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Status The year 2008 will be remembered a major transformation year in the history of India as India emerged a new rising world power. Indian economy passed into another stage of ‘maturity’ that is called ‘walking stage’ by the economists. It was ranked the second fastest emerging economy after China. But it was only one achievement as far as a nation is concerned there are many achievement that increased India’s ‘status’ among other major world powers. India entered into the elite club of those nations who have sent successful lunar missions. India sent Chandrayaan-1 successfully in a record time as it was planned by the Indian space scientists. October 21 has a special status in the history of India. As on this day as India launched its maiden unmanned lunar mission successfully and the on the same day Indo-Pak relations headed towards a new stage as both the nations opened trade routes across the LoC.

Threats In this year India faced many internal and external threats and was one of the most militancy effected nation. After the month of June many Indian cities were rocked by serial bomb blasts in which almost 1000 innocent people were killed. A new terrorist outfit, Indian Mujahideen, took the responsibility of these serial bomb blasts which was later on found to be the changed name of SIMI. .It was not only militancy that emerged as a major threat to the unity of the nation. Maoists also emerged as ‘one of the biggest threats to the unity of India’. Maoist struck some big blows to various states and killed many policemen and political leaders. It were not only the militants that affected the nation adversely but communal violence also broke the social harmony and mutual trust between communities. India saw one of the worst communal violence in Orissa in which almost 500 personal mostly Christians were killed and thousands rendered homeless. The violence had broken out on the issue of killing of a VHP leader and religious preacher Swami Laxmananda in the Kandhamal district of the state. Thousands of people had fled from there native place to save their lives while NDA alliance government of the state did not take any adequate steps in time to put an end to the violence. Anti-Christian violence was not limited to the state of Orissa but some states also witnessed some incidents but it was the timely action of those state governments that prevented those small incidents to turns into big problems. After Orissa it was Assam that witnessed one of the worst communal violence in the history of India. Just in three days of time more than 100 people had been killed and thousands had been rendered homeless. Many villages had been burnt and inhabitants had been forced to flee from the place to save their near and dear ones. There was a good news also as for as the militancy is concerned. It was on September 30 when 305 ultras from the United Liberation Front of Barak Valley (ULFBV) joined the mainstream in front of Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi.

But the state of J&K surprised everyone including not only the Indian leaders but also the Pakistani agents collectively called Hurriyat. PDP’s ‘power lust’ inspired it to turn ‘Amarnath land transfer’ like non-issue into an issue and the state saw one of the worst agitations led by Hurriyat after late nineties. Hurriyat took over the reins from PDP and projected the agitations as the freedom struggle. But a major voter turnout in the state assembly elections deflated their so called ‘freedom struggle’. India had not just recovered form the earlier terror blows and the Indian secret agencies were licking their wounds when Pakistan’s ISI and military backed terrorists took India by surprised and attacked its ‘financial capital’ Mumbai on 26 November. In this incident almost 200 personal including the nine terrorists were killed. Mumbai police lost some of its top cops. But one Pakistani suicide bomber was caught live by some Mumbai police personal who later on spilled the beans that how he was trained and by whom. Mumabi terror attack is being considered India’s 9/11. Pakistan was under tremendous world pressure but it once again started to play the blackmail game not only with India but also with US. This incident put hold to the normalized Indo-Pak relations and also strained the mutual relations.

Indian Defense All these terrorist attacks exposed Indian secret agencies’ failure and vulnerability of the Indian security system. In some cased Indian secret agencies and the security agencies had the prior information but even then they failed to prevent the catastrophes. These incidents also exposed the necessity of the modernization of the Indian security system and the upgradation of technology. When terrorist struck Mumbai they were lased with world’s best technology and weapons while on the other hand NSG which is considered India’s best Commando force were not equipped even with some ‘required’ equipment that all of world’s elite forces posses. All these incidents have revealed security loopholes and it is being said that now India will emerge world’s biggest spender on defense.

Indian Navy started to play a role of a global player when in November it took lead against the Somali pirates who had emerged a biggest threat to the sea business in the Gulf of Aden in recent months. They had abducted many merchant ships of various countries in recent weeks and had freed then only after taking ransom of billions of dollars. Indian Navy not only escorted some merchant ships to safety that were under attack but also destroyed a pirate mother ship.

In. September India became the forth nation after US, Russia and Israel who have anti-missile shield. India has built and tested it twice and the project is almost near to the completion. This inceptor missile can track the enemy missile and destroy it inside endo) and outside (exo) of the atmosphere of the earth. This system has given India an edge over China and Pakistan who have a wide variety of missiles. In February India had tested a nuclear capable missile from an undersea platform. This missile was named K-15 and had a top range of 700 kilometers. Except it India had conducted many other missile tests during this year that included Brahmos, Shourya and some other missiles also. In November it had tested its main battle tank Arjun after some modernization and some necessary changes. It had showed some encouraging results. India has also signed deals to strengthen its navy and make its one of the best forces on sea. It is being said that in 2009 India will be having some more nuclear powered submarines. In 2008 India defense forces conducted military exercises with some friendly nations which also enhanced its military-to-military cooperation with these nations. India has signed many deals with other nations to upgrade its defense forces and replace its Soviet era weapons. In this cooperation Indo-Israel and Indo-US defense relations have a special status.

Mandate Fractured mandate has given rise to ‘intensive bargain’ talks between political parties in the Indian state of J&K. Though Farooq Abdullah led National Conference has emerged as the front leader to form a government but it can not do it on its own. It has won 28 assembly seats and is short of 16 seats to form a government. In this situation it needs the support of Congress which has bagged 17 seats. No other party is able to form a coalition government without the support of Congress. Tough PDP and NC, together have numbers but they are unlikely to become together to stake claim to form a government in the state. The voters have voted in such a way that except coalition between Congress and National Conference no other combination has the minimum required seats to prove majority in the state assembly.

PDP-Congress There was a possibility of Congress and PDP sharing the dais again with the help of some independents and small parties as both the camps had kept their doors open for each other. But Congress’ internal factionalism has ruled out such possibility. It is being said Congress was divided in two camps on the issue of supporting NC or PDP. PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti had said that her party will support Congress if it elects Prof. Saiffudin Soz as its chief ministerial candidate. But Soz himself was not interested to become the CM and was favoring Gulam Nabi Azad. Numbers were also not in favor of Congress-PDP coalition government as the combination required the support of six more legislators to prove the majority in the assembly.

NC-Congress Amid such circumstances it has become clear that NC and Congress will come together again to stake claim for the formation of the new government. NC chief ministerial candidate Omar Abdullah had intensified his efforts and had traveled to Delhi to discuss about the matter with the senior Congress leaders and party president Sonia Gandhi. But on the other hand Congress has not shown any keenness to rush to form a government and had kept its ‘doors open to all options’. Congress Party president Sonia Gandhi discussed the matter with former J&K chief minister Gulam Nabi Azad and state party president Safuddin Soz on Monday evening. It is being said that Congress will take a day or two to reach a final decision on forming the next government in the border state.

Understanding There are some talks that indicate that Congress will prefer to have an understanding with NC similar to previous PDP-Congress coalition. Congress and PDP had ruled the state in turns. First, PDP chief Mufti Mohammad Sayeed ruled the state for three years with the support of Congress. He was followed by Congress’ Gulam Nabi Azad. But they had fallen out with each other over the issue of Amarnath land row and PDP had withdrawn its support to Azad led government in June this year. It is being said that Congress will ask NC to support its chief ministerial candidate for first three years and then to be followed by NC’s Omar Abdullah. By this move Congress can complete its development projects it had initiated during the rule of Gulam Nabi Azad government.

National Interests Formation of new government in the state does not have only a political importance but has also national interests. PDP is known for its sympathy towards the separatists and anti-India interests. On the other hand it won’t be in favor of India to keep a nationalist party like National Conference out of power for another six years. There is no doubt that PDP has served as a proxy for the separatists and has damaged the unity of the nation by turning Amarnath land row like non-issue into an issue. Amarnath land row had divided J&K into two parts on the basis of religion and this issue has benefited only PDP and BJP. PDP and BJP both are polls apart and are known for playing religious cards. Congress and NC’s vote percentage has declined which indicates that Congress’ stint with PDP has revitalized only the separatist forces and has damaged national interests.

All-Out Performance Aamir Khan has a special status in the Indian entertainment industry called Bollywood. He is known for his ‘all-out’ performances in his films. In recent years we have witnessed that he has worked in a very few films but all those films have proved out to be grand successes on the board. Whether it was ‘Sarfarosh’, ‘Lagan’, ‘Rang De Basanti’ or is ‘Gajini’, he had adopted a unique style to fully suit his films. And all these films have proved his metal as a matured actor and as a successful experimentalist. He changes his personality according to the demand of the role. We have seen his ‘Mangal Pandey’ look and to prove his metal in that film he had worked for months.

Race To do justice to every role he ’surpasses all limits’. His Gajini look is the proven evidence. After Salman and Shahrukh he too, have joined the ‘Bollywood body builder actors’. He has not joined the race with Salman and Shahrukh but have even surpassed then. Sharukh had showed his ’six pack’ body in his recent flick but Aamir has surpassed him by his ‘eight pack’ body look in his latest flick ‘Gajini’. Once again Aamir has appeared in a new look but this time he is totally different-we haven’t seen him before. He has not only ‘worked on his body’ but went ‘all-out’ to promote his film. Whether it were print media, TV shows, hoardings and stage programs his tattooed his rippling musculature was could be seen anywhere.

Cast&Crew Aamir Khan, Asin, Jiah Khan and Pradeep Rawat starred ‘Gajini’ has been directed by A R Murugadoss a famous south Indian director. Originally it is the remake of the Tamil film ‘Gajini’ which was inspired by Christopher Nolan’s “Memento”. Except Aamir most of the crew and the director have worked in the Tamil ‘Gajini’ also. A.R. Rehman has given music to the film. In the starting of the film Sanjay Singhania (Aamir Khan) is introduced who is suffering from a anterograde amnesia, a short term memory loss which means that one forgets everything within a short span of time. The director has done a wonderful job even when the situation switches very fast because of hero’s ’short haul amnesia’.

Story Line The hero forgets every thing within the time of 15 minutes that is why everything is tattooed on his body that reminds him about his past. The film is simply a ‘live and revenge’ story but its different situations are interwoven in a very beautiful manner that keeps the ‘watcher’ glued to the screen. It has all the emotions of revenge, romance, action and thrill with a nice touch of humor present in it that reminds us about the films of 80’s.

Performance In the film Sanjay Singhania has been presented as a business tycoon who is the owner of a cellular company called Air Voice. He falls in love with a model turned social activists Kalpana (Asin) . But the underworld don Gajini (Pradeep Rawat) kills Kalpana in front of Sanjay and injures him that causes him to lose his memory. From this stage the course of the film turns and with every passing moment the ‘feelings’ reach their highest point. There are loopholes and some unanswered questions but they can be ignored in such a film that deals with psychology. Amir Khan has performed very well amid rapidly changing emotions. Asin, too, has looked awesome especially in the romantic scenes. Jiah Khan has also impresses as a medical student. But overall it is Aamir Khan who has pulled the crowds with his thundering performance.

Military Movement The tension between India and Pakistan have eased to some extent after the military-to-military talks between both the nations. Tensions were very high after the militant attack on Mumbai and reached the highest point after Pakistan had shifted its thousands of troops from the Afghanistan border towards its eastern border. It is being said that India, too, had taken the precautionary measures and had ordered the movement of troops towards its western border. Movement of heavy military equipment towards border was also seen in both the nuclear armed nations which had given rise to the war talks. Pakistan military and air force had increase its activities near the Indo-Pak border which was being considered as a provocation by the Indian public.

Pak Stand A group of ten Pakistani militants had slaughtered 180 Indian and foreign people in India’s financial capital Mumbai. After the militant attack, tensions were high between both the nations and Indian public was demanding some strict action on the part of its government. Pakistan had earlier promised a strict action against the perpetrators of the terror attack who are sitting in Pakistan but later on had backtracked from its commitment when evidence established links with ISI and Pakistani military. After that their were many ‘turns and U-turns’ in Pakistan’s stand which exposed its real face in front of the international community. It is being believed in India that without tough action Pakistan will not ‘come on to the track’.

Blackmail Tactics But on the other hand Pakistan government chose the ‘denial’ mode in wake of increasing international pressure. Pakistan government even started to use blackmail tactics by shifting its troops from FATA towards Indian border. It must be learnt that Pakistan has deployed its thousands of troops along the Afghanistan border in support of the US led coalition forces fighting in Afghanistan against the Taliban militants. If Pakistan moves its troops from the Afghan border then it will become impossible for the coalition forces to win the ‘war on terror’.

Changing Attitude According to some media reports senior Indian and Pakistani military officers had contacted each other to defuse the tensions. The tensions had reached at such a point that it could start a sub-continental war. According to the report the Directors-General Military Operations of both of the countries, India and Pakistan, discussed the matter with each other on hotline on Sunday. Both of the countries claimed that these talks were on scheduled basis. But according to the norm top military official of both the countries contact on Tuesday on a routine basis but it is for the first time that they have made ‘an extraordinary move’ and talked on hotline. Pakistani Army Chief’s remarks have further de-escalated the tension. During the talks with Chinese vice foreign minister He Yafei, who is visiting Pakistan, Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani ‘highlighted the need to de-escalate and avoid conflict in the interest of peace and security’. This is for the first time that Kayani has commented on the situation. A change has been noted in Pakistan government’s attitude towards India after China and Iran swung into action to defuse the tensions between the neighbors. Yafei is in Pakistan on a two day visit and will later on travel to India. Prior to his visit to the region he had spoke to his Indian and Pakistani counterparts respectively on the situation in the subcontinent and had asked them to move ahead with the peace process to maintain stability in the region.

Attention Diversion But these war talks by Pakistan are being considered as the tactics to divert the attention from ISI, military, militants’ and Taliban nexus. But it has not succeeded in its purpose. India, from the starting, is demanding a strong action against those ISI, military and Lashkar-e-Taeba persons who are directly involved in the Mumbai attack. Mumbai terror attack was not only a well planned but also a well structured terror attack which could not be carried out without the active support of ISI and military. Pakistan is trying to divert the attention and is creating hurdles into the investigation by creating ‘war hysteria’.

Results As the counting of votes for the Jammu and Kashmir assembly polls was under process it became clear that the state is once again set to face a coalition government. As the counting progressed , Farooq Abdullah led National Conference emerged as the single largest party in the state with 28 seats out of the total 87 state assembly seats. It is closely followed by PDP which has won 21 seats. Congress has won 17 seats while BJP has emerged as the biggest gainer in these elections as it has improved from its previous seat tally of 1 to 11. The remaining 10 seats have been won by some other parties and the independents.

Coalition Possibilities It can be called the ‘election mandate’ , ‘Janta ka faisla’ or an irony that except NC and Congress’ coalition no other alliance can stake claim to form a government in the state. 44 seats are required to stake claim to form the government. NC and PDP are the arch rivals and no one can expect them to come together. At the same time no one can expect an ‘understanding’ between BJP and PDP as both are polls apart. PDP has a soft corner for the separatists while BJP calls them ‘traitors’. If the impossible happens and PDP and BJP come close to each other, even then they can not form a government as they both are short of 12 seats to form a government. PDP and Congress along with the others can form the government but this is not possible because of the recent strategic election compulsion. Congress has not yet recovered from the recent back stabbing by the PDP. So all it indicates that Except NC and Congress no other coalition can stake claim to form the government. After the trust vote motion in the Lok Sabha NC and Congress have come very close to each other. It must be learnt that PDP and NC both had supported the Manmohan Singh government in favor of India-US nuclear deal. After the elections results Congress had said that its doors are opened both for NC and PDP. But, in the political circles it was being said that Congress is inclined towards NC. This possibility had almost turned into reality with the declaration of the election results.

Chief Minister After the declaration of results on Sunday evening , 72 year old NC leader Farooq Abdullah had said that he would like to become the next chief minister of the state. And this statement had created confusions. But on Monday morning he cleared the confusion by saying that he will recommend his son Omar Abdullah’s name to his party to be made the next chief minister of the state. It must be learnt that Farooq Abdullah is currently a Rajya Sabha member. On Monday, NC leader claimed that they have established informal links with the Congress and Omar will travel to Delhi to seek Congress’ help to stake claim for the formation of the new government. Congress was yet to take any decision to help the NC to form the government. In political circles it is being expected that Omar Abdullah, with the support of Congress, will become the youngest CM in the history of Jammu and Kashmir.

Achievement The recent J&K assembly elections are being considered as the biggest achievement of the Indian democracy in wake of the separatists’ election boycott call. Pak sponsored separatist leaders and militant organizations had called for the election boycott. But public of the state had not paid any heed to the ‘call’ and overwhelmingly participated in the electoral process. A strong turnout of 60.5 per cent was recoded which is the second best after 1987’s assembly elections. This huge turnout is being considered as a rebuff to the separatists and the so called ‘fear factor’. It must be learnt that Pakistan supported militants had supported Hurriyat’s peaceful election boycott call and had refrained from violence this time. The election mandate reflects the view that ‘radical’ parties have gained from the Amarnath land row. PDP and BJP both have improved their seat tally and the vote percentage. While on the other hand Congress and NC’s vote percentage has declined.

Murder Earlier their were rumors that all BSP MLA’s are ‘collecting’ party fund to give as gifts to their party leader Miss. Mayawati on her birthday bash. It was being said that BSP leaders and party workers were extorting money for party funds. These rumors turned out to be true on December 24 with the brutal murder of Manoj Kumar Gupta, executive engineer of the Public Works Department in Gail Vihar colony residence at Dibiapur in Auraiya district. According to the wife of the killed engineer local BSP MLA Shankar Tiwari had demanded Rs. 50 lakh rupees as ‘donation’ for Chief Minister Mayawati’s birthday but the engineer had refused to give the ‘chanda’.

Police According to the wife of the slain engineer some people had entered their house forcibly and started to beat them. Later on when the engineer fell unconscious, he was taken away by the BSP workers to the local party office and again was beaten brutally and when he died the local MLA himself took his body to the police station. This all was done in the presence of the MLA and a local police officer. It has been said that Monoj Kumar Gupta had twice phoned the local police station before the BSP ‘goondahs’ could broke open the locked doors. Both the calls for help were received by the local police station but did not take any action. All these incidents indicate that the local police was ‘hand in glove’ with the local BSP extortionists probably because of some ‘high level pressure’.

Extortion But the BSP’s ‘tyranny’ did not end here. All the BSP leaders including the party head Mayawati tried to project it professional rivalry and dispute over the commissions on contracts. But the wife of the slain engineer alleged that it were the local BSP party workers and MLA Shankar Tiwari who killed her husband brutally. Mayawati government had tied to distance itself from the episode by saying that Chief Minister has nothing to do with the case. But Mayawati had ruled out the possibility of CBI enquiry which is being seen as Mayawati’s underhand support to the arrested MLA. Later on Mayawati had held a press conference and had tried to project the murder as “the result of some kind of professional tussle and underhand money.” She had also ruled out the possibility of shielding anybody indulged in any unlawful activity. She said, “The allegation that my party MLA was indulging in extortion to collect money for my birthday celebrations is absolutely false and baseless.” But all her claims fell flat when a predecessor of the slain engineer in the public works department C D Ray told that Shekhar Tiwari would regularly extort money for party funds along with his supporters.

Murder of Faith According to the autopsy report of the body of the slain engineer serious injuries were found on his head, chest, abdomen and other parts. Police said that he was beaten ‘mercilessly’ and ‘anti-mortem’ injuries caused his death. It is also being said that he was given electric shocks also. Amid massive public protests, police had arrested BSP MLA Shankar Tiwari under the National Security Act and the Gangster Act for the murder of engineer Manoj Guptal. State band called by Samajwadi Party had met with a huge public response which has rung danger bells for BSP’s future planning. But Mayawati had to face another tense moment when slain engineer’s son declined Mayawati’s compensation of Rs. 5 lakh. He said,” We have no faith in the government and the police as they have not performed any forensic investigations into the murder.” He also demanded CBI enquiry for the ‘free and fare trial.’ Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh Engineers’ Association has gone on an indefinite strike. It is being said that some people are being shielded by the police and some PWD workers are being made ‘scapegoat’ cover up the BSP workers’ alleged involvement into the case.It is not the murder but the issue that has created so much uproar in the state. It has also provided the opposition with an issue against the BSP state government and the case has taken a political turn. Neither media and opposition nor the masses and family members of the slain engineer are ready to believe Mayawati.

Terrorist Nation Thousands of Pakistani traveled hundreds of miles to gather in Garhi Khuda Bakhash at the mausoleum of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhuto on the first anniversary of her assassination. Bhuto had been killed in a gun and suicide bomb attack on December 27, 2007 during a public rally within a few weeks of her return to Pakistan after a long ‘forced exile’ by the military rulers. It was a second attack on her after her return to the Pakistan. General turned President Parvez Musharraf had blamed militant leader Baitullah Mehsood for her assassination but public of Pakistan believes that Musharraf too was indirectly involved in her assassination by not providing adequate protection to her. After her death PPP, led by her husband Asif Ali Zardari had returned to power and had vowed to fight against the terrorists and root out the menace from the Pakistani soil. But these were only ‘emotional words’ that were never turned into reality. Today Pakistan based militant outfits have become more powerful and have started to attack the neighboring countries which has poised a great danger to Pakistan’s existence. A nation that was being considered US’ biggest ally in its war on terror has got the tag of ‘international migraine’. 75 per cent terror activities carried out around the world are directly linked to Pakistan. These facts have brought Pakistan almost very near to attain the tag of a ‘terrorist nation’.

National Policy But Pakistan has not changed its ‘national policy’ of supporting terrorists. Despite of peace process with India terrorists were pushed into the Indian territory which was just a part of Pakistani military and ISI’s anti-India policy. Serial bomb blasts and the terror attack on Mumbai were the results of this policy. But with the killing of almost 200 innocent people in Mumbai by the Pakistani terrorists, India has lost its patience. Pakistani leadership which has earlier promised to take concrete steps against the militant elements responsible for attack on India had later on backtracked from its words. It did not end here but they started to speak the language of same elements that were responsible for Bhuto’s assassination.

Military Movement According to the recent reports, Pakistan has increased the deployment of troops on its eastern border adjoining Indian states of Punjab, Rajasthan, and J&K. Military has started to renovate old bunkers and build new bunkers near the along with the Indian border. All military leaves have been canceled and movement of heavy military equipment was reported near Lahore border. According to some more reports Pakistani air force had increased its activities along with the Indian border. It all indicates that Pakistani leadership is more interested to create ‘war hysteria’ instead of taking concrete steps against military and ISI supported militant outfits. Pakistani security forces claimed to have arrested some Indian who were involved in a bomb blast in Lahore but it was being seen as a ‘cover up and tit for tat action’ after the arrest of three Pakistani militants including a serving Pakistani soldier in J&K a two days ago. After it Indian government had warned its citizens from traveling to Pakistan.

Options On the other hand Indian military has moved towards the border. Though no movement of heavy military equipment has been seen on Indian side but no one can rule out the possibility if the tension escalates. BSF ground commanders had sent a report to the Union Government of India about the recent troop deployment from the opposite side. On Friday Indian Prime Minister has called for a meeting in which all the three defense chiefs took part. Later on it was told that this meeting was called in wake of the ‘recent Pakistani troop deployment on the Indian border’. But this meeting had rung danger bells across the world. Two days ago External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee had warned that India has all its options open if the world leadership fails to pressure Pakistan.

Pressure Pakistan’s democratically elected government wants to dismantle terrorist infrastructure present inside the country but it is unable to do so because of military’s strong resistance. It looks that government has been forced to follow the military agenda to remain loggerheads with India. But on the other hand Indian people have forced its government to ‘do or die’. If the Pakistani government does not change its stand and take positive steps then no body can rule out the repetition of history.

Preparation As the tension between India and Pakistan is rising both the nations are heading towards a military confrontation. Mumbai terror attack has exposed the nexus between Pakistani secret agency ISI, military and the militant outfits Lashkar-e-Taeba and Taliban. Though Pakistan government talks to cooperate with India in investigating the Mumbai terror attack and bring the perpetrators to the justice but at ground level nothing has been done to dismantle the terror infrastructure present inside Pakistan. Though terrorist camps still exit inside Pakistan and training is being imparted but Pakistan government has done nothing to uproot the infrastructure. Pakistani leadership’s flip-flop show has also escalated the tensions between both the nations. According to the latest reports Pakistani military and air force has increased its activities on its eastern border amid the rising tensions between both the nations. On the other hand India has also kept its security forces prepared to retaliate in minimum possible time. Pakistan has enough evidence that proves that the Mumbai attackers were Pakistani national trained by the Pakistani establishment but it in hesitant to take any actions against the ‘non-state actors’.

Hypocrisy Instead of taking any concrete actions against the militants, Pakistani government is creating war hysteria. Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, who had earlier taken some positive steps to dismantle the terror infrastructure have backtracked from his stand and has started to speak the words similar to the former military dictators. Opposition leader Nawaz Sharif has also backtracked from his earlier positions. It indicates that someone else is behind the scene who is governing Pakistan. Mumbai attack has unveiled that what is the real power inside Pakistan. But at the same time it has also exposed Pakistan’s hypocrisy in the war on terror.

Leadership Failure On the other hand Indian government has also become an example of a ‘total failure’. Recent developments indicate that only two leaders, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh are governing the nation. Rests of the Indian leaders are taking the necessary rest before the general elections that are scheduled to be held in the months of May and June next year. But it is not the leadership that wants to end the cross-border terrorism in ‘one-go’ but the Indian public. Massive public rallies in many parts of the country indicate that, Indian public has fed-up with the militancy and wants a ‘concrete action’ against the ‘rogue neighboring country’. People are angry against the government also for its repeated failures to tackle the terrorism. Amid such circumstances, PM Manmohan Singh and Pranab Mukherjee’s voices have lost credibility. Public as well as the Indian security forces are feeling dejected because of its leadership’s lack of courage to taking appropriate decisions.

Provocation Indian leadership is fighting only the ‘war of words’ just to pass the remaining four months of the present government. A few days ago Pranab Mukherjee had said that ‘all options’ are open to India if Pakistani government fails to take the appropriate actions against the terrorists. But his words were neutralized by PM Singh who said,’ nobody wants war. The issue is not war, the issue is terror and territory in Pakistan being used to promote, aid and abet this terror.’ US, UK and UN have repeatedly claimed that Mumbai attackers were Pakistani nationals but Pakistani establishment has not initiated any investigation against the suspected terrorists except taking then into ‘protective’ custody. Pakistan had offered to jointly investigate the Mumbai attack but Indian leadership had denied such possibilities. It indicates the trust deficit between both the nations. India’s concerns are based on reality. In the past it has happened many times when Indian secret agencies had provided evidence and whereabouts of some wanted persons to the Pakistani government but instead of arresting them Pakistani secret agencies had moved them to some safer places. A few day ago after the crackdown on the terrorists, a Pakistani minister has claimed that Jaish-e-Mohhumed chief Azhar Mahmood had been house arrested but later on the same person declared that Pakistani government and the secret agencies don’t know the whereabouts of the wanted terrorist. Pakistani premier Yusuf Raza Gilani has ruled out any possibility of war but has accused the Indian government of trying to find out a ‘scapegoat’ to evade taking responsibility for the intelligence failure. He also asked India ‘not to underestimate their military might’. Pakistani President has also provoked India by saying that their armed forces were fully capable of “thwarting any aggression from the east.’

Series Result The second test between India and England, played at the PCA Stadium Mohali ended into a draw. England had resumed its India Tour after the terror attack on Mumbai. Resumption of the tour was being seen as a befitting reply to terrorists’ act of creating fear and disruption of normal life in India. It must be learnt that terrorists had targeted the foreign national in Mumbai attack. More than 50 people were killed inside the Taj Hotel where the England team was scheduled to arrive a day later and to stay for a couple of days as Mumbai was the original venue for the second test and was later on changed to Mohali because of security reasons.

Defensive On day four England bowlers had given some jolts to the Indian side by taking some quick top order wickets which had forced India to adapt a defensive approach as the match was evenly poised at that time and fall of more wickets could turn the tide in favor of England and series could have ended into a draw. After Tendulkar’s dismissal India decided to play for a draw without taking to many risks. India had made 134 runs for four on day four while Gambhir and Yuvraj were on the crease.

Gambhir&Yuvraj In the morning the play was delayed for two hours because of fog and poor light conditions. Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh added 153 runs for the fifth wicket. While Gambhir played a defensive game Yuvraj was as natural he is. They used reverse hits and sweeps against a strong off-side field set by skipper Kevin Pietersen against the left handers. By the lunch India was leading by 369 runs which also included the 153 run lead from the first inning. But they both missed the chances to complete their centuries. Yuvraj fell short of the crease when he tried to steal a single and a direct throw from Ian Bell in short fine-leg ended his dream run. Yuvraj had brought back the Twenty20 memories when he hit some long and high sixes Stuart Broad. Yuvraj hit six boundaries and four sixes in his 86 run knock off 93 balls. Gambhir missed his century by just three runs when he edged a Graeme Swann delivery and Ian Bell took a brilliant diving catch at gully. He played a very cautious and defensive game which is the sign of a good team man. He took 229 balls to make 97 runs which included six fours. He had scored 179 runs in the first inning of the test. He has the ability to switch the gears at any time but he batted according to the team planning and kept his wicket held. His 276 runs against England are the highest run scored by an Indian batsman in a test. He surpassed the 257 run score by Vinoo Mankad.

England After Yuvraj’s departure skipper Dhoni came in to bat but failed to open his account as he ruturned a simple catch to England spinner Monty Panesar. With the fall of Gambhir’s wicket India declared its second inning at 251 for 7 while Harbhajan remained unbeaten for five. England did not try anything off the beat and played the natural game before the match was declared a draw. When the play ended England was at 64 for one with Straus and Bell on the crease. The dismissed batsman was Alaister Cook who fell victim to Ishant Sharma as he edged his delivery that was pitched in line but was going out-side the off-stump and was Laxman, at second slip, took a low catch.

Awards As it was obvious Gambhir was declared Man of the Match. Indian pacer Zaheer Khan walked away with the Man of the series award. Zaheer Khan was impressive with both the new and old balls. His control, movement, swing and reverse swing was the highlights of his bowling during the series. Another highlight of the day was wicketkeeper-skipper Dhoni’s medium pace bowling. He tried his hands at the bowling and was cheered by the crowd. With this series win India has reclaimed 2^nd spot in the ICC test ranking.

Skipper Dhoni thanked the England side for coming and playing in India which has proved that India is not an’ unsafe place’. England Skipper felt proud of ‘being a captain of a bunch of lads who jumped on a plane to come’ to India and ‘played some good cricket’.

England Early blow by the spirited England bowlers and the slow run scoring has put India on the back foot in its second inning on the day four of the Mohali test. On day third Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra had struck in the last overs to leave the visitors at 282 for six. But before that England skipper Kevin Pietersen had played a live giving knock to keep his side afloat. At one point of the match England’s four players were back into the pavilion with 131 runs on the scoreboard. But Pietersen smashed 15^th test hundred of his career to negate the possibilities of small score. A good support from Alastair Cook and Andrew Flintoff also brought their side back into the play.

Batting In the morning on day three, play was delayed almost for 90 minutes because of dense fog and poor light conditions. But England openers could not give a good start to their side. Zaheer Khan dashed their hopes of a good start when he trapped Strauss leg before the wicket in the first over of the play. Strauss could not open his account. New man Ian Bell could not steer his side out of danger and was dismissed by Ishant Shara for 1. An incoming ball took the inside edge of his bat and crashed into his middle stump. A century run partnership between Cook and Pietersen pulled their side out of danger. Zaheer again struck in the second session and trapped Cook in front of the wicket. He made 50 runs. Now it was turn of Indian spinners. Mishra did not allow the partnership between Collingwood and Pietersen to last long and dismissed the former. A flighted delivery took a faint edge before being caught by wicketkeeper Dhoni.

Pietersen-Flintoff But a 149 run partnership between Flintoff and Pietersen pulled their side out of danger. Pietersen made 144 and Flintoff made 62 runs. Pietersen’s adventurous shots increased Indian bowlers’ problems and pushed them to back foot to a defensive mode. But Indian spinners brought their side back into the game by dismissing both of the danger men in the last overs of the day three’s game. Harbhajan Singh trapped Pietersen in front of the wicket. Flintoff was sent packing when Gautam Gambhir took a superb catch at short-leg off Mishra. But at the close of the third day’s play England had made 282 runs at the loss of six wickets.

India Batting-Day-4 On day four, rest of the England batsmen could add only 20 runs to their total of 302 runs this giving a 151 run lead to the hosts. But India’s hopes of scoring runs at a fast pace were shattered when Sehwag got run out on 17. He tried to steal a single but all stumps were uprooted by diving Ian Bell who had run from the short cover to collect the ball. Dravid, who had made a century in the first inning of the match, once again failed to open his account and was clean bowled by Stuart Broad. Dravid remained on back foot while an incoming delivery uprooted his middle stump. He was soon followed by Tendulkar. Tendulkar tried to guide a Anderson delivery towards gully and was caught Graeme Swann leaving India tottering at 44 for three. Laxman and Gambhir tried to pull their side out of danger by playing a defensive game which gave enough chances to the opposite side to lift their bowling and fielding standards. At that time boundaries had totally dried. England’s pressure tactics worked and Laxman returned run out because of mix-up with Gambhir. He made 15 runs.

Gambhir-Yuvraj But with Yuvraj’s arrival on the crease the game changed totally. His 39 runs of 40 balls returned cheers to the Indian faces. He hit five boundaries and a six thus challenging England’s attacking fielding tactics. 54-run unbeaten stand between both the left-handers have put their side back into the game and dashed England team’s hopes of returning with at least a draw. India has taken a total lead of 285 runs over England which is also big challenge on the last day of the test on the Mohali pitch. Gambhir and Yuvraj, both are the attacking batsmen with different techniques which forced the England bowlers to change their line and length without any avail. Pietersen made a mistake by not employing Flintoff who has always troubled Yuvraj with and rising short length deliveries.

Day One Former Indian captain popularity known as ‘wall of India’, combined with opener Gautam Gambhir and added unbeaten 173 runs for the second wicket on day one of the Mohali test. Because of bad light conditions start of the match was delayed and was closed earlier and only 72 overs could be bowled as compared to the required 90 overs. Earlier in the morning, Indian skipper won the toss and elected to bat first. But England pacer Stuart Broad gave a big jolt to the Indians when he dismissed previous test match’s Man of the Match Virender Sehwag for a naught. He edged a delivery pitched outside the off-stump and was caught by keeper Matt Prior.

Dravid and Gambhir Out of form Dravid came to bat after the dismissal of Sehwag. He struggled a bit in the morning and built his half century playing cautiously. Though he was struggling a bit in the morning but he gained the ground as the partnership went on building. He was in a very bad form and had made his half century only after nine innings. His test average is 52 while his year’s average is 28. But in form opener Gambhir continued with his adventures and slammed his fourth test hundred. He also became the fourth Indian to complete one thousand runs in a year.

Partnership The day two offered some interesting and dramatic turns in the course of the match. If the play of the morning session was dominated by batsmen the evening session saw the dominance of the bowlers. Dravid and Gambhir continued building their partnership and added 314 runs for the second wicket. Gambhir fell victim to Swann as he tried to slice a wide delivery and was caught by Cook. He made 179 runs. He was soon joined by Dravid back into the pavilion when he was caught at mid-off by Panesar off Swann. But before his departure Dravid had completed his century which also marked his return to the form. He made 136 runs and remained in control during most of the part of the day while England pacers were moving the ball both ways. Though England bowlers tried hard but they were denied any success by the due earlier in the morning. Dravid played back-footed strokes off the spinners and closely watched the hands of the pacers to pick the deviation.

Contributions After the departure of Gambhir and Dravid it was the turn of England bowlers and they dominated most of the part of the game after that. It is evident from the fact that Indians were at 320 for one at one point and were all out for 453. Except Dravid and Gambhir none of the Indian batsmen could bat well except some small contributions by Yuvraj Singh, skipper Dhoni, Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra. Previous match’s centurion Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar could make only 11 runs and was trapped in front of the wicket by Swann. VVS Laxman could not even open his account and was trapped by A. Flintoff. Yuvraj Singh who was earlier put down by Alaster Cook off Flintoff at the gully, could not take the advantage of the luck and was soon caught by Prior off Panesar. But it was Flitoff who really tested him with few of his lifting and deviating deliveries. He made 27 runs and added 40 runs for the sixth wicket along with skipper Dhoni. Skipper Dhoni too, could not stay on the crease for a long time and made an early exit. He made 29 runs and was caught at midwicket by the substitute fielder Owais Shah off Andersen. Indian tail-enders offered some resistance and added some runs in their total.

Lower Order Harbhajan and Dhoni added 39 runs for the seventh wicket before skipper’s departure. Soon Harbhajan followed him for 24. He was caught at mid-off by Swann off Panesar. Zaheer tried to play a short across the line and was bowled out by Flintoff. Zaheer made only 7 runs. But the game had not ended here. Amit Mishra and Ishant Sharma offered some resistance. Mishra made 23 runs before being bowled out by Flintoff. Ishant remained not out.

England openers Alastair Cook and Andrew Strauss came to open but day’s play was canceled because of poor light conditions before they could face even a single delivery.

Pak Government There are various power centers inside Pakistan even more powerful than its elected government. That is why Pakistan government has always failed to deliver according to its promises. For Pakistan, there is a very thin gap to get the status of a failed state from a ‘weak state’. Pakistan government wants to get the work done by some one else which is its responsibility. Despite repeated claims by the international community and the Indian government that the Mumbai attackers were Pakistani citizens, Zardari government is unwilling to accept the truth. Instead of investigating the involvement of Pakistani ‘non-state actors’ into the Mumbai terror attack, Pakistan government is waiting evidence to be provided by the Indian government. At one point Pakistan government says that it is suffering from international terrorism and Pakistani terrorists killed in Mumbai were ‘non- state actors’. But at the other end Pak government is saying that they were not the Pakistani citizens.

Cover-up Pakistan government is evading accepting that truth that the Mumbai attackers were Pakistani citizens. Pakistani president Asif Ali Zardari has allied with the military and army supported Lahkar-e-Taeba militants by saying that there is no evidence that the arrested Mumbai attacker hails from Pakistan’s Punjab Province. India had made it public that arrested militant Qasab hails from a village of Punjab Province. A leading Pakistani newspaper reporter had met even his father and had interviewed him. Qasab’s father had acknowledged that the gunman captured in India was his son. Some other newspaper reporters had also visited the village and claimed that the Qasab belongs to this village and had visited five months ago. There were also some reports that Pakistani intelligence have condoned off the village and nobody is allowed to meet his parents. All this indicates that Pak government is trying to cover-up the ‘real-evidence’.

Sharif But Pakistan’s opposition leader and former prime minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif has challenged Zardari’s assertion. In an interview to the Geo news channel he said “I have checked myself. His (Ajmal Amir Iman alias Ajmal Qasab) house and village has been cordoned off by the security agencies. His parents are not allowed to meet anybody. I don’t understand why it has been done.” He also attacked PPP led government by saying that the way it is functioning has made Pakistan look like a ‘failed state’.

Stand What India expects, Pakistan’s government is unable to do because there are so many power centres inside that country that it is unable to control all of them. It had tried to bring ISI under its control twice but it failed both the times. Military is also not happy with the war going in NWFP. India is fine tuning its priorities to deal with the terrorism but Pakistan must also fine-tune its own priorities if it wants to save itself from getting the status of a failed state. Pakistan government has made many encouraging statements but had retracted from that after some time because of the internal pressure. Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi had told a news channel that Masood Azhar was under house arrest but later on had retracted from his statement and had said that he is wanted by the law enforcement agencies. This is just the one example there are many examples of Pakistan government ‘sincerity’ and ‘unwavering’ stand. All it has forced India to ‘consider the entire range of options that exist.’

Decision All doubts regarding the cricket series were between India and Pakistan were cleared on Thursday when Indian government refused to give approval to BCCI to go ahead with Indian cricket team’s Pakistan tour as according to the schedule. After the Mumbai terror attack situation has dramatically changed and all hopes of permanent peace between both the nations have vanished. Before the 11/26 though there were security concerns regarding Indian cricket team’s tour but cricket bodies and players of both of the nations were determined to go ahead with the tour. It must be leant that Pakistan cricket team has not played even a single test match for almost last one year. And they have not played any international ODI since June this year inside Pakistan. Pakistan Cricket Board is facing financial difficulties and this tour would have saved it.

Security Because of security concerns inside Pakistan, PCB had offered to host the series at some neutral venue in case of India refused to tour to Pakistan. But amid heightened tensions between both the countries, there was not any possibility that both the nations will play against each other. Usually, security experts from the touring countries go first to Pakistan to scrutinize the security arrangement before the arrival of the team but Indian government did not sent even its security experts to Pakistan to check the security arrangements. Because of the security concerns Pakistan already have lost two major events. The first was when Australia had pulled out of its scheduled tour and the second one was the Champions Trophy One-Day Tournament.

Circumstances Indian government has conveyed its decision to BCCI President Shashank Manohar through a letter in which it was sighted that the ‘recent developments as well as the overall circumstances prevailing at present” are the reasons for calling off the tour. The tour was scheduled to start form January 4 to February 28 during which both the teams were scheduled to play three tests, five one-dayers and a Twenty20 match. After the Mumbai terror attack it was being speculated that the tour will be called off by the government. Players as well as the BCCI were also reluctant to go ahead with the tour. Though PCB had tried hard to press India to go ahead with the tour but Indian Sports Minister had, last week, clearly stated that Indian team should not tour Pakistan under the circumstances. He had said that India can not play with Pakistan when people from that soil indulge in mass murder in India. He had said that it is not the appropriate time to play cricket. He had said that it is not possible ‘to play cricket in the winter afternoon sun at Lahore, immediately after’ another team from their soil had arrived in Mumbai and had indulge in mass murder. Sports Minister had said it even when PCB Chief Ejaz Butt was in Indian to convince the BCCI Officials to go ahead with the tour or to at least play at some neutral venue.

Reactions BCCI has said, ‘we are neither sad not relieved’ after the government’s decision. PCB has termed the decision ‘disappointing’. PCB Chief Ejaz Butt said, “We take this decision as disappointing — something which will hurt Pakistan cricket badly — but it was beyond our control.” He hoped that it will not affect the 2011 world cup in the Asian nations. He also told that Pakistan will now ‘look for replacement series with Sri Lanka’. Sri Lanka has also showed some interest in sending their team to Pakistan. Almost all the former Indian cricketers have welcomed the government decision terming it a “good decision” under the circumstances.

Rising Power These days Indians have reached everywhere. Whether it is space, IT, WWF, Cricket or democracy, world has recognized India’s power in every sphere. India has taken more than 60 years to attain the ‘developing country’ rank from the under-development nation tag. After 2000 it has emerged as the second most fastest emerging economy of the world and this development has attracted the attention of the world towards itself. India is also number one as for as the man-power and market is concerned. Now the world has started to take interest in the country of ‘snake-charmers’.

Baseball With the rapid change in the economic status of the people of India, the standards of the games have also improved. People have started to take interest in the western games also. But a very few people play baseball in India. Though it is very popular in USA and the European nations but is has not made a mark in India yet. There is not any Indian in the international baseball arena, to whom, Indians can call their hero. But now they will not have to feel sad as two Indian faces will be seen ‘grappling’ at the International level with the European players. Two Indians named, Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel have become the first baseball players who have signed a professional baseball contract with Pittsburgh Pirates. Baseball is a game that requires strong physique and arms to throw the ball with velocity. And both these Indian pitchers are the most eligible ‘candidates’. Patel, a right-hander, is 19 years old and has the height of 5 feet and 11 inches. Singh is a 20 years old left-hander and his height is 6 feet. They both can throw the ball at 90 mile per hour speed and have even sometimes crossed this speed mark.

Selection The story of their entry into the game is also very interesting. It was the idea of California-based sports agent J.B. Bernstein that changed the fortunes of the two Indian javelin throwers. J.B. Bernstein had decided to found some people out of the 1.1 billion population of Indian who could throw the ball at the 85 plus mph. A contest was launched in which more than 37,000 competitors took part. People from all places, sections, rural as well as urban fought the competition. There were many competitors who could throw the ball at the speed of 85 mph and only the best were selected.

Hard Thoughts These two new Indian faces have brought fresh eastern air into the game that will also popularize the game in the South Asia especially in India. But for both these players, their selection has brought a sea-change in their life. They are totally into a new atmosphere and it will take some time for them to adjust according to the western society. They will have to learn not only the game but also the many other things that they will have to face during their day-to-day life in the new atmosphere. It will be very hard for them to adjust but they will have to ‘think hard, hard thoughts to throw hard’.

Bills Lok Sabha unanimously passed the two anti-terror bills on Wednesday night after the day long discussions. These two bills are regarding the formation of a National Investigation Agency and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment (UAPA). Both these bills will be presented in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday. These steps have been taken in wake of the Mumbai terror attacks. CPI members had asked for an amendment but it had been rejected and the bills were passed by the voice vote. NIA will probe counterfeit currency, terrorism and other crimes created by foreign nationals.

Chidambaram Earlier in the morning when the bills were presented Home Minister P. Chidambaram had ‘appealed to all the members of the house with folded hands to pass the NIA bill’. He told the house that they have considered the opinions and suggestions of the various political and social groups to draft the bills. Adequate safeguards have been incorporated as were being demanded by the political and social organizations. He said, “What we have done is to do more than adequate balance of requirements of investigating and prosecuting agency and the demands of human rights and the people of India for strong anti-terror laws.”

Advani All the parties were in favor of passing the bills but nobody missed the chance of scoring political scores against each other. While opposition leader L. K. Advani criticized the government for its ‘soft approach’ towards terrorism in last ten years, the Congress leader said that Congress has learnt from the experience in fighting terror. Advani attacked the Congress, “You have today admitted that the government was wrong for 10 years and will rectify mistakes. You have woken up from Kumbhakarna’s sleep. I want that you admit that you were wrong.” And Sibal said, “in life, as in politics, nothing is static. We all learn from experience.”

Stringent Laws Sibal said that India was never a soft target to the terrorists as it had more stringent anti-laws as compared to the laws made by US and UK governments after the 9/11. He also said that any law can not prevent the terror attack but they are made to punish the militants. He also said that the new bill is not the replica of the POTA as some new provisions have been added to prevent the misuse of the law. He said POTA was misused in Gujrat and almost 100 people have been languishing in the jails despite of the Supreme decision of their release.

Law Under the new law financial assets, economic resources and attacking funds can be seized or freezed of those individuals or entities who are found engaged or suspected to be engaged in terrorism. A suspect can be dept under detention for 180 days instead of 90 days and denial of bail to the foreigners who are found to be involved in terrorist activities in India.