The Danger Ahead

Within hours of when the last bullet was fired in Mumbai Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi began positioning himself for his own attack on the sitting government. His request for a review of internal security is likely a continuation of his campaign to crack the whip on domestic Muslims. In 2007 Tehelka reported that Modi had inside knowledge of the planning of the Gujarat riots where an estimated 2000 people--mostly muslims--lost their lives. His visa to the United States was denied in both 2003 and 2008 on allegations of genocide.

Modi and the rest of the Hindu right--from Bal Thakery's Shiv Sena to the RSS cadres --will use the assault on Mumbai to shore up support for their parties and direct communal fervor against millions of innocent Muslims in India. Even if the sequel to the Gujarat riots does not happen, we will likely see the passage of a POTA like law (India's stronger version of the Patriot Act) and an internal and arbitrary crackdown on suspected terrorists.

And this, of course, is exactly sort of result that the elements in the ISI that most likely planned the attacks would have wanted. I have already written on how these attacks play into the ISI's strategic advantage. In the last eight years India's economy has boomed and it's military position has strengthened, putting Pakistan's own position in South Asia much weaker. The assault on Mumbai was planned and executed by trained professionals, not random rural jihadis who just picked up their first machine gun.

However, if the Hindu-right takes the bait, they could easily spin the events of the last three days into something far more sinister. By passing laws that crack down on innocent populations in the name of combating terror and possibly drumming up support for violent pogroms, there is a chance that India could end up cannibalizing itself.

Happy Fundamentalist Valentine

To my very great sadness I missed the chance to blog about the most important Hindu fundamentalist extravaganza of the year while I had my nose buried in a pile of news stories. But luckily the good people at BoingBoing and Security Matters were one step ahead of me when they recorded the latest--and greatest--attacks on Valentine's Day yet.

Sure your remember last year how Shiv Sena got their pink and heart embossed panties up in a bunch over the the sale of valentines day cards in Varanasii and they burned down a couple card carrying stores. Well yesterday they struck again, this time in Jaipur.

In Rajasthan capital Jaipur, Bharatiya Kamgar and Students' Federation of India, organisations affiliated to the Shiv Sena and CPI-M respectively, said they would "blacken the faces" of those making public displays of affection. Another group, Sanskriti Bachao Samiti, said teams of youth would move around college and university campuses to "detect couples abusing public places". [via BoingBoing and Bruce Sterling]

But perhaps even more amusing were the attacks on valentines day floats in Madya Pradesh.

A 'rath' (decorated vehicle) prepared by the protesters, mainly activists of the Dharam Sena, for "forcibly marrying couples found celebrating Valentine's Day" was seized in Jabalpur, Additional Superintendent of Police Manohar Verma told PTI.

It is a sad day when Hindu fundamentalists get upset over forced marriages. I guess they prefer the term "arranged marriage". But please do tell me what a forced marriage on a valentines day float consists of? I have a picture of a many armed blue cupid grabbing young men and women willy-nilly and dragging them around a sacred fire.