On the Pahalgam Terror Attack

This chain of thoughts was first shared on Twitter / X on the night of 24th April 2025.

Folks sharing some thoughts on the #PahalgamTerrorAttack. Here goes ..
 
To begin with, I think this visual of a newlywed couple on their honeymoon shall remain forever etched in my mind whenever this incident in particular and the name of Pakistan in general comes up.
 
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By now we all know what happened.
 
Tourists were asked their religion & those who were adherents of the ‘wrong’ faith were killed without second thoughts by those who follow the ‘correct’ deen. The first thought that came to my mind upon hearing this was the speech by Asim Munir:
 
 
Of course, with the benefit of hindsight, this was not just hot air and bluster from the Brown Panted Chief, but a ‘Call to Action’ to stir up the terror pot in India.
 
But then, I find it amusing that many of our own people were aghast upon hearing this.
 
If you think Munir was out of his mind in talking this trash against Hindus, then I have a white coloured building in Agra to sell to you!
 
Don’t believe me?
 
Well, here is what a top Indian diplomat came to hear from a six-year old girl in Pakistan:

Yup.

‘H!ndu Kutt@’ is the way these Paakis define you and me. Do note the spontaneous laughter from the audience on this ‘joke’ in a popular show in Pakistan:

You and I may go to town professing our love for the Paakis, light thousands of candles on Wagah-Atari Border in ‘solidarity’ with them and go gaga over their actors in Bollywood movies.

But to them, we were, we are and we always will be the enemy.

Period.

What we lack is ‘शत्रुबोध‘ against the ones who have sworn to annihilate us not just physically, but also as a civilization.

These people revere marauders who raped and killed / converted their own Hindu ancestors.

Sadly, these bastard children of their great grandmothers’ rapists have allies within Indian borders as well – wittingly or unwittingly.

These people see their history as starting from when Mohammad bin Qasim conquered Sindh. Nothing before that is relevant. And if you think it is their Madrasas that teach this to their kids, then you couldn’t be more wrong. This what their schools teach : State Sponsored Radicalization in Pakistan’s School Curriculum: Part 2 of 3

So what come next?

How do we get rid of this rabid entity called Pakistan that occupies what were our own lands less than a century ago?

Short answer – HUMILIATE them at every given opportunity, militarily or better still, psychologically.

Even if it does not kill their hatred towards you and me, it will scare them enough to keep them at bay for some time atleast. Remember, after the humiliating Battle of Bahraich, the invaders didn’t dare look towards India for over a century.

Closer to our times, the humiliation of 1965 was not digestible for them and thus, they came back for yet more humiliation in 1971. After 1971, the Brown Panted Ones have never dared confront Indian Armed Forces face to face in open war.

Yes, they tried Kargil. But in their own words, they never thought Indian Armed Forces would react so violently to it.

Bottomline: HUMILIATION is what keeps them at bay, till the time they forget their aukaat & come back again at you.

Keep humiliating them, & there will be peace.

Which is why the decision to put Indus Water Treaty in abeyance has rattled them so much!

They could react to Surgical Strikes by denial. They could react to Balakot by ‘Swift Retreat’ & losing an F-16. But to this, they have no counter, except shout WAR!

Btw, talking about ‘War’, this is what their erstwhile Brown Panted Chief had to say about their famed Brown Panted Army!

Just watch this video from the 3-minute mark.

This was their CHIEF speaking!

Coming back to the IWT, I have written a bit about it in the past as well. Shall share those threads at the end of this thread. But one thing that merits attention is the wording used in the very beginning of the text of the Treaty. It is this :

Yes, IWT was signed under a smokescreen of ‘peace and friendship’ that has cleared off now. There is not much that Pakistan can do except cry, or if they dare, then to take military action. And we all know how that has ended for them, each and every time!

But, something tells me this is not all that is coming their way.

No Sir!

Not when Indian Prime Minister switched to English in the middle of a speech to a non-English speaking audience.

Why?

Ask those who heard it & understood in the Western Hemisphere.

If this is not an announcement of much worse headed the way of Pakistan, then I don’t know what else it is.

The Paakis overplayed their hand in #PahalgamTerrorAttack.

They thought they would sour the visit of Vance, just as they did during Clinton’s time :

The Paakis thought they would hide behind ‘indigenous freedom struggle’ by using local terrorists.

But to their utter surprise, GOI never bothered with such technicalities. Instead, they acted swiftly and decisively by targeting the IWT and Paaki Diplomatic Staff straight away!

It was almost as if the GOI had already made plans for any such provocation long ago!

Mind you, I say this not to belittle the lives lost in Pahalgam. But instead, to point to the fact that Pakistan just cannot be expected to NOT come and kill us at every given opportunity.

That said, I think they miscalculated wrt to this terror attack – Either in the sheer numbers of casualties that the yahoos inflicted, or in the response from the GOI. I’m sure there would be a LOT of nervous discussions going on within Pakistan since then.

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So what comes next?

And more importantly, what is the likelihood of further punitive actions by India?

Well, in my opinion, the likelihood is high.

When and How, is what needs to be seen.

Why do I say this?

Well, because of the extremely strong actions thus far and the extremely harshly worded statements from the Prime Minister, Raksha Mantri and Home Minister.

Then there are the visuals of the Home Minister paying respects to the departed souls. The similarity with the Prime Minister doing the same in the aftermath of the Pulwama Attack is unmissable. Feel free to disagree.

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This has been our trajectory thus far:

A war/near war every decade:

1947-48

1965

1971

1984/87 (Siachen/Brasstacks)

1999 (Kargil)

2002 (Parakram)

2019 (Pulwama/Balakot)

This decade still awaits one. Judging by the way things are panning out, the wait may not be for very long.

How the next part of Indian retaliation comes about, is anyone’s guess.

It may be military retaliation. Or it may be through other means.

But one thing is for sure – It will have to be something that cannot be hidden away or wished away by Pakistan.

Retribution will not only have to be served, but also be SEEN as having been served.

THIS is what will get you to the humiliation of the Brown Panted Rulers of Pakistan that I talked about in the beginning.

It doesn’t only need to be SEEN, but I would want it to be SPECTACULAR as well.

Spectacular enough to drown out the horrific visuals of Pahalgam Spectacular enough to keep these self-styled successors of Saiyyad Salar Masud away from my lands for atleast a decade, if not a century.

After the Army (Surgical Strikes) and the Air Force (Balakot), will it be the Navy that will do the honours this time? Remember, they were raring to go even in Feb 2019!

Unfortunately, I cannot see the future and don’t know what will happen next. But what I surely can say is that this war has been going on since the day Pakistan begins its history from, i.e. 8th Century AD. Any lull is bound to be temporary. Period.

Unfortunately for us, we’ve been conditioned to seek instant gratification instead of looking at things the way they actually are – A never ending battle for the very soul of our civilization (Fortunately, there’s a mute button on Twitter for such 👇 idiots!) 

As I try and conclude this chain of thoughts, I will share this tweet 👇 from four years ago before moving ahead. I still stand by it. Once again, feel free to disagree.

A word on how Pakistan is reacting to it. In one simple phrase – Like a headless chicken!

They have banned India owned airlines from using their precious airspace!

But interestingly, they DARE NOT ban airlines from other countries because every other country in the world is a potential donor to this beggar nation!

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I don’t think we will need to wait too long before a prominent Pakistani politician or military man (serving or retired) will make the first mention of nukes.

THAT is how rattled Pakistanis are currently.

We have shown them the other cheek far too many times even in my living memory, what to talk about our history since 1947 or even before that. I say it is time to stop that now. It is time to grease the wheels of history with the blood that makes them move.

This is what I wrote about 11 years ago. Still holds true. There WILL be pain over the short term, but in the larger scheme of things, it won’t matter much.

I am of the firm opinion that with a Pakistan that is subdued in whatever form, quite a bunch of our internal issues will also take care of themselves.

And the Pakistan that I look to see subdued includes the terror central in Rawalpindi.

With this I conclude this particular chain of thoughts. Remember, the enemy is a coward. He runs away at the first hint of a strong reaction. For example, just count the number of terror attacks in India outside of J&K since 26/11 Mumbai Attacks.

Pakistan has been testing and pushing our redlines since 15 Aug 1947 itself. Thus far we had been willing to turn the other cheek. But that window passed about a decade ago when the BSF pounded the hell out of Pakistan Rangers in Oct 2014.

Deep down, Pakistan knows it as well. But their ego prevents them from acknowledging it. Hence my insistence on HUMILIATION, because nothing else will work on such an enemy.

Read your scriptures and ‘mythology’. Notice that destroying asuras was a bounden duty for the sake of preserving your Dharma. 

With this I conclude my thread.
Hope it made some sense to you. If not, well .. so be it!
I look fwd to seeing what comes next.

I shall just leave 2-3 threads on the Indus Water Treaty since it is so much in news currently.

Thread 1 on IWT :

Thread 2 on IWT :

Thread 3 on IWT :

And a real-world manifestation of what I see as the only way to get lasting peace in our lands 👇👇

Missed this one regarding Paaki ‘artists’ working in Indian films 👇

:fin:

On the Movie Chhaava

Folks, sharing some thoughts on the movie ‘Chhava’. I watched it about three weeks ago with my elder one. The Missus and the younger one had watched it a few days earlier. I normally stay away from films, however this one pulled me. Glad that it did.

Let me try & explain ..

Before moving ahead, just a gentle reminder that earlier this month was the 336th martyrdom anniversary of Sambhaji Maharaj. Here’s a tribute thread in his honour. May have a look : Dharmveer Sambhaji Maharaj

Coming back to Chhaava, I don’t intend to talk about the movie itself, except for exhorting you to go & watch it with your kids It is one part of our history that they will NEVER learn in their school textbooks unless GOI makes a concerted effort to do so.

Instead, I intend talking about the use of the popular medium of movies to subtly and at times, blatantly, peddle narratives and shape opinions. To that end, @vivekagnihotri hits the nail on the head here.

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(Link to above tweet : https://x.com/vivekagnihotri/status/1902359513438810554 )

If you think the Indian film industry has NOT been used as a tool to peddle propagandas / narratives, then I have a white coloured building in Agra to sell to you!

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Btw, if the movie poster in the above tweet looked to you like reinforcing my statement in the tweet, they you are perfectly right!

For those who missed it, let me introduce you to the film ‘Youngistan‘! (Wiki Link : Youngistaan)

Check out the film plot in the Wiki page.

Check out the release date – March 2014.

Now check out the hero.

Tell me if he doesn’t seem based on a Youth Leader who was leading a major national political party in the elections that were due shortly after the release of the film!

Of course, if you say I am reading too much into what is a matter of pure coincidence, I won’t blame you. In fact, I will share yet another piece of pure coincidence with you. It is popularly called ‘Chennai Express’! (wiki link : Chennai Express)

Release date : 09 August 2013.

Key Dialogue used widely in promotions : Never Underestimate the Power of a Common Man!

A wonderful dialogue indeed. Especially when later that year, the Common Man Party contested Delhi elections and came to power!

Of course, the above two examples can be dismissed as benign coincidence. I won’t contest you if you say so. I might even agree with you to some extent. But then, the element of doubt will always remain.

Now let us look at some movies based on nationalist / patriotic themes made some two decades ago, that came to be really popular. What immediately come to mind are Border, LoC Kargil, Lakshya and Gadar.

Of these, Lakshya was the last one, released in 2004. After that I don’t recollect any films on such themes that gained popularity till the time Uri and Kesari came about in 2019.

Check out the years mentioned in the above tweet and relate them with the political winds prevalent within the country in those times. I won’t say more on this because aim of this blog post is not to make any political statements, but instead, concentrate on the topic of narratives.

The thing is that the battle of narratives and counter-narratives is well and truly underway, with Bollywood being a major medium being utilised. Of course, commercial considerations will always be there due to the huge amounts of funds required for producing a film.

That a @vivekagnihotri could make films like Tashkent Files and Kashmir Files and make profit out of it as well, speaks volumes about the times that we currently live in .. times where talking about parts of our history hidden in plain sight are no longer taboo. On the contrary, I would even say that there is a huge, emerging demand for such stories to be told by popular media. And going by that, I am pretty sure there will be more movies such as Kashmir Files and Chhaava that will come by in the months and years ahead.

Along with that will also come the ‘outrage’ by those who will take it as a personal insult for movie makers daring to tell the truth without coating it in political correctness, just like Chhaava.

The ‘liberal’ ones will continue to beat their chests on every such occasion, while defending violence committed by the ground soldiers. @NAN_DINI_ Ji puts it in perfect context, so instead of writing more on this, I’ll just leave this tweet here.

(Link to above tweet)

As @NAN_DINI_ Ji says in her tweet above, ‘they’ don’t want our kids to know our unvarnished history. And they will go to any extent to make that happen. Talking about ‘them’, I just remembered this tweet of mine.

As per the biography of Ramanand Sagar Ji, Shri Bhaskar Ghose Ji wanted him to ‘reduce Hindu content in Ramayan and make it more secular’. Yes, that is what the son of Ramanand Sagar Ji writes in the book! Check out the screenshots in the tweet above!

In fact, telecast of Ramayan and Mahabharat in the late 80s spurred the political movement that ultimately resulted in current day leadership steering the Motherland today.

‘They’ know the power of narratives.

Hence they try to scuttle unfavourable narratives either thru bureaucratic means, or else by street-level violence, even if the ‘narratives’ are merely about people daring to tell the true history as it happened. Talking about the lengths ‘they’ will go to obfuscate truth, I’ll just leave this video here. ‘Yudhishthira got idea of renunciation From Ashoka’, says the ‘renowned historian’ Romila Thapar Ji.

No wonder they don’t want our children to know about the evil side of ‘Great’ Dynasties. And they will relegate truly great indigenous rulers who actually fought these ‘Great’ dynasties to barely a paragraph or mere footnotes in history books, if at all.

Heck, they don’t even teach our kids about the contemporary military history of our Motherland. Shared some thoughts on that as well some weeks back. Replugging that thread here all over again :

In fact, Battle of Saragarhi is taught in France of all places, as a story of exceptional valour while our own school textbooks remained (and continue to be) perfectly silent on it.

The movie Kesari that told the story all over again, but then, the coming generations will still have no idea about it. Unless we as a Nation make a conscious effort to tell these stories to our future generations, that is.

(Link to above tweet. MUST watch the video embedded in it)

I want my kids and my grandkids to know about Lachit Barphukan, Rani Tarabai, Ram Prasad Bismil, Banda Singh Bahadur, Rani Abbakka, Kakathiyas, Satavahanas and the countless other heroes and heroines who have fought fearlessly for the sake of our lands.

As I conclude this thread, I’ll plug this chain of thoughts here as well. Left to ‘them’, Shivaji will never be ‘The Great’ and instead be relegated to the nomenclature of ‘Mountain Rat’ in the textbooks our kids study from.

Coming back to the movie Chhaava, I made both my kids read this blog post of mine before going for the movie : Dharmveer Sambhaji Maharaj. The violence visited on the captive Sambhaji Maharaj was depicted in all its evil ‘glory’ by the director, yet it remained greatly underplayed in the movie. I take it that any more gore / violence and the movie might not have been cleared by the censors.

Yet, it depicted enough and importantly, unapologetically and without trying to colour it in secularism.

THAT is what seems to have riled the ‘ecosystem’ – this hard-hitting and unabashed telling of truth.

The movie is a MUST WATCH, if you haven’t seen it thus far.

As for my kids, the younger one was silent at the end of the movie (just as he was when he watched Kesari). From the theatre, my wife and he had already planned to go to a nearby Shiv Mandir and they did so. The elder one too was moved. Yet, being the young adult that he is, he merely said in his typical understated, ‘cool’ way – Ekdum Badhiya Movie Thi.

The entire theatre was dead silent towards the end of the movie, which says a lot about it.

With this I conclude this chain of thoughts. I hope it made some sense. If not, then .. well .. so be it!

Thanks for your patience.

Go watch the movie if not done already!

A Visit to the Maha Kumbh

This chain of thoughts was shared on twitter on the night of 17 Jan 2025. Link to the thread on twitter : https://x.com/CestMoiz/status/1880267596702052855

Folks, Sharing snippets from my trip to Prayagraj to witness the Maha Kumbh earlier this week. Missus and I spent four days and five nights in the city, reaching there on the night of 11 Jan and returning back home on the night of 16 Jan.

Here goes ..

First and foremost, MUST plan a trip to Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh!

It is a once in 144 year event and we are blessed to be alive at this point in time to be able to witness it. For so many people, a Maha Kumbh won’t ever be even a once in a lifetime event.

As we drove into the city, we could sense magic in the very air. The entire city was in an upbeat mood, despite waves after waves of humanity descending there. Thankfully, we had booked our stay in the month of October itself and were comfortable that way, unlike many others.

Having parked our car, we just let it remain there for the next four days. This was partly due to us not quite knowing the city and partly also because of the traffic restrictions put in place by the police in order to facilitate the floods of pilgrims that had come for the event.

We realized later that the massive crowds were there because the first two days of the Maha Kumbh, i.e., 13th and 14th Jan were for Shaahi Snaans of Magh Poornima and Sankrant. After Sankrant, the crowds visibly thinned down. Will come to that in a while.

Morning of 12th was our first day in the town. We took a rickshaw for the Ganga Ghat near Naag Vasuki Mandir. Thankfully, the rickshaw driver lost his way and we ended up across Maa Ganga, at the entrance to the Mela Grounds!

We entered the area & were pleasantly surprised to see the arrangements put in place by the administration. The various ‘shivirs’ were very well laid out. The entire area is divided into a vast grid with lanes criss-crossing each other at right angles, making it easy to navigate.

The pathways are paved with metal boards for ease of driving for vehicles permitted inside the Mela Grounds. The various ‘Shivirs’ too are fairly well decorated, depending on how deep the pockets of the organisers are!

Sharing one particular camp that I found really interesting!

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And of course, it being UP, Shri JCB Ji was there as well, though this time for a very benign purpose!

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The sheer Bhakti and Devotion that the crowds from all over the country brought along with them was something that could be felt in the very air we breathed. I kid you not when I say that it was almost as if one could actually ‘see’ the beautiful vibes in the air.

The first day was spent volunteering at a Shivir where tea / bhandaara was a continuous affair from 5am till 11pm every day. Three out of our four days were spent volunteering at this Shivir, in fact. Such was the bhakti, that the person managing the Shivir had actually quit his job to be able to spend the 50-odd days there, managing and serving for nearly 18 hours a day, along with his wife & kids. They all and some more volunteers were in fact staying within the camp itself.

Serving food to folks from different strata of society was a strangely spiritual experience. One could see that devotion in even the poorest of the people. And also see how content many of them actually are. They took extra care to ensure not a morsel was wasted, and only took just as much as they needed. This included packed meals for a parent or a child or even a sibling who wasn’t able to come for the Bhandaara. All prasad was gratefully and smilingly accepted and consumed.

Talking about the prasad, the first day’s fare was kadhi-chawal. Once again, I kid you not when I say that even though cooked in bulk, it tasted heavenly. The only reason that I can fathom for that is the Bhaav with which the cooks were preparing the prasad. They worked round the clock, but with the same energy throughout the four days that one saw them, regardless of the time of the day.

This brings me back to the arrangements. Each ‘Shivir’ had an electricity connection and atleast 4-5 tap water connections with water supply at good pressure throughout the day. The sheer logistics of it all are actually mind-boggling.

Then there were the Safai Karmachaaris. I had read somewhere before coming to Prayagraj that nearly 10,000 Safai Karmacharis were employed. While there, I could actually see them in action, working without supervision and ensuring cleanliness of the highest order.

Hats off indeed!

They would invariably form a decent chunk of those coming over for the Bhandaara as well.
In fact, it was an eye-opener for me to note that the entire city of Prayagraj is amongst the cleanest ones that I have visited thus far.

And I say this after having seen Indore as well.

There were more than adequate sanitary facilities as well for both genders that too were being cleaned almost round the clock by dedicated safai karmachaaris.

By the evening of our first day in the Mela Grounds, it became a bit cold and there was a light drizzle as well. This had me a bit worried.

Why?

Because next day was the first day of the Maha Kumbh and we planned to take a dip in Ma Ganga in the morning!

And I was already shivering!

So here is how the next day went ..

But before that, a quick word about the local police. They are on duty everywhere, as are thousands of additional policemen requisitioned for the duty. They stand on their posts in bitter cold, amidst a sea of humanity out there in full force. Yet, each and every policeman that we stopped by to ask for directions or any other information, was really polite and actually happy to help. Not just us, but the 100s more that would have stopped to seek guidance from them.

As I said before, the entire air was alive with Magic!

Coming back to the morning of the 13th.

It was the first day of the Maha Kumbh and we planned to take a dip in Ma Ganga at the Dashashwamedh Ghat instead of going to the Sangam that day. We got up early and moved out.

Btw, this time I was wearing a newly purchased chappal instead of the leather sandals that I wore the previous day because they had given me a shoe-bite! Looking back, I think it was only appropriate because I dared to wear leather in the holy Mela Grounds!

So we hailed an e-rickshaw and he promised to take us as far as the police would permit!

This meant alighting about 2km before ‘Daaraganj’ and commencing our walk as part of the large throngs of devotees headed that way. This pic was clicked by the Missus that morning. It perfectly captured the faith and devotion of folks who travelled that way from each and every part of the country. I’ll just leave it here without any further comment.

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Thankfully, we were able to find an e-rickshaw after walking for about a kilometre. Apparently, some were voluntary ‘stuck’ on the other side of the barricades and would only ply within that area because once out of there, they would not be permitted back in!

Thus we reached the Ghat. Heartbeat grew faster as the moment of the snaan came closer.

It was partly due to anticipation of the event that had build up over the past 7 months when we had decided to visit the Maha Kumbh, but partly also due to the cold winter morning of that day!

However, a snaan had to be undertaken and so it was.
The waters were cold, no doubt, but the snaan was so beautifully invigorating and cleansing that one cannot describe it in words.

I will try to do so as I talk later in this thread about the snaan in Sangam the next day.

Let it suffice to say that the day just became even more beautiful after the snaan.

Once again the ghaat was really clean and being continuously cleaned all the time as well. There were good facilities for the ladies too to change after the snaan.

And then there was the famous ‘Nimbu-Chai’ as well as my weakness – Cotton Candy. Both were consumed before we walked across Ma Ganga via Bridge 15 – one of the many temporary bridges constructed for the event. The bridge took us straight to the Mela Ground.

This was when I remarked to my wife – ‘Now I understand why it is called a Mela!

The previous day, we had entered the grounds from the other end, where there were all the Shivirs. This day, as we entered from the Ganga Ji side, we realized what a beautiful Mela was underway!

There was pure festivity in the air, along with the unmistakable aura of bhakti. So we stopped before going to ‘our’ shivir and had steaming hot bhuna hua chana, with a cocktail of masalas adding to the flavour. Sheer Bliss, I tell you!

As we turned towards the Shivir, a speeding SUV suddenly screeched to a halt. In it was a ‘V.I.P Babaji’ (Copyright for this term rests with Shri @cestmoiz Ji! 😁🙏). The driver was in a rush, even as I signalled with my hand for him to slow down, lest he run over some poor soul!

I made eye contact with the ‘V.I.P Babaji’ while doing so and he politely smiled at me.

But the driver glared at the walkers for daring to slow him down!

Two different sides of a coin, I’d say.

While on the topic of ‘V.I.P Babajis’, on our last day in the Mela Ground, a vehicle crossed us from behind at great speed, with sirens blazing. I thought it was an ambulance, till the time I saw it to be a private vehicle, followed by yet another SUV of yet another ‘V.I.P Baba’!

Anyhow, back to the Mela on day two of our trip which was also the day one of the Maha Kumbh. Once again, the day was spent serving food to folks who came visiting the little Shivir that we were volunteering at.

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It was sometime in the midst of this that I had an epiphany of sorts.

Where we had spent months and weeks agonizing over planning our trip, where to stay, how to commute etc, many such simple folks had just gotten up and reached Prayagraj, trusting fate to take care of them.

That day the Bhandaara lasted from 11 am till 5pm & was still on as the Missus & I left the camp. On the way out, I couldn’t help but think of all those stories in the movies about kids getting separated in Kumbh ka Mela. It seemed very unlikely that day, seeing the arrangements.

But as luck would have it, at just about that time my wife and I got separated!

Thankfully, she called up on my mobile and we could find each other again, without having to wait for so many years as might typically happen in a bollywood film!

Next day we had planned for a dip in Sangam on the occasion of Sankrant. Sadhus and various Akharas had already taken the dip during the early morning hours of between 3 and 5 am that were reserved for them. We commoners started from our lodgings at about 8:30 am.

This day, traffic was halted nearly 7km from Sangam. Crowds too were massive, even when compared to the day prior. However, crowd control was excellent and there were one-way lanes for pilgrims in order to avoid any ‘dhakka-mukki’.

And unlike the crowds in say, Karol Bagh Market of Delhi, these crowds didn’t make me perturbed or short-tempered. We were all one in our pursuit of the spiritual experience at Sangam.

All energies all around us were pure and blissful as the sea of humans snaked thru the streets.

The crowds were really thick, but one never felt claustrophobic. Space and traffic management was excellent and never once did we encounter a ‘traffic jam’. Such was the beauty of the traffic management, that we were even able to halt in the middle of it all and take this video!

The police were very ruthless in restricting access to even fellow policemen in uniform who wanted to reach their place of duty on their motorcycles!

We decided to take a boat to Sangam from the Qila Ghaat. Looking back, this turned out to be a great decision!

For one, the views were fantastic!

The Qila Ghaat is situated on the banks of the Yamuna River. From here, it took about 20 minutes for us to reach Sangam by boat. The boatsmen charged a mere Rs 400 per passenger for the 80-90 minute round trip instead of attempting to rip us off.

There were eight of us on the boat, including four women and a guy from a Gujarati family. They were in great spirits, joking around with each other, with us and with the ‘Kevat’ as well.

Once again, there were hundreds of boats in water and yet, a perfect method to the madness.

At the Sangam, we were taken to an area where there was a sandbar on which water was about chest deep. Once again, a snaan was done, with this time one extra dip devoted to all those who had outsourced their own ‘Paap-Dhulai’ to me upon hearing of my trip!

Once again, the snan was pure bliss. The body and the heart felt so warm after the snan that I cannot describe in words. One could actually sense the changed mood in the boat during the return journey, as the same Gujarati family, after some minutes of chit-chat, started off with Hanuman Chalisa followed by bhajans, with rest of us too joining in.

The walk back was leisurely. The Missus was, however, tired.

And as if on cue, two young guys appeared and offered to drop us off to wherever we wanted, on their bikes which they had managed to bring in!

No price was negotiated and no demands were made. They just said that we could give them whatever we wanted. Naturally, we got on the bikes.

My driver talked all through the ride about doing this as a seva (it wasn’t a taxi!), and offering me advice for rest of my stay there. We reached a few minutes before the other rider reached with my wife. While waiting, he saw I was carrying a pitcher with water from Sangam. He asked for some of it and performed a ‘Panch-Snan’ by sprinkling it on his head, face and feet.

Once the Missus too reached, we paid them what we thought was a fair price, plus some more! Thankfully, they were happy with it.

This brings me to another aspect about the public transport in Prayagraj. Mind you, this is purely based on my anecdotal experiences, so feel free to disagree. I felt that the e-rickshaw drivers too were polite, helpful and not at all overcharging despite so much clientele.

In fact, the entire city of Prayagraj is currently seeing major disruptions in their daily routine. On days of Shaahi Snan, a large chunk of locals cannot even go about their business/jobs or even take out their vehicles Imagine such a thing in Delhi & the chaos that would ensue!

I have no hesitation in saying that entire citizenry of Prayagraj are earning so much Punya merely for hosting the Maha Kumbh and the Kumbh every time they happen.

Then there are the security personnel who continue to be on duty and yet may not be able to have a snaan themselves. In fact, I actually asked one guy on the Qila Ghaat whether he had had the opportunity for a snaan in the midst of doing his job and he was happy to report that he had gone by boat at 3am itself and had a snaan!

So much Bhakti all around ..

That day we couldn’t go to do seva in the Shivir because of the sheer amount of time it took to go to Sangam and come back. The evening was, instead, spent visiting temples outside the restricted zone.

Our fourth and sadly, last day in Prayagraj was the 15th of Jan. It started off as a bitterly cold morning and I half-jokingly mentioned to my wife that instead of a dip, we should only do a ‘Panch-Snaan’ in Ganga Ji. Anyhow, we took an e-rickshaw to go to the Dashashwamedh Ghat.

To one’s surprise, the rickshaw took us right till the Ghat!

There were no traffic restrictions this day, they having been lifted last night after the Shaahi Snaan was over! To add to the surprise, the crowds too had massively thinned out!

We enquired from our rickshaw guy and he told that towards Sangam too, the walk this day would be barely 1-1.5 km! (Note: this was later corrected by someone on Twitter who said that rickshaws can go as close as 200m to Sangam.)

Anyhow, the morning was still bitterly cold and we were already on the Ghaat! However, once there, there was no question of not taking a dip!

This time too, the cold only lasted till one took a dip. After the snaan, it was once again as if it was a different world altogether!

This was our third snaan in three days.

Truly blessed.

Yet another cup of ‘nimbu chai’ and yet another cotton candy was consumed before we made our way across Ganga Ji and into the Mela. This time there were a few announcements for lost kids / companions on the PA system by the administration, as were on the day of the Shaahi Snaan.

We reached the Shivir for seva at 9:30am & left at 8pm. Truth be told, we did not want to leave at any cost.

Yet, life had to go on.

Goodbyes were said to those lucky enough, or resolute enough, to continue to serve, while we left for our lodgings that night.

With a heavy heart, we started back for Delhi at 8am on the morning of the 16th and reached home by evening. The Missus has already decided to go back later next month and is planning to stay in the Shivir itself. I, on the other hand, have a job to go to!

We are told that more than 1.5 Crore devotees took the holy dip on Sankrant. Locals also say that atleast 3-4 times as many will come on the Shaahi Snaan on Mauni Amavasya.

Now THAT would be a sight to behold for those lucky enough to witness it!

Speaking with the locals in the Mela Ground and elsewhere as well, one got the sense of pride they feel in hosting this mega event every 12 years. They were also all praises for the Govt and local administration for making arrangements like ‘Never Before’ in this Maha Kumbh.

As I close this thread, all I will say is JUST GO THERE! Kumbh comes once every 12yrs and a Maha Kumbh once every 144 years. One absolutely must make use of this blessed duration to perform this teerth yaatra while one can. That’s all I will say.

Thanks for your patience. 

:fin:

On the Current Situation in Bangladesh after Arakan Army capture of Muangdaw

(This chain of thoughts was tweeted on the night of 16 Dec 2024. Link to the thread on Twitter: https://twitter.com/CestMoiz/status/1868683636066939125 )

Sharing some thoughts on the recent moves by the Arakan Army on the Bangladesh-Myanmar Border.

Let’s see how this one goes ..

Let me just begin with this bombastic video of Bangladesh Army veterans threatening to capture Kolkata within four days! Very bombastic, I’d say .. especially when their own generation got the blunt end of the stick from Pakistanis in 1970-71 and couldn’t do anything about that!

Unfortunately for these geriatric idiots, while they were turned towards Kolkata, right behind them came the Arakan Army which established control over Bangladesh-Myanmar border. As always, these erstwhile East Pakistanis got totally surprised from behind (PS: All Possible Puns Fully Intended!)

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It is still open to debate whether the Arakan Army did that with the backing of the Chinese or the Americans (I personally bet on Chinese hand, but that is just a gut feeling). But regardless, that border is now sealed for the immediate future atleast.

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Implications of that on poor old Bangladesh are a tad unfortunate. It means that the only land border that still permits import of essential goods such as potatoes, sugar, COTTON FOR THEIR TEXTILE INDUSTRY, refined petroleum products etc, is the Indian border!

Oh, and electricity too! On that note, I wonder whether the amount payable to Adani Group for electricity supply has crossed $1Bn yet! Of course, the Bangladeshis threaten to import electricity via Nepal but unfortunately that too would depend upon Indian benevolence for transit!

Why I wrote the above is that if you noticed, the open anti-India rhetoric of Bangladesh in the immediate aftermath of their August ‘Revolution’ has scaled down immensely over the past few days. On that note, I will just leave this tweet here before moving on!

(Link to above tweet : https://x.com/CestMoiz/status/1821003841254408320 )

Adanis have already reduced electricity supply by 50% and Tripura too has nearly cut down entirely, the electricity they were supplying to Bangladesh due to non-payment of dues.

Aur karo revolution!

But coming back to the happenings on the Myanmar-Bangladesh Border .. The first thought that came to my mind when I first heard about the capture and sealing of the border by Arakan Army some days ago was SYRIA.

Seriously.

Let me try and explain why.

Ever since the August ‘Revolution’, people in India have been talking about retaking Indian territory lost to Pakistan in 1947. To be fair, I too added a lot of fuel to this fire, especially when it comes to the Chittagong area.

(Link to above tweet : https://x.com/CestMoiz/status/1828448057689809315 )

And this is why the Arakan Army moves in Muangdaw become so interesting.

What are the odds that if and when India actually decides to make a move in that area, the Chinese(?) backed won’t try and beat us to it, especially to the strategic port of Chittagong?

Mind you, I write the above merely as a hypothetical scenario, but still, one that has been playing on my mind for some time now.
What makes this thought more interesting is this :

(Link to above tweet : https://x.com/NepCorres/status/1868598478320075103 )

Depending on who you listen to, the Arakan Army have been shelling areas in Bangladesh from across the border or as per some, they have already invaded Bangladesh territory and taken over the town of Teknaf!
But regardless, things are not too happy for the clown in Dhaka.

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I totally agree with Col Hunny Bakshi below that one thing is for sure – Refugee influx in India in large numbers.

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I will come to that in a while. But first let us get to the geography of the area.

It is rightly called the Bay of Bengal. The underlying context is that whoever controls Bengal, controls it.

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You may want to mull over the above thought for a moment before moving ahead.

Moving on, it is India that controls not just Bengal but also both points of entry into Bay of Bengal – the Malacca Straits as well as the Indian Ocean route.

I say India controls Bengal, keeping in mind the relatively recent reality of a country called East Pakistan / Bangladesh.

There have been reports of the USA looking for a base in St Martin’s Island in Bangladesh and the Chinese looking at the Sittwe Port.

Needless to say none of these will be viable without Indian support or atleast an Indian nod.

Feel free to disagree with what I wrote above.

What I am coming to, is the fact that if things continue to fester, there will soon be a Syria type situation right on our borders. With too many stakeholders rushing to fill a power vacuum inside erstwhile East Pakistan, something is bound to give way.

Despite the facade of a Nobel Laureate in control, fact remains that there is still a lot of ambiguity in the power structure in charge of Bangladesh. The 84 years old geriatric ‘Advisor’ can very easily be discarded by the real power, if needed.

Link to tweet : https://x.com/CestMoiz/status/1865723952452309330

However, that still does not solve the problem of the true face behind the mess that Bangladesh is in today. Of course, it is quite well known to be General Waker uz Zaman, with the backing of Pakistan to boot, but he is still not the ‘Face’.

Link to tweet : https://x.com/CestMoiz/status/1828452899699015992
(Link to tweet : https://x.com/CestMoiz/status/1828452899699015992 )

Of course, when things go further South, he can suddenly and magically come forward as the ‘Saviour’, aka his heroes Musharraf, Zia ul Haq, Yahya and Ayub Khan and of course the countless Bangladesh Army Coup makers as well!

But the big question to ask is, who will he save Bangladesh from?

And HOW?

Will it be from India?

Of course, it will be from India!

But HOW is the big question!

The simple answer is – No Way!

At best, the Bangladesh Army can be a pinprick. At worst, they can just fold and surrender, just like their heroes, the Brown Panted Ones of Pakistan. Btw, greetings on Vijay Diwas ye all!

The yahoos in charge of Bangladesh with Pakistani blessings are the sons and grandsons of these very unfortunate women. Cynically speaking, these bastards are just yearning for the love of their fathers and grandfathers sitting in Pakistan. (Do read the snippet below. I INSIST)

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Carrying on, let us see the similarities between the current situation and 1971.

1. Democratically elected govt NOT permitted to be in power.

2. Looming threat of refugee crisis.

3. Superpower rivalry in Bay of Bengal (Apart from US and China, Russian Navy too visited recently)

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4. Chaos on the streets of Bangladesh.

5. Rampant persecution and killings of minorities.

6. Economic stress due to non-existent law and order.

7. NO FRIENDS IN VICINITY TO SEEK HELP FROM.

We can keep adding to this list, but I think you get my gist.

As the wheels of history move faster and faster, there will be more and more chaos.
But remember, new Order can only emerge from Chaos. This is what happened after WW2, after 1971 and if we play our cards well, this is what will happen after 2024 as well.

We may do it tomorrow,

Or we may do it in a couple of months,

Or in a couple of years’ time ..

But fact remains that if we don’t, someone else will. I’d much rather see Feni / Chittagong and Rangpur in Indian map instead of someone else’s.

In any case, Bangladesh as we knew prior to 05 Aug 2024, no longer exists and will not come back either.

They made their bed. Now they sleep in it.

Unfortunately for them, they decided to sleep with the Pakistanis in this case. The result will be another break-up of their country.

Bangladesh is not merely landlocked with India on 95% of its borders, it is also at the mercy of the Indian Navy across its shores. The Indian Navy has had a free run of Bangladesh ports earlier, destroying targets at will, thanks to the mighty Vikrant. If it ever comes to a race for Chittagong and other ports of present day Bangladesh, I am sure they would just as brilliantly complement their Indian Army counterparts in 2024-25 as they did in 1971.

As a further exercise, just plot the Indian Air Force bases around Bangladesh!

What will Shri Waker uz Zaman and his fauj of geriatrics do?
Answer – Nothing.
They might beg the world for help.
But that won’t change their fate.

Begging for US and Chinese aid didn’t help their illegitimate fathers in 1971 when India was relatively much weaker than it is now. Further, state of relations of present day India with most world powers is much different, as also current Indian heft in international geopolitics.

On that note, I will also share a personal view : Most Indians still remember the decidedly inimical US actions against India in 1971, but have mostly forgotten about the post Pokharan-2 sanctions of 1998.

Here’s why, in my opinion : 1998 is forgotten ‘coz sanctions were a foregone conclusion since we deliberately acted against established norms. But in 1971, we were the morally correct side & US sided with the ‘asuras’. Hence the continued memory of that event. Feel free to disagree!

(Link to above tweet : https://x.com/CestMoiz/status/1201018602712756225 )

As I come to close this thread, I will give you one more thing to do.
Just open a map of India and focus on Bangladesh.
See if that strikes you as an unnatural entity, nearly cutting off the Motherland from her North-Eastern children.
To me, it surely does

(Link to above tweet : https://x.com/CestMoiz/status/1821589668665741440 )

As I mentioned earlier, Bangladesh of 04 Aug 2024 is finished.

Let me also add that Bangladesh of 16 Dec 2024 too has no future unless they accept the fact that it is only India that can help them out of this mess that they have created for themselves.

Do mull over it for a moment

With this, I conclude this thread. Today is too momentous a day to ignore the happenings in Bangladesh. On that note, I will just leave this short thread on the occasion of #VijayDiwas here as well.

Jai Hind .. and goodnight!

Adding my previous Blog Posts on Bangladesh here, for those interested: 

On the Events Currently Underway in Bangladesh (As on 08 Aug 2024)

On the Events in Bangladesh (As on 26 Aug 2024)

On the Role of the Bangladesh Army in Recent Events (As on 27 Aug 2024)

On the Current Situation in Bangladesh (As on 08 Dec 2024)

On the Current Situation in Bangladesh (As on 08 Dec 2024)

Folks, sharing some thoughts on the current state of affairs in Bangladesh.

Let us see how it goes ..

First and foremost, let us call it for what it is currently – An attempt at re-establishing East Pakistan.

Yup, that’s what it is. Pakistan attempting to return to its erstwhile colony via proxy.

Come to think of it, conditions in East Bengal today are quite similar to what they were in 1970-71:

1. Interim Govt in place.

2. Democratically elected Govt not allowed to function.

3. Widespread and blatant atrocities against minorities and those that the current ‘govt’ doesn’t like.

The only (nominal) difference is that in 1971 it was more of a ethnic divide between the Punjab dominated rulers from West Pakistan and their Bengali subject in the East Pakistan. Now, however, it is about the Jamaat gone wild under the nominal cover of a geriatric Noble Laureate.

Make no mistake; the religious fanaticism seen during the Direct Action Day has remained very much alive in Bangladesh. For those who are not aware of the Direct Action Day, here are some (disturbing) visuals to tell you the story: 

Even in 1971, despite the ethnic origins of the situation, it was the religious minorities that bore the brunt of violence. Same was the case in 1991 post the Babri demolition as well, for those who aren’t quite aware of that fact too.

Screenshot 2024-12-08 214729

Suffice it to say, religious fanaticism in Erstwhile East Pakistan never quite went away. Instead, it was kept under a tight leash by the govt of Sheikh Hasina, which of course, was ‘conveniently’ overthrown by riotous ‘revolutionary’ mobs on the streets of Dhaka.

Of course, the sheep too participated wholeheartedly in the ‘revolution’ right alongside the wolves, not realizing that they were the ‘main course’ for the ‘revolutionaries’! Par for the course, I’d say. Sadly, they are paying for it with their blood now.

Here’s yet another sad example of sheep happily running towards their own slaughter.

MUST WATCH, I’d say.

But what I find interesting to note is the sheer outrage all these atrocities against minorities in Bangladesh by the rabid yahoos has caused within India.
Indian Media has been covering it ceaselessly.
Further, even politicians cutting across political lines have denounced it.

Why might that be so?

IMO, it gives a glimpse to atleast a few of the sheep on our side of the fate that they themselves have avoided thus far, thanks partly to the Partition of the Motherland in 1947. Also, the fate endured by our own ancestors in 1947 and before that as well.

The visuals coming out of Bangladesh every single day have definitely had an impact on the psyche of MANY within our own borders as well, either consciously or sub-consciously. I will leave it at that for the time being.

Let us instead come to the question of WHO THE HELL IS HEADING THE INTERIM GOVT IN BANGLADESH??!!

It is most definitely NOT Yunus, because he goes by the title of CHIEF ADVISOR to the Govt of Bangladesh!

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Interesting, no?

I would go out on a limb and say that this gentleman is the one who holds the real power in Bangladesh.

The bumbling old Yunus is just the Fall Guy who will take the blame when the Army is ‘forced’ to take over direct control of Govt.
#JustSaying

Of course, being heavily dependent on the yahoos of the Jamaat ‘e Islami, having a lesbian daughter who drinks alcohol and dresses like this, is definitely a valid excuse to not just throw out Yunus at a convenient time, but also hang him if needed!

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Here’s the video of the daughter of the ‘Chief Advisor to the Govt of Bangladesh’ getting arrested for drunk driving after her girlfriend left her, for those interested!

Talking about Yunus .. he himself is as rabid a Leftist as they come .. the only difference is that he has a Nobel Peace Prize, which itself has lately come under a cloud as a tool for rewarding promising stooges!

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Of course, it was no surprise when links with Hizb ut Tahrir emerged .. because .. well .. why wouldn’t there be such links!

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(Link to above report: New advisers of Bangladesh interim government linked to terror group HuT

The plan of the ‘Deep State’ with respect to the Bangladesh Coup was perfect, except for the fact that it was Trump who ended up winning the US Presidential elections hardly a couple of months later!

And he remembered the Nobel Laureate clearly!

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So what comes next ..

Well, there are two important dates that are fast approaching which I am keenly watching out for.

Firstly, 16 December, which marks 53 years of liberation of Bangladesh by the Indian Army. Secondly, 20 January, which is the day Donald Trump will be in power.

Let’s talk about 16 Dec first. It is an emotional date which is just about a week hence.

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It is a part of Bangladesh history that cannot be wished away, no matter how much they try or how much they blow their own trumpet wrt Indian Trained and Indian Equipped Mukti Bahini.

Period.

This is where it will get awkward for the Bangladesh Army as well as their Brown Panted ‘brethren’ in Erstwhile West Pakistan.

The annual celebrations of this epochal event in Bangladesh will be interesting to watch out for this year for sure!

One way to avoid that would be to trigger an incident or a chain of events that would divert public attention, right? It could vary from an internal disturbance within Bangladesh to even threats / attacks on Indian diplomatic missions in Dhaka and elsewhere.

(^^ Disclaimer: JMTs)

I that regard, I really hope that tomorrow’s visit of Indian Foreign Secretary will result in a word of caution for the rabid rulers that are presiding over the pogrom of minorities in Bangladesh currently.

In fact, before moving ahead, there is one more similarity between Bangladesh of today and East Pakistan of pre-1971 vintage that comes to mind. This is about the insurgency and violence in the Indian North-East.

When East Pakistan existed, NE Insurgents had readymade bases, training and equipment available across the border. And as soon as Pakistan was thrown out, the Mizo insurgency ended in 1973. Fast forward to events leading up to the Aug 2024 coup and transpose it on the levels of violence in North-East and see if you find a pattern. I’ll just leave it at that for the time being.

Coming over to the next important date, i.e, 20 Jan. I get a feeling that the yahoos are trying to inflict as much damage as they can, before their Democrat benefactors in USA remit office.

To be fair, this is happening everywhere, including Ukraine.

They are expediting the influx of Pakistanis within Bangladesh while at the same time making the processing of visas for Indian citizens that much more difficult. Meanwhile military hardware too is already being shipped in for the chaos that awaits.

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Well, either way, their goose is well and truly cooked.
The recent tweet by the handle of the ruling political party in India about the US Deep State has much more of a meaning behind it than just the words tweeted.
They know it too, hence their ‘rush’.

What Bangladesh refuses to see is that their destiny is well and truly linked with India. If a Pakistan could be broken up in 1971 when circumstances demanded it, so also can a Bangladesh when it becomes inevitable.

Here’s an 11 year old tweet for context.

 

It was a much weaker India that faced off the USA in 1971. Relatively speaking, Pak Army of 1971 in East Pakistan too was a much more dangerous enemy than the Bangladesh Army of today.

The yahoos, as always, still dream of a ‘Greater Bangladesh’.
Of course, this is the opium that the Bangladesh Army feeds them to keep them away from the increasingly desperate situation that the country is rapidly hurtling into, with their sovereign ratings going down to JUNK!

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But what they don’t realize is that thus far it is only they who have been ‘kinetic’ when it comes to actions whereas India has been keeping its cards close to its chest. That does NOT mean that India doesn’t have any cards to play with.

Heck, even without going Kinetic, India can cause disaster for Bangladesh economy. All that is needed to be done is to cut-off road, rail and air links. The Yahoos, already crying for Indian Visas will do the rest.

Of course there is the inevitable question of Bangladesh plunging into darkness, literally, in case they don’t cough up the money they owe. But the newly ‘martial’ quom of Bangladesh are still running around with their chests puffed, having learnt from the best, i.e. Pakistan!

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Heck, they have even put in a deal to import electricity from Nepal as a contingency. But what the idiots leave unsaid is that this electricity too will travel via the Indian grid, unless the Nobel Laureate has created some magical means of electricity transmission!

Bottomline: There is a great opportunity for India to set right yet more historical wrongs that have been permitted to continue thus far. What, when and how, remain to be seen. I am sure the GOI would already have contingency plans in place in any case.

Let me just get to the map from @NepCorres that I quoted a few tweets above.

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Now relate it with the situation in 1971.

Some people say that the original plan in 1971 was limited capture of territory to compensate for the refugee issue and establish a Bangladesh govt. In that context, I will also share this tweet of mine just hours after the Bangladesh coup:

At this point, I would like to reiterate the phrase ‘Pig’s Neck‘ that was tweeted not too long ago!

And then there is the ‘small’ issue of Feni that is the hub of all surface connectivity with Chittagong and thereabouts.

Bottomline: There are a multitude of options available to Indian in case the situation in Bangladesh continues to fester as it is today. Add to it a relatively friendly regime in the USA even though it would not matter when it comes to national interests, just like 1971 and 1998.

If a much weaker India could brush off the economic sanctions after the nuclear tests of 1998, the India of today can afford to do so many times over. That is in case the ‘world’ dares to sanction India at all.

The ideal end case scenario that I would like to see is Indian borders expanding to protect the minorities in Bangladesh. And the Bangladesh Army cut down to size commensurate to their circumstances, no more than 30,000.

Dare I say, things are fast moving to a stage where kinetic action by India would become inevitable and inescapable. Statements by GOI as well as political parties and private citizens are increasingly calling out the blatant murder and rape of minorities happening in Bangladesh.

Those bastards can deny all that they want, but fact remains that GOI has never been this direct about such issues in past. THIS is something that Govt of Bangladesh would have already taken note of. Yet, in their hubris, they will end up losing parts of their country yet again.

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They have chosen their friends.

And they have chosen their enemies as well.

In fact, they have forcibly made enemies out of not only benefactors, but those that actually made their own country a reality when they were being raped and slaughtered mercilessly.

Events of the coming weeks and months will be the history that our grandchildren will be taught in their schools. I have no doubts we have the stronger cards in this ‘game’ and this time, we may or may not be as benevolent as we historically have been.

With this, I conclude this thread. 16 Dec and later, 20 Jan are the inflection points I will be looking at. In any case, even if the current regime in Bangladesh survives a bit longer than that, they will still end up ruining their country for good.

JMTs

:fin:

Above blog post on my Twitter : Twitter Link

I will just add my previous three threads on Bangladesh here as well:-

Blog 1: On the Events Currently Underway in Bangladesh (As on 08 Aug 2024)

Blog 2 : On the Events in Bangladesh (As on 26 Aug 2024)

Blog 3 : On the Role of the Bangladesh Army in Recent Events

On Big Tech and Social Media Giants

Folks, sharing some thoughts on Big Tech that has become an integral part of our daily lives as individuals as well as collectively. The trigger was the massive outage of Microsoft devices some weeks ago. Have been having some thoughts since then. Let’s see how it goes..

First and foremost, here is a link to the outage of Microsoft devices due to some issue with CrowdStrike, for those who might have forgotten it : Microsoft Crowdstrike creates worldwide outage: Life across the globe comes to a standstill

So many parts of our lives came to a halt, because someone somewhere screwed up!

It was a major news headline for atleast a couple of days. And then, we moved on once things were back in order, dismissing this as a temporary hitch in our day-to-day existence.

Of course, it was inadvertent.

Such things happen at times and computers crash. Nothing more to it, even if this event let to a massive number of computers to crash near simultaneously!

Hence, no outrage.

However, given the fact that life in so many countries came to a grinding halt across various sectors due to this unintended outage, one question that bothers me is what if next time there is an INTENTIONAL outage??

When I say ‘Intentional‘, I don’t necessarily mean by some evil geniuses running the large corporations of the world, but also governments who have a lien on the day to day functioning of such companies by the virtue of they being geographically located there.

Why I say this is because, if I as a govt had the power to disrupt or monitor lives of people and countries who are of interest to me, why the hell would I NOT do that?

In fact, a prime example of that landed up on my TL not very long ago: This is RFK Jr. revealing that 37 hours after President Biden was installed into the White House, they opened an illegal portal between social media giants and the FBI, CIA, CDC, etc, to begin the rampant censorship of Americans! Arm-twisting / threatening by Govt forced them!

Of course that doesn’t mean that atleast some of the owners of Big Tech / Social Media Giants were not already on a ‘trip’ of their own! Remember, one Social Media Giant deplatformed Trump even when he was STILL the President!

By the time Trump was out of office, he had been banned by FB, Twitter, YouTube, Snapchat and the likes. Reddit even banned some Pro-Trump forums! (Source)

Mind you, FREE SPEECH is basically what the platforms deem to be ‘free’ as per their own policies. And of course, what the host govt deems to be ‘free’! The aftermath of Twitter acquisition by Elon Musk was their for all to see. I’ll still share two snippets of Vijaya being questioned:

Before moving on, you MUST see the two videos above. One phrase that the lady in the second video used to address them was ‘You all as the Sinister Overlords’. Nothing could explain it better! And to think that these platforms actually shape narratives around the globe!

Just as another example, during the 2024 Indian General Elections, YouTube approved 48 advertisements in English, Hindi, and Telugu that violated YouTube’s OWN policies about advertising and elections misinformation! (SOURCE)

Talk about Sinister Overlords!

The thing is that even though the platforms themselves just are a source code running on its own, doing what it is supposed to do, but the people who created that damn code are still humans. Humans, with their own biases and leanings.

Humans who don’t even know they are biased!

Humans, who think that anyone who doesn’t think like them is a liar and NOT deserving of free speech.

Why?

Because they hold the power of denying them free speech just because they happen to have a divergent view from those who control the platforms!

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(LINK TO TWEET SCREENSHOTTED ABOVE)

If they could do it to a Donald Trump, folks like Op India are pretty ‘small’ fries, no?

And the Sinister Overlords already have a bagful of templated replies to any queries seeking the rationale behind their decision to censor your or my voice!

Of course, outright banning is too ‘extreme’ and more than that, too ‘visible’! So there are also other means such as Shadow Bans and simply hiding access to information! I don’t know the reason behind these, but sharing two examples from Google:

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(Link to tweet screenshotted above)

Talking about Shadow Bans, that term seems to be a wrong one, atleast as far as Twitter before Elon Musk went. Apparently, the correct terminology was : VISIBILITY FILTERING!

V.E.R.Y innovative of the SINISTER OVERLORDS of ‘Free’ Speech, I’d say!

But sadly, even after Shri Elon Ji took charge of the ship, the Shadow Ban .. err .. sorry, VISIBILITY Filtering goes on unabated! I have already ‘yelled‘ at Elon Musk Ji, as he suggested. Let’s see what comes of it!

So intimately involved have the Social Media giants become with life and politics around the globe, that even removal of a Blue Tick signals (to some), the beginning of the downfall of a hero or a leader!

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Then there are the in-house AI algorithms who need data and material to train on. And guess who chooses what databases they shall train on .. well, HUMANS of course! Such scenarios are NOT at all surprising in such a situation!

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As I mentioned in the beginning of this blog post, govts have ways and means to ‘influence’ behaviour of Big Tech / SM Giants. Here is the European Union that wants to control the flow of information within their own borders!

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Yup, ‘FREE’ speech indeed!

And how can one forget the recent arrest of the founder of Telegram App in France!
His ‘CRIME’?
Not submitting to demands of some govts to give them a ‘peep’ into his App!

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You get my drift, don’t you?

Being a ‘popular’ Social Media giant comes with its own perils at the hands of govts that decide that they will get to decide what constitutes ‘Free’ Speech!

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Then there are govts who will punish their own citizens for as much as posting a meme!

Bottomline is that at the end of the day, even the ‘Cloud’ the we talk about when talking of the www, is actually a server farm located on a piece of land governed by the sovereign govt and administered by humans who are prone to their own biases and govt pressure. What we don’t realize is that by giving so much access to them into our daily lives, individually as well as collectively, we make ourselves potential targets for manipulation.

They may try to be ‘smart’ about that, but it does not change the fact that there is pretty much NOTHING that one can do to them because they are ‘merely following their own policies’!

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The only way out from this vicious circle is to have indigenous platforms to ensure free speech to own citizens under the existing laws of the land. And with a population of 1.4Bn, we are already far far too late for this.

Beginnings were made. But they fell by the wayside.

Regardless, we need to keep working towards indigenous platforms to form the backbone of social media within our borders and accountable to the Govt of the day. Else, these things will keep happening, and with absolutely nothing that we can do about it.

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(Link to tweet screenshotted above)

There will always be govt biases as well, when it comes to foreign social media giants. Biases from govts that may not be very ‘friendly’ to us at the same time.

Implications are potentially disastrous.

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(Link to tweet screenshotted above)

Of course, the founder of Facebook had an epiphany and an awakening, but so much damage has already been done and is irreversible by now. What we can definitely do is to limit the damage going ahead.

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Of course, the founder of Facebook had an epiphany and an awakening, but so much damage has already been done and is irreversible by now. What we can definitely do is to limit the damage going ahead.

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As I wind up this blog post, I will leave this thread of my very personal experience of Visibility Restriction at the hands of Twitter! This, by itself, lays out the case which I have built in the thread so far.

I’ll close this blog post now by going back to the accidental Microsoft Outage of last month.

What if the next outage is NOT accidental?

What if the next outage is deliberate and focussed?

What if such things have already happened?

Food for thought, no?

Before winding up, I will share two more tweets from Op India itself.

Let me just reiterate in the end that there is absolutely no alternative to indigenous social media platforms in the current world scenario. One hopes it fructifies sooner rather than later!

With that hope, I conclude this chain of thoughts.

:FIN:

On the Role of the Bangladesh Army in Recent Events

(This chain of thoughts was first shared on Twitter on 27 Aug 2024)

This tweet landed on my TL some time back. More than the event itself, it was the mention of Bangladesh Army that got me thinking. Sharing a chain of thoughts on that.

Screenshot 2024-09-09 190603

First thing I did was to go to the Wikipedia page of Bangladesh Army to confirm a hunch. And true to my expectations, I saw the size of Bangladesh Army to be 160,000 troops!

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To put things in context and why I found it amusing, I will just give a comparison with the British and the German Armies, sourced from Wikipedia itself.

British Army = Approx 79,000 Active Duty personnel

German Army = 63,000 personnel

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What this means is the Bangladesh has an army that is more than the combined strength of the British and German armies!

While size of an army by itself is not a metric to pass judgments, but what I found really interesting was what Bangladesh Army would do with such large numbers.

Let us see the motto of the Bangladesh Army to see what they want to use those 1,60,000 troops for. The motto says: In War, In Peace, We are everywhere for our Nation.

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A very impressive motto, I must say. Kudos to whoever came up with it! But there is one observation I have ..

The thing is, I don’t think Bangladesh Army has ever been in a war!

And Thank God for that!

Because I doubt what they would do in case of a war with India, or for that matter, even with Myanmar, given their tenuous link with Chittagong Hill Tracts via Feni!

On that note, do look up a map of Bangladesh and look for Feni. Then tell me if you see a Chicken’s Neck in Bangladesh too! In fact, let me do that for you!

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The ONLY major road junction to reach Chittagong area is via Feni, which is hardly SIX Km from Indian Border!

Make of that whatever you will!

So what exactly, does the 160,000 strong Bangladesh Army seek to do in case of a war?

Or what exactly can it do?

Well, on its own .. ZILCH!

Unless, they plan to play faithful minions to the Chinese in case of a war across the Himalayas!

That would partly explain the yahoos gloating about severing Seven Sisters of NE India from rest of India! In fact, one idiot even got deported to the swimming pool that their country currently is, notwithstanding their claims of their FB getting ‘hacked’!

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But then, what are the chances of a Himalayan War and in it, Bangladesh Army faithfully carrying out their Cheeni Master’s orders of marching into the Siliguri Corridor, that too with any reasonable chances of success?

But they can always dream, no? And it gives them an alibi too!

An alibi for what, you asked?

Well, it gives them an alibi of being of ‘use’ to their Nation during peace, since war is a far-fetched dream!

And how do they get to be of use to their Nation in peace, you ask?

Well .. the first coup that they did was in 1975 wherein they even murdered the Father of the Nation, Mujib!

How’s that for ‘serving’ your country in peace, huh?

But that was not all! They continued ‘serving’ their country in peace with coups and even counter-coups in:

1975 (First Coup)

1975 (Second, Counter-Coup)

1975 (Yet another failed Counter-Coup)

1981 1982 (Counter-Coup)

Nice, no?

And yet again, just a few weeks ago came yet another statement by the Bangladesh Army Chief that instead of a coup, the democratically elected Prime Minister had ‘chosen’ to step down and that a new govt would soon take over!

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This fellow, Zaman is a bit ‘smarter’ than his predecessors in the Coup Business of Bangladesh Army, you see .. instead of directly becoming the dictator, he chose to plant a near senile 84-year old Nobel Laureate as the fall guy who will take the blame when chaos erupts again!

And chaos is already underway all over again!

The yahoos let lose against the previous govt are now demanding INSTANT results from the new govt headed by the Nobel Laureate!

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Surprisingly (not really!), it is the CHIEF who decides to come out in full, imposing military uniform and declares that Aal Eez Well!! The 84 year-old Nobel Laureate probably would have been snoozing at that time when a statement needed to be made, right?

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THIS, folks, is what a 1.60 Lac army is good for in a country like Bangladesh: To rule over the hoi-polloi.

If you believe anything else, then I have a white coloured building in Agra to sell to you!

In other times, they are leeches on the limited resources of the country. Period.

And what does an army that needs to rule a country do, especially in case of ‘pious’ countries and ‘pious’ armies of the Indian Sub-Continent such as Pakistan and Bangladesh?

Well, they use rabid, extremist Islamists to give them a fig-leaf of democratic credentials!

Zia and Musharraf did that in Pakistan. Previous Bangladesh Army Coup Chiefs did the same. And now General Waker-uz-Zaman too will do the same, notwithstanding the bumbling Yunus in the forefront!

The Jamaat is already making itself felt in Bangladesh. And now the release of yet another extremist that actually triggered this chain of thoughts!

Screenshot 2024-09-09 190603

Make no mistake, the Bangladesh Army has always had its sights set on the ultimate goal – To rule over Bangladesh, and ‘Make Bangladesh Great Again’ (to paraphrase Shri Donald Trump’s slogan!)

But we all know how it ends up for countries where the militaries take charge of government as well!

The primary example is Bhikharistan to our West. Then there is Myanmar and heck, Bangladesh itself till the time it remained under the boots of the previous dictators till 1990!

Coming back to the China angle .. I say it with some conviction that the utopian thought of Bangladeshi tanks and infantry rolling up Siliguri is not just a flight of fancy. I wouldn’t be surprised if it has actually been jointly wargamed between China and Bangladesh.

That said, they are free to dream all the wet dreams they want to. Fact remains that when reality dawns, all that they will have to show for it is wet underwears and nothing else!

But coming back. What triggered this coup in the first place, when things were relatively good for the Bangladesh Army? Well, one hint can be the acrimonious visit of Sheikh Hasina to China not very long ago.

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What truly transpired in that visit is anyone’s guess. But what happened after the diplomatic spat in all probability, was that the Chinese gave the order to their faithful minions of Bangladesh Army to pull the rug! Hence the move by Zaman to oust Sheikh Hasina.

I do not put it past the Bangladesh Army to have had alternate and surreptitious channels of communication with their Chinese masters whom they dream of faithfully serving some day, even if at the cost of wet undergarments!

There is reason to why I believe that.

Just look at the inventory of the Bangladesh Army and you will be surprised at the sheer amount of Chinese hardware!

Same for their Air Force and Navy!

Another thing that will bolster my claim is a quick study of high and middle level military exchanges of Bangladesh with China and Pakistan! I am sure the figures will spring up quite a few surprises.

What comes next?

Well, all those rosy stories about Bangladesh becoming an economic ‘miracle’ can be filed away in a safe locker for the next couple of decades atleast. Instead, good folks of the media may start drafting reports about how Bangladesh economy went down the drain!

What we are seeing in Bangladesh today is the return of the erstwhile West Pakistani Occupation Army, but this time in the form of Bangladeshi natives doing the dirty job of repressing and depriving their own people.

What we have seen are merely the opening shots of a long period of gloom and doom in Bangladesh, thanks to its ‘well-meaning’, 1.6 Lac strong army. By letting lose the Ansar Bahini Paramilitary on their very students, Zaman has already shown his intent.

Screenshot 2024-09-09 190603

Btw, do notice in the above tweet that the handle quoted there still calls it the Md Yunus Interim Govt. Like I said earlier in this blog post, Md Yunus is merely being set-up to take the blame when things go irretrievably South. Mark this!

As the dust settles (figuratively) in the immediate aftermath of this ‘revolution’ and the flood waters drain out, will come the business of governing this chaotic country and more than that, managing the ambitions of those within the army itself.

Now THAT would be a thing to watch .. how long Zaman manages to hang on to the power from behind the curtains and how fast Bangladesh goes to dogs, literally, because figuratively, it already has!

I shall be eagerly waiting and watching.

Meanwhile, the yahoos are now begging for Indian Visas! 🤣

With this, I conclude this short blog post. Hope this chain of thoughts made some sense.

:Fin:

On the Events in Bangladesh (As on 26 Aug 2024)

(This chain of thoughts was tweeted on the morning of 26 Aug 2024)

Last night just as I was about to hit bed, this short thread landed up on my TL.

My first reaction was that this was inevitable!

Sharing some thoughts on this latest development. Let’s see how it goes ..

 

First and foremost, I will share this video of Dacca University, taken in March 1971, aired by NBC News 10 months later.

THIS is how the endgame of 1971 commenced – with the West Pakistani occupiers killing students and professors .. MUST watch the video and hear the commentary

It seems almost like a Deja Vu all over again, doesn’t it?
Given that the levels of violence for the time being aren’t of similar nature, but students clashing with armed wings of the state is a dire reminded of what happened not very long ago ..

Screenshot 2024-09-09 142321

The glamour associated with carrying out a revolution is now over. That high of ousting a government is gone and what is left is the same old country with the same old problems.
Who’d have thought there was so much hard work to do after this anarchy, no?!!

And on top of that, they are now ‘led’ by a Nobel Laureate who is even older than the allegedly senile President of the USA!
Tell me whether you are surprised at the turn of events in Bangladesh from mayhem to well .. MORE mayhem!
I, for one, am not!

In fact, I’d say that the typo wherein this handle inadvertently writes Prawns instead of Pawns is a very ironical one, given the current situation and what is likely to follow in the near future!

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To put it very bluntly .. Bangladesh had a relatively stable govt and a relatively good economy, which is something to have been proud of, given the general state of other countries in SAARC. And then they decided to screw it up and take their country back by atleast two decades!

The poor ‘prawns‘ thought they were doing it of their own volition, not realising that they were merely a ‘catch’ being reeled in fast to be savoured by the vultures. But then, who can deny the heady winds of freedom to the ‘oppressed’ ones, no?

Atleast now they are free to get beaten up by their own, brand-new ‘revolutionary’ govt’s agencies! They are well and truly screwed, for the short and medium term atleast.

Even if this even quickly dies down, worse is yet to follow.

So what comes next?

Well, first and foremost, I’d say MORE CHAOS.

And I say it not with glee, or sadness, but as a very neutral observer of things going own within a sovereign country, which will soon be celebrating 53rd year of sovereignty granted to it by India.

Oh, and also the electricity bill that is due for payment to the Adani Group! People say they owe as much as $800Mn to the Adani Group. Also, the GOI has recently empowered them legally to cut-off electricity to Bangladesh in case of default!

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Oh, and the erstwhile ‘fastest growing economy in Indian Sub-Continent’ also owes Rs 100Cr to Tripura for electricity supplied by them as well. Sadly, Tripura has already started demanding their legitimate dues!

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Btw, before moving ahead, let me also just leave it here that leader of the largest political party in favour currently, Khaleda Zia, herself is nearly 80yrs old!

Of course she is the perfect leader for the ‘new’ country born out of this ‘new’ revolution!

Getting back to the issue of electricity, ever wondered why Adani still hasn’t turned off the switch? Would you say that this is India messaging to Bangladesh to beware of mucking things up more than they already have? Of course their yahoos STILL continue to attack minorities for most absurdest of reasons.

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Bottomline is that the delusions of Bangladesh ‘burning’ India up for all their imagined grievance is just not going to happen.

But then, they are most welcome to burn their own country in the process .. which is the ‘natural’ outcome of a ‘grand revolution’ anywhere in the world.

Continued chaos in Bangladesh helps all major actors involved in it.

The only losers are the foot soldiers who are rapidly turning in to cannon fodder. Just like the March 1971 video I shared above in this blog post.

Mind you, I’d say that the currently ongoing chaos suits India as well.

India has been far too benign with her neighbours, thanks to our civilizational ethos.

Even when Khaleda Zia led BNP was ruling Bangladesh, we continued to help them. Maldives is another example. But just look around the neighbourhod and see all that hatred and resistance against India!

The yahoos justify these with the flimsiest of reasons, thanks to continued brainwashing by the usual suspects.

Might this chaos be a trigger for a change of heart amongst them? Or might it be a trigger for a ‘benevolent strictness’ on part of India?

भय बिन होए न प्रीत, right?

I wrote this about 10 years ago in context of Pakistan. It just underscores my point above.

This is the curse of geography, I’d say.

India is far too big a neighour in all respects for the immediate neighbourhood to NOT feel overwhelmed of. Thus, despite the immensely benign nature, there is a natural ‘small neighbour syndrome’.

What they don’t realize is that India is actually driving the economy of entire SAARC (less Pakistan, of course) in most respects. And we know the state of Pakistani economy, that has actively delinked itself from India.

If being benign doesn’t help, then a little bit of ‘tough love’ should be the natural outcome.

I guess, this is what Maldives saw not very long ago. And this is what Bangladesh will be seeing for the next few months as well.

At the end of the day, India’s primary concern is the safety and security of our borders and our own citizenry. Add to that the urging of PM Modi for Bangladesh interim govt to ensure protection of its own religious minorities as well.

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Mind you, the way I look at the choice of words from the Indian Prime Minister in the tweet above is both in the form of a request as well as an advice.

Yes, you may read the above statement again.

Plus, it is also about India giving a long rope to Bangladesh.

Now whether they use it to rescue themselves or hang themselves with, is entirely their choice!

What happens next?

Well, first we wait for the monsoons to get over and the floods to recede so that poor ‘revolutionary’ folks can stand on dry ground again, before anything else can move ahead!

These events should NOT be seen in isolation.

The world at large is headed for a major churn. In many ways, we are already seeing the initial stages of it. The amount of chaos all around will only increase over the next few months and possibly, years.

The first major event I am waiting for, is the upcoming Presidential elections in the USA. In the meanwhile, Europe is already merrily burning itself up!

Soon to follow the US Presidential election that will herald more chaos, is the likely elections in Bangladesh. I will NOT be surprised if these get postponed for ‘some’ time.

Also coming up is the 53rd anniversary of liberation of Bangladesh. THIS is what I am personally looking forward to, just to see the yahoos back on the street cursing the very country that gave them their independence from their West Pakistani ‘brethren’!

The same West Pakistani ‘brethren’ who are now gloating at a coup against India in Bangladesh of all places. Of course they are free to believe that it is they who are making things happen and that Pakistan is not another pawn in the big game!

But I am also sure that sizeable sections in Pakistan’s ruling echelons themselves, including the Brown Panted Ones must also be alarmed at some level, lest the same treatment be meted out to them by their own yahoos! Well, that is a thread for another day, perhaps!

So as I wind up this blog post, the one point that I would like to emphasize is that IMO, chaos in Bangladesh for the time being is not bad for us. It gives us time to explore our own options. It keeps Bangladesh itself unhinged, thereby increasing our options.

I would STILL not rule out another refugee crisis on our borders with Bangladesh.

I would STILL not rule out another Mukti Bahini coming into its own, given the current state of Bangladesh.

And I would STILL not rule out a limited military action, if the GOI decides it is needed.

And I would STILL not rule out a Pig’s Neck replacing the Chicken’s Neck!

If the Bangladeshis don’t need Indian ‘help’, they are free to NOT take it. But if they think they will break apart the ‘Seven Sisters’, then all I have to say is that neighbours are not permanent!

If they were, then East Pakistan would still be around!

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Of course, the above sounds a bit too jingoistic and best solution is definitely one without use of arms. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t keep our powder dry!

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In the end, I will just reiterate what I wrote three years ago.
The world as we know it, is in the midst of a massive churn.
Brace yourselves, folks, for more chaos is on its way .. FAR MORE CHAOS!

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Thank you for your patience, folks!
I close this chain of thoughts now.
I will leave this blog post that was tweeted just a few days ago as the revolution in Bangladesh had just ‘succeeded’!
Happy Janmashtami!
:Fin:

On the Events Currently Underway in Bangladesh (As on 08 Aug 2024)

(This chain of thoughts was tweeted on 08 Aug 2024)

Sharing some thoughts on the #Bangladesh issue that has flared up over the past few days.

Thoughts are still unstructured, let’s see how this goes ..

I will start by saying that If you STILL cannot hear the drums of war, you must be deaf indeed!

The wheels of history seem to be moving with increasing urgency lately, getting greased with more and more blood. Sad, as it may be, it is just history repeating itself.

The events that have transpired in Bangladesh over the past few days and weeks and months have been reported fairly widely, so I won’t delve on them much. But fact remains that it is just the latest in a series of countries ending up in chaos over the past couple of years.

Just look around anywhere in the world and as an Indian, try to find a country or a region that can boast of being actually peaceful. I tried this small experiment some weeks ago and in the end I realised that India was still one of the best places to call home.

It still is, mind you.

But challenges are rapidly evolving and increasingly reaching our very doorsteps. This is the price to pay as you grow in heft and willingly or even unwillingly, end up with a potential interest of the current ‘great’ powers.

You cannot wish it away. Period.

A peculiar thing about our geography is that India is literally a GIANT State by all benchmarks, but one surrounded by massively outsized neighbours. So the ‘Big Brother Syndrome’ is a natural phenomenon which has been dealt with by India being benign towards them thus far.

The most recent example is that of Maldives.

Ultimately, Geography is Destiny is a very true adage. But then, there come times wherein one needs to actually SHAPE their Destiny, even if it comes by shaping geography.

This is what I tweeted 11 years ago 👇

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What we are witnessing slowly and steadily, is a ‘Manthan‘ that is creeping closer and closer. We cannot avoid it anymore. But we will be failing in our Dharma if we do not act in our national interests in the midst of all this chaos that is going on in the world.

What has happened in Bangladesh, has happened. Whoever be the invisible hand behind this – USA, or China, or even Pakistan – they are only doing what they feel is good for their own interests.

Now, I’d say it would be VERY discourteous of us to not act similarly. Of course, we have been doing so in our own way throughout our history, but now that traditional ‘benign’ veneer of India may actually need some reinforcing by other means – covert or overt or both.

Remember, this is how the current world order came into being:

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Dare I say, a new world order that is already in the making, too wouldn’t happen without similar sacrifices.

Nothing comes your way on a platter.

You have to earn it. By Blood.

Period.

The most glamorous part of the current event in Bangladesh has been accomplished by hordes who think they are the ones who are making things happen.

What comes next is what will define the future.

It is only the overthrow that has been accomplished so far.

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The likely new Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Muhammad Yunus, is 84 years old.

For comparison, Shri Joe Biden of the US of A is ‘merely’ 81!

Yup. Let that sink in a bit.

One can only hope, for the sake of stability, that his health keeps up as he goes about ‘rebuilding’ Bangladesh. Currently, he seems to be the only non-controversial person available who can ‘calm down’ the hordes, if at all.

Of course, he is NOT a politician. Has never been one, notwithstanding the extremely short-lived flirtation with politics in 2007.

Now what happens when a non-political person becomes the head of state, you asked?

Well ..

 

Of course, all this is assuming that Younus actually has the authority to assert himself, instead of being a puppet.

Atleast Zelensky came to power on a democratic vote.

In case of Yunus, no one even spoke of him as the ‘revolution’ gained steam!

So what next?


Well, the Hindu minority of Bangladesh is paying with its blood for being, well, Hindu .. notwithstanding the ‘Enthusiastic Zeal’ with which they participated in the very revolution that has now turned on them.

Yup.

The MSM may choose to be ostriches and ignore the ‘inconvenient’ truths all that they want. But fact is that being an Ostrich and hiding your head in the sand only leaves your backside gloriously exposed. #JustSaying

The chances of a refugee influx are really high.

While there has always been a migration into India from Bangladesh (Notwithstanding the fact that Bangladesh is 32 ranks above India in the Happiness Index!), it may turn into a deluge now.

In fact, I see this incident of yesterday wherein BSF foiled an infiltration attempt by a large group of Bangladeshis, as a trial run of what might come to be pretty soon.

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1971 Deja Vu, anyone?

That event also started with large-scale violence against Bengalis in general and Hindu Population in particular, by the Pakistan Army, leading to a large-scale refugee influx into India which forced military action in Dec 1971.

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So, in case of a potential refugee influx can India repeat a similar feat again as many are asking?

Especially, with the precedent of 1971?

Well, of course! And dare I say, existence of precedence is NOT a prerequisite for acting in National interest

But the bigger question is – Is it time yet?

Or, whether it is even warranted at this point in time?

My answer to both is a resounding NO, atleast under the current circumstances when the violence is mostly confined to within Bangladesh and there is no refugee crisis, yet.

But also and importantly, because the heavy monsoons currently underway will not permit large scale military manoeuvres in any case. This was exactly what General Manekshaw had said when he Guaranteed Defeat to Mrs Indira Gandhi when asked to go in just before monsoons in 1971

Further, the other two ‘difficult’ borders with Pakistan and China too need to be taken into account, as does the rapidly deteriorating situation in Myanmar.

‘Exciting’ days, no?

Of course, the rapidly developing humanitarian crisis for the ‘Largest Minority’ in Bangladesh too cannot, and should not, be overlooked.

So what do we do next? Well, I’d say, we weigh our options first, not just in Bangladesh, but in the larger neighbourhood itself.

We must choose our battles. And once chosen, fight them with all our might.

There is always an opportunity, even in adversity.

In fact, folks on this platform are already talking about doing something about the Chicken’s neck. Heck, someone even DM’ed about making it a Pig’s Neck!

Then there was one tweet that I came across, talking about the Chittagong Hill Tracts as well.

Remember, the original plan in 1971, as some say, was to carve out an enclave in then East Pakistan for the Bangladesh govt to establish roots and take back their refugees. That we ended up in Dhaka within 13 days, was testimony to the Brown Panted Rapists who just surrendered!

So yes, it can still be done. On that note, I will also leave this recent tweet here:

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But then, the question to be asked is – What Next?
THAT is where the true essence of Statecraft would lie.
Would we be in a position militarily to open up another active border, in addition to Pakistan and China?

Food for thought, no?

One way to obviate that is to be quick, aka 1971, and be done with it once and for all.

It has been done before. And if played well, it can be done again. Possibly, with the Chicken’s Neck turning into a Pig’s Neck as well!

But time for that may not be right now. That said, one can only assume that GOI and its relevant arms are already working actively to shape up the situation in Bangladesh to our own advantage.

Now there are two more events that are fast approaching, and with the recent template of Bangladesh, it only becomes a more exciting wait, especially in case of Pakistan as their own Independence Day approaches.

Chaos will only intensify everywhere.

But to be fair, there will be challenges within as well. In fact, initial utterances to that effect have already been made by quite a few jokers within. So it would be unwise to jump into a situation on or across own borders without securing the internals.

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What do we do now?
At the cost of sounding defeatist, I would say – Nothing overt, atleast for the time being.
Sad as the loss of innocent lives & destruction of temples in Bangladesh is, right now may not be the best time to jump into a fire which is still being actively fuelled

This is what I wrote in Oct 2023. There is far worse to come over the next few years as the ‘Manthan’ continues, IMO.

Mind you, we have talked about Bangladesh, Pakistan, Myanmar and China from our neighbourhood.

But one more country that I would be watching out for is Nepal, which too has just had a change of govt and the supposedly Chinese backed guy is back in power!

Just imagine the Chicken’s Neck area squeezed between an actively hostile Bangladesh and a defiant Nepal, with the Chinese in Chumbi Valley / Doklam not very far away.

A sobering thought, no?

Hence the need to watch before we leap.

Events currently underway in our neighourhood in particular and the world in general, will be the history that our grandchildren will be taught in school!

We are living in a time to be able to witness them first-hand as they develop.

One doesn’t know what future holds.
All we can do is wait and watch.
And do our own bit in shaping it favourably by whatever way we are able to!

With that, I think it is time to close this blog post.

As a parting thought, all that I will offer is that India’s borders with Pakistan & Bangladesh are UNNATURAL, and ARTIFICIAL ones. They cannot sustain in the long run. What changes in future, is what remains to be seen.

:FIN: