'Bahut danger area hai...'

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A strong intelligence gathering system, better policing, national ID cards, a network of surveillance cameras, tough anti-terror laws and what not - with so much advice floating around on how to fight terror, let me add mine as well. It's based on a brief conversation I had with a cab driver on my first ever visit to Ahmedabad recently for a TV show. We had just finished our first shoot at the Civil Hospital in Asarwa and were on our way to Maninagar for the next one. Since I was unfamiliar with the city, I asked the driver which area we were travelling through. Here's what followed -

Me: Hum abhi kis area mein hai? Maninagar yahan se kitna door hain?

Driver: Yeh Chamanpura ke paas hai. Yahan bahut Muslim log rahte hain.

Me: Achaa

Driver: Bahut danger area hai yeh. Bade khadoos (mean) log hain. Kuch saal pehle yahan danga hua tha. Yahan ek Muslim leader tha. Woh sirf apne logon ka khyaal rakhta tha. Saare Hindu aaspas ke area se ikkatha hue aur usse jalaa daala. Kaafi bada leader tha.

Me: Maninagar se Juhapura kitna door hain? Wahan pe bhi baad mein shoot ke liye jaana hain.

Driver: Arey..woh to sabse bada danger area hai. Muslim logo se bharaa pada hain. Mini-Pakistan hai woh. Ahmedabad mein jitne Muslim log hain utne poore Pakistan mein nahin hain.

The driver didn't know my name or my religion. He didn't even bother to ask me. What if I had been a Muslim? Well, I don't think he really cared because it seems that the level of indoctrination in Gujarat is so high that it has become normal to talk like this. There is absolutely no feeling of guilt or shame in openly spewing venom against the minorities.

Later that day, when we went to Juhapura, also known in Ahmedabad as the 'border area', I noticed that the driver kept sitting in the car and didn't once get out of it...such was his abhorrence for Muslims.

The point I am trying to make is this: with so much communal hostility in our society (and it's not just Gujarat-specific for I know many who think like this), is it any surprise that the terrorists are able to strike at will and with increasing regularity. It's our deep religious divide they thrive on. Yes, we do need to improve our policing and our intelligence network to thwart the terrorists' designs. One is certainly not questioning that. But really, is that all that needs to be done? How about changing the way we think? How about shedding our misconceptions and getting rid of our prejudices? The fact is that till we don't remove the poison that has entered our minds, till we don't break the walls of fear, hatred and mistrust that have come up, till we don't build bridges between communities..we will never succeed in our battle against terror.

To counter terrorism, we must first defeat communalism.

PS: Just to set the record straight. While Ahmedabad has only 4 lakh Muslims, Pakistan is home to 15 crore. Brainwashed propaganda is what the driver gave me.