Home & Away

Indrani Bagchi The Gujarat police, NSG and our numerous intelligence and security agencies are currently on an all-India lookout for 10 terrorists who may have “sneaked” into India from Pakistan (terrorists always “sneak” in, though over the years, they may have found other less sneaky ways of coming across). Not only are the top metropolises on high alert – the alert has spread from Gujarat to Delhi, to Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Cyberabad. Smaller cities like Lucknow, Vijaywada, Bhopal, Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, and the list goes on, are all on hyper alert. Some of the Mahashivratri celebrations in the Somnath temple were cancelled fearing that amidst the dancers celebrating Lord Shiva could be suicide bombers. For the past 48 hours the nation has been on tenterhooks. In other words, the nation has been terrorised without the terrorists having shown themselves. There are intel alerts and then there are intel alerts. Over the years, despite the ones that got away,...

Indrani Bagchi The Uri terror attack has made us a nation of “jabra” (jaw) fans (as SRK would have said)! Our national bloodthirst also has a cyclical timeline - 2001, 2006, 2008, 2013, 2015 and 2016, and it will go on. Governments have changed, but some things have not. At least in our columns and in our studios, we have inflicted unacceptable damage on Pakistan, after what is arguably the worst attack on Indian security forces (Pathankot was the worst, until Uri happened). In the couple of days since the attack, the Indian diplomatic system has swung into action with practised ease. The world is prepped and on India’s side, as it has been since the Mumbai attacks of 26/11. Honestly, the world has not actually moved from our side. As Pakistan has continued on its path of becoming the world’s best known jihadi entity, global sympathy has been with India. Global opinion is positive to the extent that the US Congress has introduced legislation seeking to declare Pakistan a stat...

Indrani Bagchi Since the Uri attacks, a dominant theme in the national discourse was of capability, and whether India had what it took to take the fight to the enemy. The only thing that separated the believers from the others was faith. Thursday’s midnight operations across the LOC settled that debate. The strikes did a lot more, which will hold even if Pakistan decides to retaliate. What can Pakistan do? They can ratchet up border tensions, maybe hit some Indians either on the LOC or boundary; they can activate sleeper cells to launch terror attacks in other parts of India; they can attack Indian interests in Afghanistan. All of these would qualify as terrorism, and play into the Indian narrative. Terrorism will no longer be a low-cost option for Pakistan, thriving under a nuclear threshold. The complacency that accompanied terror attacks from Pakistan just evaporated – Pakistanis were comfortable in the belief that India would be all sound and fury, while Indians would fatal...

Indrani Bagchi, TNN Jun 22, 2010 NEW DELHI: The proposed China-Pakistan nuclear deal could spell trouble for India's own membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, severely upsetting the calculations of the government here. India had hoped that the New Zealand plenary meeting scheduled for later this week might move the process along for India to be eventually recognized as a formal member of the group. India had told the NSG that following the Indo-US nuclear deal, its laws and regulations had been harmonized with the global body, and that it was ready to be a member of the group. This was emphasized by the government in its last meeting with the NSG troika earlier this year. Instead, there is a growing anger, albeit impotent, within the 45-member group as they confront a virtual fait accompli by China "informing" them of its decision to build two new nuclear reactors for Pakistan, a proliferation rogue. But such is the growing clout ...

Indrani Bagchi New delhi, November 14, 2012 With the thinning down of NATO forces in Afghanistan a reality, Hamid Karzai, said they would use “all means available” to deter Pakistan from using terrorism against them. “We will use all means available” to convince Pakistan to abandon support to terrorism, said Afghan president, Hamid Karzai in an exclusive conversation with TOI. Karzai said, “terrorism and extremism is now causing Pakistan more danger than Afghanistan or in India. It is from this new situation, that I have changed my approach to Pakistan. I am much more conciliatory than the situation demands.” As if in response, Pakistan on Wednesday, agreed to release several Afghan Taliban leaders to begin a “reconciliation” process with the Afghan government. What will be the roles of the US and India in Afghanistan post 2014? Karzai said “India has a massive role in Afghanistan to educate and train Afghans and set up institutions.” India and Afghanistan, he said wou...