MUMBAI TERROR ATTACK ANNIVERSARY
War against Pakistan not an option: Chidambaram



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Union Home P Chidambaram remembering the fateful day of November 26, 2008 said that it is time for India to go beyond the grief and pain of Mumbai terror attacks. Talking to CNN-IBN's Editor-in-Chief Rajdeep Sardesai, the minister said India believes in Mahatma Gandhi and therefore there is no place for violence in the country. He assured that India is better prepared to tackle terrorism and said he is proud the way Kasab's trial is going on in the court.
Here is an excerpt of the interview -
Rajdeep Sardesai: The first big question is that have we learnt our lessons from 26/11? When I say ‘we’ I mean both the political establishment and civil society.
P Chidambaram: I think some of us have learnt many lessons and many of us have learnt some lessons. But I believe that sooner or later we all will learn all the lessons that have to be learnt.
Rajdeep Sardesai: Today in many of your speeches you were admitting that the equipments that our police force have today is still not good enough. Will you admit this on this show?
P Chidambaram: No, I don’t agree. It is better than what we had a year ago. It will be better six months from today and even better 12 months from today. Rome was not built in a day. I had to deal with cumulative neglect and we are dealing with it. States are dealing with it.
Rajdeep Sardesai: The part of the problem is this battle that the states are dealing with it. You as a Home Minister receive a lot of praise for finally being a tough minister but you have to deal with state home ministers and governments. But not everyone is convinced, for example the Maharashtra government is as committed as you are. Is this the way we will win our battle against terror?
P Chidambaram: That is not a problem. That is a fact that we need to taken into account that are we a unitary state or a federal state. We are a federal state and in a federal state there are certain powers with the Centre, certain with the state government and I think we have found a way in which the state and the Centre can work together at least in matters of internal security. I think the Maharashtra government has done quite a bit though we were interrupted by the elections in between and believe me in six to 12 months from today they will be better.
Rajdeep Sardesai: Shouldn’t the RD Pradhan report be made public?
P Chidambaram: It should be and it will be. I have seen the RD Pradhan committee and it has no startling conclusion. It is simply a report on the way the police worked on that day, the practical problem the police faced and many of the issues have been addressed and I am quite confident that the RD Pradhan report will be soon made public.
Rajdeep Sardesai: Why doesn’t the Government have the courage to ‘isolate’ Pakistan and cut off relations – bilateral, cultural, economic and diplomatic? (IBNLive question)
P Chidambaram: War is not the option in the 21st century. India and Pakistan cannot go to war on every issue. Two countries who will be neighbours forever shouldn’t think of getting into a war.
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Yes ! that's what we are, we just let 10kids ( we are still not sure how many)from Pakistan to
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I am very sad the way Mr chidambaram is replying to all the questions .. His attitude and also his
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Mr. home minister.
Take it in writing war is the only solution to this state sponsor terror.
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I dont know why the honorable Home Minister is taking so much of pain to make such statements, even though
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This is ridiculus to say that India belongs to Gandhi. Politicians memory is so short that they forget that we
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