We live in a strange world, a world
that harps on make believe assumptions. Its not even week when
Mumbai was rocked by another series of bomb blasts, a condemnable
act in every term of words, equally wired was the quick conclusion
to blame Indian Mujhadeen, Lasker -e -Toiba and Jaish- e- Mohammad
for the act.
There was not even a shred of evidence pertaining to that but the
entire country was fed on the staple diet of the usual Muslim
suspects. i was trying for balanced reportage but no TV channel
had the audacity to report that the security forces can not
correctly place the needle of suspicion on any exact group or
groups and every one is innocent in the eyes of the law.
Contrary each channel was going gung-ho hate mongering when it was
moment of restraint. The vernacular television screens were louder
in stoking the tempers against a particular community.
Now when the heat and the dust of the blast has settled down, all
the theories that were earlier circulated has come cropper and
there is lull about all that has happened a while ago.
Is it not all this sound strange? Anyway I leave this as food for
thought and try to pick up the thread at the killings in Oslo.
The moment this tragedy struck Norway, the first suspect was Al
Qida. One report tried to make believe that it was Osama Bin
Laden’s men who had gone on rampage to avenge the killing of its
leader.
Another said that some Islamic radical dressed in mufti created
the mayhem. It was to protest Norway’s participation with NTO
operations in Libya, Iraq and Afghanistan.
How simplest were the deductions, one wonders. Now, as the clouds
have cleared, there is no Islamic angle to the killings. The truth
is very different from all the assumptions being made.
This brings to the fundamental point, why the media is in a hurry
to do the post-mortem of such events. They seem to blame on what
ever comes handy and are easy targets.
It’s a dangerous trend and not good for the consumption of
civilized societies. In all humbleness there should be a protest
to stop the muck that’s thrown around in the name responsible
journalism.
Here, I may also like to add another fact that is that some
Islamic radicals have rejoiced at the pain caused in Norway,
calling it divine justice for the pains suffered in Iraq,
Afghanistan and Libya.
This again is a dangerous trend and has to be condemned in very
harsh words. Such thinking can not be called as an act of
civilization. It is sheer barbarism.
Both Mumbai and Norway killings has brought huge pain and
sufferings to the people who are victims of such terror. It’s a
time where each of us should unite to fight such dastardly acts.
This is done without any prejudices.
Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only by love; this is an
eternal rule. Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only by love;
this is the eternal rule, said one of India’s iconic saint, Lord
Buddha.
Equally important is quote of another saint of India Hazrat
Nizamuddin who says do not give me scissor as I do not like to
cut, give me needle, as I like to stitch.
At this point of time, the pain and sufferings of the victims
cannot be healed by blaming someone; it can only be overcome
through the resolve of acting as a needle to stitch the wounds of
hate.
Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be
contacted at syedalimujtaba@yahoo.com
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