Look Inside Your House

10

Tweet

The war rhetoric is dying down as more and more people on both sides of the border are beginning to understand that India is not America and Pakistan is not Afghanistan. Well, there is no doubt that India is not America but if Pakistan doesn't put its house in order it will certainly become Afghanistan. The Afghanistan of the Taliban. During the Taliban rule in Afghanistan, one heard numerous stories of the barbaric and inhuman acts of the Taliban's: the destruction of the ancient statues of The Buddhas of Bamyan, stories of women being beaten up and tortured in public and football grounds being turned into execution grounds. One witnessed brutality at its peak. Today the same story is being re- written, this time set in a different location. The story of Taliban in Pakistan. The Taliban in Pakistan has called for a ban on education of....

Black Eid

10

Tweet

Are the Indian Muslims more scared than anyone else after the attack in Mumbai? Perhaps not. But they definitely are a worried lot, perhaps more worried than anyone else. Whenever there is a terror strike Muslims too suffer. But the suffering doesn't end there. Some die and some grieve for the dead and the injured and the rest deal with the never ending trauma of being linked to the heinous act and of proving they are not responsible. They are more worried because they have to remind others that there are Muslims in police force and the Army. There are Muslims who are fighting for the country at the borders. There are Muslims who have died for the country defending its borders. Some keep the names and numbers handy, of the Muslims who have made great contribution to the country and have martyred fighting against Pakistan. And they are....

Watching Mumbai in silence

23

Tweet

I was celebrating India's fifth consecutive victory over England. We had moved one step forward towards a whitewash. I was unaware of the terror attack in Mumbai. My phone rang. It was an old friend. Before she could say anything I told her I was thrilled with India's victory. "There's been an attack in Mumbai" she said, "And I hate cricket" she banged the phone down. Perhaps she was disgusted with my ignorance. Ever since I moved over to sports, leaving the mainstream journalism behind in 2001, I have remained more or less silent on the issues. I enjoy sports but it's been frustrating to stay on the fringes and silently look at things and events unfolding. And that night, cricket and the victory looked irrelevant. Sports is not bigger than life, not even in a country where it is said to be the religion. ....