OUT OF IS SEAT TO STRIKE EVERYONE WITH IS ROD WITH THE BATTLE TAKING PLACE IN MIDDLE EAST WITH CITIES OF MIDDLE EAST MOST PROBABLY MECCA AND MEDINA BURNING WHEN THIS EAST LEADER ATTACKS IT REMEMBER NOSTRADAMUS CALLS MUSLIMS .MOORS , MAHUMADENS BUT NOT EAST ,THIS MAN FROM EAST IS MOST PROBABLY FROM INDIA OR CHINA VERY RARELY CHINA WITH THE COMMUNIST MENTALLITY WHICH IS AKIN TO ISLAMIC MENTALITY. LASTLY I WILL REQUEST NARENDRA MODI TO LIFT BAN ON LTTE IE LIBERATION TIGERS OF TAMIL EELAM.

  6. Mr. Bharat Verma – May be you are swayed by the behavior of relatives and the government during Kandhahar hijack incident. At that time, I too had similar feeling, cursing the relatives for NOT showing patriotism and being selfish. Also the then government handled the whole event childishly with knee jerk reaction.

    However, please don’t question my patriotism. If necessary I will give all my savings (except for food about a year) to the nation, if necessary. Almost all Indians are like me. However considerable amount of them cannot afford to support the government because they are already living hand-to-mouth – thanks to the history of miss-governance.

  7. An entirely contrary viewpoint to mainstream thinking, argued with great lucidity by the author. There is no denying that the patriotism of most Indians can not be questioned, but then, there are always exceptions to the rule, which propagate this disquiet in our geo-political environment. There may, indeed, be incremental benefits in the dismemberment of Pakistan as argued by the author of this piece. But, why are we depending upon their internal contradictions to benefit our country? Why can not we dictate terms like some of our neighbours do? We should look at improving our defence capability, by reducing dependence on other nations, and being strong enough to depend upon ourselves. A country that has the wherewithal to touch the frontiers of space should be able to manufacture our own military hardware. Alas, our internal political priorities inhibit such possible growth. A country that has to depend upon others can never be intrinsically strong to fulfill it’s mandate. There has to be a shift in our policy outreach to give more space to the defence forces. Sounds difficult, but we must remember that, everyone prays the rising Sun.

  8. Indians are not any different from the rest of the world. We in America worry more about our property than distant happening in Iraq or Afghanistan. Even during days following 9/11, every individual went ahead and secured his own property better than before. The point here is our property is our property, we have worry more about it.

    The writer makes the right point in a convoluted way that, our nationalism has become self centred, it is because of communalism, caste politics or simply vote bank etc. That is not sufficient argument to call Indians any less patriots.

    Remember during 1962, Chinese invasion. Or 1965, 71 and 99 wars, sufficient patriotic zeal was shown to unnerve the enemy. People emptied their coffers to contribute for the war effort.

    In everyday life it is not essential to show off patriotic zeal. People go about their life in their own way and when the time comes to vent off their patriotic zeal, they do sufficiently well.

    Other points in this opinion making paper are sufficiently well argued. Whether these are valid or not is another matter.

  9. I heartily congratulate the writer of this article, who has gone in depth about how important it is see Pak erased off from the world map. But it could have been still better that the indian history of this nature starts much before the partition, in good olden days the advent of invaders, who were encouraged to settle here by offering wine women and wealth by those who always followed the appeasement policies. History has abundant proof to this and that trickled to the present situations.

  10. How many wars from 14 August 1947? Oct 1947, Summer 1965 in Kutch, August 1965 in JK Punjab, March to December 1971 in Bangladesh and Western Sector, May June 1999 Kargil, December 1999 Kandhar, December 2001 Parliament attack, November 2008 in Mumbai. JLN ehru internationalized domestic issue by taking to UN. What was won in 1965 was surrendered at Tashkent in January 1966. Inspite of having 93000 POWs, Indira Gandhi did not exchange with POK. For Kargil, the CEC Manohar Singh Gill and Congress colluded to prevent decisive response, For Kandhar, the Congress sponsored hired weepers demanding release of terrorists, for Parliament attack, the Congress Party’s President prevented response, and for Mumbai 2008, the Congress Government did not retaliate for ensuring victory in Delhi assembly elections. The real culprits are the Congresspersons and their ever supporting media. It is mystifying how TV channels got the satellite mobile numbers of handlers and terrorists in November 2008. The basic instinct of Congress has been to secure captive Muslim votes by incarnating itself as Muslim League in post Independence India by continuing Shariat Act, frustrating common civil code, retaining 370. The sins of 60 years will not be wiped out even in 60 months. The Congress, communists, Muslim Leaguers and Maoists have always got common cause, and the panelists espousing these causes are regularly and religiously let loose on the viewers from TV studios.

  11. The Author says That New Delhi is its own enemy became obvious, when it permitted the creation of a pure Islamic State on its borders. as if detachment of Sindh valley was in New Delhi’s hand, Whereas British empire detached Sindh Valley from rest of India on 14th August 1947, and gave libration to New Delhi on 15 August 1947. Hence blaming New Delhi is totally wrong. He can blame New Delhi for failure in further breaking of Pakistan into several parts although it was easy in 1971, but normal audience do not know that USA barred new Delhi from further breaking up of Pakistan or it was a local decision of a cease fire. May author Mr. Bharat Varma know better about this? In his other articles he says Bangladeshis are not a headache for India is also shows that intentionally he is ignoring situation of Assam and eastern India. It looks he is just after secular government of New Delhi. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

  12. A detailed and accurate analysis of india and pakistan , the lack lustre attitude of india has helped pakistan alwayas and this is all due to vote bank politics and appeasement tactics of our political leaders.Thanks alot for this information

  13. These are not good thoughts, but terrible thoughts which implicate a breakdown of a nuclear power (Pak) and the humiliation of a nuclear superpower (China), dreaming, that India could get away with that.

    a) Pakistan will not simply vanish or evaporate, its army and the ISI will both fight to preserve their country. A unstable Pakistan will most likely risk a nuclear war, in order to unite the people of Pak against its old arch-enemy India. Each nuclear war will kill millions of Indians. Delhi as a city would have no chance of survival, – and Islamabad facing the same fate, should be no relief to anyone. After the war the rests of India will bury all dreams of a developed India for the next 200 years.

    b) If Pakistan breaks apart, who will get access to at least a few nuclear devices? Very likely anti-indian groups of jihadis. India was destabilized by a few youngsters with AK-47 in their hands during the Mumbai attacks, does anyone here wish them to have nuclear devices???

    c) China´s interests will not vanish, because its arm or proxy Pakistan breaks apart. They want Gwador, and if necessary, they will support proxy-groups in Baluchistan or Sindh to get it. China is cold-blooded and flexible. Pakistan serves no longer as a proxy? Then make Baluchistan one. It is a dream to count Baluchistan as a natural friend of India. (The muslim people of Kashmir once were pro-indian. What are they now?)

    d) The true battle is the economy. India should avoid a war as long as possible (best possibility: for ever), and make its economy to be a true challenge for China.

    e) Pakistan is a terrible neighbour. Right. But even a terrible neighbour can change.

    Nobody knows what will happen in the next decade.

    Committing suicide for fear of future is an absurdity, indians shoud be wise enough not mess up all the great chances, fate provides them. What you can not change through military means, you have to tolerate, even if it is hard.

    Good Luck and best wishes from Europe.

    • Your insulting comment clearly shows : whatever fills the space between your two ears, sadly enough it is not a brain.

      By the way: I am a German of indian (Hindu) origin who has many relatives in India ( Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai) and does not like the idea that in case of a nuclear war they will ( not might !) be burned to ashes instantly.
      All these cities are primary targets, and it is completely unlikely that the indian military can decapitate all (!) nuclear capabilities of Pakistan in an commando-assault or an air-raid.
      If the life of my relatives does not bother you: Can India survive economically without Mumbai? No ?? Then do not put it at risk.

      One of India´s problems is the fact, that its population is lacking personal experience with war. War always has been something a professional army was undertaking somewhere else, and the supporters at home were watching and commenting it from a very safe distance. The problem you should realize is that in the nuclear age no safe distance exists any more.

  14. India need not and has never bothered (worried) about Pak. It is only when Pak stings, India bites back and bites hard. Pak has definitely cheated all countries. They even seem to cheat their best friends – the Chinese.
    India (R&AW), the USA (CIA) and Europe (various agencies) must unite and find and share intel about the locations of nuclear weapons of Pak. Once done, a coordinated attack with American and European air and naval power and Indian air, ground and naval power – should be launched – destroying the nuc sites, military installations and terror camps – including Jud, LeT, Hamid Gul, etc., etc. in as short a duration as possible. This would be a comprehensive “terroricide” and the whole world would be at peace.
    It is imperative that their nukes be destroyed. India has a no first use of nuclear weapons policy, but Pakistan has made repeated threats of using the weapon.

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