It’s been some time since the horrific attacks in Pulwama. The nation has been in a mourning since then and as the coffins of the martyred have arrived, the wailings of the populace have continued to echo in the Indian atmosphere. Amidst these wailings, the crescendo of the looming questions which this attack has raised hasn’t been shut down yet. Some of them are on the careless attitude of the authorities which permitted for such a big attack in the first place, and some have been on the way the Government has reacted after the attack. All these questions are really significant, keeping in mind the approaching general elections. As the relief funds and allocation keep pouring on the family of the martyrs, it’s really important to address the elephant in the room.
The first question which was asked just after the attack, and still needs to be asked is how such a big security breach happened. Keeping in mind that the convoy had tens of vehicles filled with CRPF soldiers, it is immensely careless on the authorities part to not have ample security measures for the convoy. The fact that the attackers already knew about the track, time and of movement of the convoy, highlights the big hole in the intelligence agencies of India. The attackers were said to have more than 250 Kgs of RDX. Now, this seems ridiculous that the intelligence agencies didn’t know that such a big amount of RDX was being collected for an attack in Kasmir; keeping in mind all the security deployments in Kashmir. So, the functioning of the authorities in Kashmir has been brought into public scrutiny.
This attack also raised questions about the willingness and capacity of the government and the army to provide security to its soldiers in the non-war period. It was not long ago that the infamous URI attacks happened, and not very later the attacks in Pulwama occurred. In fact, CRPF had asked for air-transit for the soldiers, but it was denied. As a result, this time the general uproar was even louder in the masses, and it hs forced the people to scrutinize the commitment the government has for its soldiers.
Many politicians have also questioned the timings of the attack. Mamta Banerjee, the CM of West Bengal said, “When elections are knocking on the door you are trying to stage a war… a shadow war. Amit Shah and Narendra Modi are delivering political speeches. Even after such a big mishap you do not resign taking responsibility and are instead delivering political speeches.” Her statement is very valid as even the day after the Pulwama attacks, Modi and Shah were busy campaignings for the coming elections. People are raising more and more questions on the way the Modi government is dealing with these attacks. The government seems to be lacking political commitment in dealing with these attacks. In fact, the Saudi crown prince is visiting India after visiting Pakistan, and India hasn’t raised enough questions in his mind regarding the Pulwama attack so that international pressure can be put on Pakistan. Social Media is bursting with war cries, but nothing substantial has been done by the government till now. In the coming days, it will be very interesting to see how the government responds to these lingering questions.
