Pioneer : Cong’s martyrs and BJP martyrs

Cong’s martyrs and BJP martyrs

Sidharth Mishra

July 26 is just a week away. Many may ask what's so important about July 26. To remind the nation — July 26 is Kargil Vijay Diwas. The day symbolizes emphatic Indian victory in a high altitude war show-casing unparalleled bravery and chivalry of Indian soldier. Unfortunately Kargil War has been treated by the Congress leadership with lot of caution always careful about not allowing the rival BJP-led National Democratic Alliance the unbridled credit for an emphatic victory.

Since Independence India has faced aggression on five occasion — 1948, 1962, 1965, 1971 and 1999. On four occasions — 1948, 1962, 1965 and 1971 — there was a Congress Prime Minister at the helm. In 1999 Atal Bihari Vajpayee of the BJP held charge. The war took place after his Government had lost majority on the floor of the House. Despite being in the caretaker capacity, Vajpayee showed exemplary statesmanship and effectively mobilized national efforts to record an emphatic victory.

Though this war was won at high rate of casualty of human life but at the end it led to India emerging a stronger nation not being forced to a negotiation table under pressure from super-powers and being made to cede advantages, something which so visibly happened during the 1948 and 1965 operations. Several historical documents have recorded Jawaharlal Nehru's folly in approaching the United Nations when Indian forces had reached dominating position in the 1948 war. Similarly Lal Bahadur Shastri was forced into signing the Tashkent Agreement after effectively winning the 1965 war.

Though 1971 once again had the Indian armed forces recording emphatic victory leading to the creation of Bangladesh, Simla Agreement has come in for criticism. It's said that despite the emphatic victory and a visibly beaten Pakistan, Indian did not push hard diplomatically to resolve the Kashmir issue once for all. In 1962, India faced a rout at the hands of Chinese and in 1987, the Congress Government launched operation in Sri Lanka, which turned out to be an absolute fiasco.

In the post-Independence military history, Kargil War stands out as a shinning star. Kargil also happens to be the best documented war. The presence of large media contingent especially television ensured that the vibrations of the war was even felt in the urban drawing rooms and rural chaupals. The 50-day war turned soldiers and their units into household names. To the credit of then Defence Minister George Fernandes, body of every Indian martyr was flown to his home and given ceremonial funeral. The Indian countryside is replete with the statutes of Kargil heroes standing in the middle of lush green fields. Even the Pakistani soldiers, whose body the enemy country refused to accept were given decent burial by the Indian establishment.

Kargil war did not end into an internationally monitored summit between Indian and Pakistani leadership. Indian leadership had shown the maturity of not crossing the Line of Control (LoC) though the temptation for the same must have been substantial. The Indian positions were cleared of illegal Pakistani occupation and war gains restricted to the restoration of Indian control. The event had huge political repercussions with Vajpayee-led NDA recording a huge victory in the Lok Sabha polls, which followed. Vajpayee's Pakistani counter-part Nawaz Sharif lost job to his Chief of Army Staff General Parvez Musharraf.

Kargil came to be celebrated in contemporary art inspiring Bollywood block-busters like LoC: Kargil, Lakhsya and Dhoop and several films in regional languages. There have been several theatre productions on Kargil operations and also television serials. But despite this, the UPA Government has been cagey in celebrating the Kargil success ever since it came to power in 2004. It's true that Kargil played an important role in the defeat of Congress party in 1999 but it should also be realised that one of the major factors for the same was the cantankerous posturing its spokesperson Ajit Jogi took on the television.

The present Congress leadership has shown a pragmatic approach on many issues. It has accepted that its adventures in Golden Temple and Sri Lanka were uncalled for. It has gone to the extent of apologising to the Sikh community for Operation Bluestar. It should now come to accept the Kargil victory as Indian victory and not that of a BJP-led Government. There are no Congress martyrs and BJP martyrs. In war with enemy country there are only national martyrs.