Our Announcements

Not Found

Sorry, but you are looking for something that isn't here.

Archive for category India Destroys US Economy

Why India Continues Cross-border Shelling? By Sajjad Shaukat

                                    

 

 

 

Why India Continues Cross-border Shelling?

                                                          By Sajjad Shaukat

 

Since October 6, this year, India accelerated cross-border shelling along the Line of Control (LoC) and Working Boundary (WB) and killed several innocent persons including their animals inside Pakistan. It compelled tens thousands of the residents of the villages to migrate to safe areas, with their livestock and other belongings.

 

In this regard, spokesman of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Maj-General Asim Bajwa said that Pakistan Rangers and troops “befittingly” responded to “unprovoked firing” by Indian Border Security Forces (BSF) and military troops. He also clarified that Pakistan’s Armed Forces are fully prepared to meet any aggression.

 

Regarding these constant violations, Pakistan government has lodged a strong protest, and also raised the issue with the UN Military Observers Group in India and Pakistan, asking for a visit of the observers to the affected areas.

 

Meanwhile, in India where Pakistan is accused of starting the skirmishes, leader of the fundamentalist party BJP and Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi is reported to have given a free hand to the Indian forces to go on aggressively with the violations. While, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Shariff convened a meeting of the National Security Commit­te on Oct 10, this year, and discussed the recent ceasefire violations by India at the LoC and WB.

 

It is notable that by acting upon a preplanned scheme, Indian soldiers crossed over the LoC in Kashmir on January 6, 2013 and attacked a Pakistani check post, killing one Pakistani soldier and injuring many troops. Contrarily, on December 24, 2013, New Delhi agreed for the meeting of Directors-General Military Operations (DGMOs) of both the countries, who met in Pakistan, and discussed specific measures strengthening the bilateral ceasefire mechanism across the LoC.

 

While, Islamabad and India had on November 25, 2003, agreed to observe ceasefire along all areas of WB, LoC and the Actual Ground Position Line in Jammu and Kashmir. However, Pakistan military indicated that Indian hostility has gradually increased since 2010 making lives of civil population living in closer vicinity of the LoC and WB difficult. Indian troops committed 86 ceasefire violations in 2011, 230 in 2012 and 414 in 2013. But, Indians have again resorted to unprovoked firing for about 224 times on both LoC and WB and killed several people on the Pakistani side this year.

 

In this context, military officials further elaborated that Indian perennial escalation across the LoC and WB is according to a deliberate plan. So question arises as to why India continues cross-border shelling inside Pakistan.

 

In fact, by promoting Hindu chauvinism on the basis of anti-Muslim and anti-Pakistan slogans, extremist party, BJP won a landslide victory in the India elections 2014 by defeating the Congress. Now, BJP-led Prime Minister Modi has been implementing its party’s agenda against Pakistan. In this context, recent upsurge in skirmishes across the LoC and WB is also linked to upcoming elections in Indian occupied Kashmir, as BJP again wants to make Pakistan a scapegoat. Therefore, the border violations, accompanying hostile statements by Indian leadership are aimed at motivating support base before the elections, and even the expected delay in polls in Kashmir would provide more time to the Indian side to hype up sentiments at the cost of Pakistan. The BJP government is looking at winning a majority in the Kashmir assembly so that it could fulfill its manifesto pledge of revoking the special status, given to Kashmir under Indian constitution’s Article 370, and to strengthen its measures to annex the area.

 

As regards Indian covert aims, BJP rulers are trying to divert attention of international community from the Kashmir dispute, while, Kashmiri leaders and Pakistan have been keeping this issue in limelight.

 

In this connection, terming the support and advocacy of the right to self determination of the people of Jammu and Kashmi (J&K), Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, while addressing 69th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), stressed for settlement of the Kashmir issue, and offered Pakistan’s readiness to endeavor for the same through negotiations. He also reminded the international community of its pledge for holding “plebiscite” in the Indian-held Kashmir, and resolves the issue in accordance with UN Charter. The speech generated appreciations from the political circles of Pakistan and Kashmir as well. It is also acknowledged that the speech is true reflection of sentiments of the people of Pakistan, who believe that peace and prosperity in south Asia is inter- linked with solution of core dispute of Kashmir between Pakistan and India.

 

Islamabad’s successful attempt at the UNGA seems to have irked Indian political, diplomatic and journalist circles. Under the growing frustration, a notoriously controversial journalist affiliated with the Indian NDTV namely Barkha Dutt engaged Pakistan’s prime minister’s special advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, and managed to create a controversy through aggressive posture to make him concede that Pakistani High Commissioner Abdul Basit’s meeting with the Kashmiri leadership in New Delhi was ill-timed, and affected secretary level engagements with Pakistan. No doubt, Barkha-Aziz episode has been projected, because under the pretext, India cancelled secretary level talks with Islamabad.   

 

Moreover, Indian media created an impression that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif by highlighting Kashmir issue made an effort to improve relations with military establishment in the backdrop of the protesters of the sit-ins led by PTI and PAT. It also generated controversy of gray relations between political and military echelons of Pakistan. By increasing cross-border shelling, New Delhi also wants to create pressure on Islamabad and the Armed Forces in wake of present political turmoil—and military operation Zarb-e-Azb which successfully continues against terrorists in North Waziristan Agency.

 

It is of particular attention that BJP leader Dr. Subramaniam Swami stated on July 12, 2014 that India needed only two years to defeat Pakistan militarily, and the only solution of Kashmir was war, as “there is no peaceful, democratic solution. Responding to the withdrawal of the US-led NATO forces from Afghanistan, he remarked, “Americans will hand over Afghanistan to Taliban and go…India should send at least 200,000 troops to Afghanistan.”

 

In these terms, Indian hawks think that in the aftermath of the withdrawal of NATO, they will keep their anti-Pakistan network in Afghanistan by harming the genuine interests of Pakistan which shares geographical, cultural and religious bonds with the former, and is determined to bring peace and stability there.

 

Now, as part of its blame game, India has intensified unprovoked firing at the LoC in Kashmir and WB in Sialkot to delay the Pak-India peace process, without caring for latter’s nuclear weapons.

 

Undoubtedly, every Indian government due to international pressure found it easy to make false pledges that it was willing to engage in peace process to resolve all issues like Siachen, Sir Creek, Wullar Barrage, Water and especially main dispute of Kashmir with Islamabad. But, New Delhi earnestly endeavored to find excuses and pretexts to cancel peace talks, while shifting the blame to Pakistan. For example, in 2002, under the pretension of terrorist attack on the Indian parliament, India postponed the dialogue process. Again, in 2008, India cancelled the ‘composite dialogue’ on the pretext of Mumbai terror attacks.

 

Particularly, on May 27, 2014 Prime Minister Modi’s meeting with Prime Minister Sharif in the oath-taking ceremony proved faultless, because Modi raised baseless issues of terrorism as pre-conditions to advance the Pak-Indian dialogue. He said that slow pace of trial against the terrorists of the Mumbai 26/11 terror case; being held in Pakistan is main hurdle.

 

But, Indian prime minister ignored the fact that on July 19, 2013 the Indian former home ministry and ex-investigating officer Satish Verma disclosed that terror-attacks in Mumbai in November 26, 2008 and assault on Indian Parliament in January 12, 2001 were carried out by the Indian government to strengthen anti-terrorism laws.

 

Notably, in the recent past, United Nations Military Observer Group India and Pakistan in New Delhi was asked to vacate official accommodation, claiming that its role had become irrelevant.

 

It is also mentionable that Pakistani business community is agitated by the High handedness of Indian authorities in India, whenever they participate in trade exhibitions. As per visa protocols of year 2012, both India and Pakistan are bound to give business visa “Exemption from Police Reporting.” Recently, Pakistani delegation members were fined $ 40 per participant for missing Police reporting during trade exhibition (Alishan Pakistan), held at New Delhi from 11-14 September 2014. Besides this, no relaxation is being granted by Indian authorities in issuance of visa to Pakistani businessmen. Element of non-cooperation and aggressiveness towards Pakistan is significant in conduct of Indian authorities after the arrival of Modi regime in power.

 

Nonetheless, we can undoubtedly conclude that India continues cross-border shelling inside Pakistan so as to obtain multiple designs against the former.

Sajjad Shaukat writes on international affairs and is author of the book: US vs Islamic Militants, Invisible Balance of Power: Dangerous Shift in International Relations

Email: sajjad_logic@yahoo.com

, ,

No Comments

Revisiting the fall of Dhaka

 
 
Revisiting the fall of Dhaka 
 
by Sabena Siddiqi
 
imgres-2Media reported the hanging of Abdul Quader Molla in Bangladesh, a leading Jamaat-i-Islami leader; the first person to go to gallows for the alleged massacre of 1971. A leading newspaper reported, “Molla’s lawyers had protested the original order, saying the death penalty was awarded based on evidence given by only one prosecution witness, who had also earlier given two different versions of the same event… UN Human Rights Chief Navi Pillay wrote to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina seeking a stay of the execution, saying the trial did not meet stringent international standards for the death penalty.” (12-12-2013)
 
A brief revisit to the 1971 genocide is in order. The facts are well detailed in a book Blood and Tears (Published 1974) by historian Qutubuddin Aziz. It details 170 eye witness accounts of atrocities on non-Bengalis and pro Pakistan Bengalis by Awami League militants and other rebels in 55 towns of then East Pakistan between March-April 1971 with photographs. Another interesting book by B Raman; “The Kaoboys of RAW: Down Memory Lane” talks about the role of Israel and Indian intelligence agencies in creation of Bangladesh in 1971. Raman has headed the counter-terrorism branch of India’s intelligence Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).
 
The Indian Express in a piece by Sabyasachi Bandopadhyay, “Didn’t fight on front, yet proud to have helped Mukti Bahini” writes, “Kartik Kumar Ganguly, then a Major, was assigned to help a motley group of people from then East Pakistan — some deserters from the Pakistan Army but largely students, other young civilians, factory laborers and farmers — who formed the Mukti Bahini. His task, he says, was to take care of their various needs and give them courage… Ganguly, one of a number of Indian Army officers who interacted with the mukti joddhas, found them lacking in training but not in enthusiasm…” (Published December 16, 2011) 
 
Borrowing research from a treatise by Lt. Gen [R] Kamal Matinuddin, “Tragedy of Errors; East Pakistan Crisis 1968-1971” states that the hard core team leaders of Mukhti-Bahini were the deserters, from the Bengali element [officers, junior-commissioned, non-commissioned, and other ranks] composed in the following Army and para-military formations:. Six battalions of East Bengal Regiment 5,000, East Pakistan Rifles [like our Rangers in West Pakistan] 16,000, Razakars 50,000, Bengali in East Pakistan police and allied services 45,000. This is a total of 116,000 forces. 
 
East-PakistanBy 3rd March 1971 a de facto Bangladesh Government was in place. It was after the March 1971 crackdown by the Pakistan Army in Dacca and later all over East Pakistan that the 6 battalions of East Bengal Regiment as well as the forces above cited deserted and went over to the Indian Army. Colonel [retired] Osmani; the first commanding Officer 1st East Bengal Regiment in 1952 and later been made the Commandant of East Bengal Regimental Centre at Chittagong having retired from Pakistan Army in 1966 organized, with the help of the Indian Army; a militant wing of Awami League in July 1970. It was he who led the march past of the militant Awami League on 23rd March 1971,in front of Shiekh Mujib’s house. On 17April 1971 the Acting President of the defacto Bangladesh Government made him the Commander in Chief of the ‘Bengal Liberation Army’ with a rank of a ‘General.’
 
Although Pakistan Army had by end of April 1971 regained all border posts in East Pakistan and Bengal Liberation Army had suffered defeat, it was then that the Indian Army moved in. It set up 6 training centers and unlimited cash flow to induce younger student element from East Pakistan to join and be trained. All of these 6 training centers which encircled East Pakistan on the Indian side of the borders were under Brigadiers of Indian Army. Soon after another 70,000 young Bengali students inspired by Bengali patriotism joined these camps for a three week crash course including use of mortars, mines, machine-gun handling as well as use of PRC 25 wireless sets for communication. Selected 600 became the naval wing of Mukhti-Bahini; trained by Indian special forces as ‘Frogmen’ to plant explosives under the ships and take over boats, barrages and launches plying in the rivers of East Pakistan. 
 
Other radical elements arose as well from the men trained in the 6 Indian training centers. They were a force of 20,000 under the two sons of Sheikh Mujib namely Moin & Kamal and three other i.e. Rafiq, Siraj- ul- Islam & Tofail Ahmed. Yet another set of special forces were led by Major Zia-ur-Rehman [later President of BD] called ‘ZED FORCE’ another was ‘Kay force under Major Khalid Musharaff. Yet another was the ‘S’ force under Major Saifullah, another large force; the ‘Kader Bahini’ was under Abdul Kader Siddiqui who styled himself as the ‘Tiger of Tangail’ and had 20,000 men under him. (Reference ‘Dismemberment of Pakistan’ by Brig. Jagder Singh 1988) General Osmani divided his Mukhti-Bahini force of 1,0000 in ten sectors, each under a former officer of East Bengal Regiment. (Reference ‘ Bangladesh at War’ by Major General Saifullah 1989-page 149). Besides the various Bengali Liberation Army outfits the Indian Army had encircled East Pakistan with a total effective strength of 400,000 men. (Seepages -408,411-418, ‘Roots of Tragedy’ by Brig. Asif Haroon 2005).
 
Now comes the icing on the cake; the total strength of Pakistan Army was just 45,000 out which the actual fighting arm the infantry had 23,000 men, and 11,000 were men from armour, artillery, engineers, signals and ancillary units. A total of 34,000 men. .The other 11,000 were from civil armed forces like the police and other armed, yet non-combatants outfits who were West Pakistani personnel serving in East Pakistan. [page 52 The Betrayal of East Pakistan by Lt. Gen. A.K Niazi, Oxford Press.1998]
 
Martin Woollacott in a brilliant book review of Dead Reckoning by Sarmila Bose says, “Bose’s case-by-case arithmetic leads her in the end to estimate that between 50,000 and 100,000 people died in 1971.” He goes on to state, “The wider revision of the conflict’s history she implies exonerates the Pakistani government of any plot to rule the east by force, suggests that the Bengali leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman let the genie of nationalism out of the bottle but could not control it, and insists that the conflict was a civil war within East Pakistan…Yet when she underlines how stretched the Pakistani forces were, how unready they were for the role of suppression that was thrust on them, and how perplexed they were in the face of a Bengali hostility that seemed to them so disproportionate, what she writes rings very true. The killings by Bengalis of non-Bengali minorities, of Bengalis who stuck with the idea of a united Pakistan, and even of some Hindu Bengalis – all of whose deaths were attributed at the time to the Pakistani army – needs to be reckoned in any fair balance.” (The Guardian July 1, 2011)
 
Who was outnumbered, who committed atrocities upon who is now clear. Lack of research leads to formation of uneducated opinion. It was under these odds that men of Jamiat-e-Islami in counter outfits like Al Badar and Al Shams fought those who wanted to break Pakistan.
 
Reports announce death of three protesters and two activists from Awami League. These riots were to be expected in light of a very public execution of Molla. The headline of Wall Street Journal tellingly announced, “Bangladesh Executes Opposition Leader”. The hanging of Molla is likely to lead to polarization within the Bengali society. A friend wrote, “The hanging of the JI leader by Bangladesh was nothing but a witch hunt and a state sponsored atrocity!”
 

, , ,

No Comments

Indian Diplomat’s Arrest Exposed US Double Game

 

 During his visit to India in 2010, US President Barrack Obama signed multiple agreements with New Delhi in various fields such as $10 billion in trade deals and creation of more than 50,000 US jobs besides the measures, America would take regarding removal of Indian space and defence companies from a restricted “entities list”, and supported Indian demand for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council including membership of four key global nuclear non-proliferation regimes. Owing to these agreements, India has also been purchasing C-17 and F35 aircrafts along with latest defence-related arms and equipments from Washington. In February, 2011, America had pressurised the International Atomic Agency (IAEA) to sign an accord of specific safeguards with India. It permits New Delhi a broad atomic cooperation, while superseding the IAEA regarding transfer of nuclear equipments and technologies. These arrangements also entail enrichment and reprocessing items under the so-called cover of IAEA. In this regard, Washington also contacted the Nuclear Suppliers Group in order to grant a waiver to India for starting civil nuclear trade on larger scale. Setting aside the Indian irresponsible record of non-proliferation, defence agreement signed between the US and India on July 20, 2011 as part of the deal about civil nuclear technology, agreed upon by the two countries in 2008 has raised new alarms on global and regional level. But, in that respect, the then US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged India to be more assertive in Asia, saying that as American ally, the country should play more of a leadership role. On the other hand, while showing US paradoxical approach towards Pakistan, Ms. Hillary remarked, “New Delhi could also help promote trade links in violence-wracked South Asia, which would bring prosperity and peace to India, Pakistan and Afghanistan…Pakistan must do more to tackle terror groups operating from its territory being used for attacks that destabilise Afghanistan or India.” The United States seems determined to keep around 10,000 troops and some military bases in Afghanistan permanently after the withdrawal of NATO forces in 2014. Besides, US has also planned to maintain Indian role in Afghanistan to complete its hidden agenda. In this connection, the former US Secretary of Defence Leon Panetta said on October 26, 2012 that India has vital role to play in Afghanistan and it will be helpful for peace and stability in the region, adding, “Our new defence policy hinges upon this strategy.” In fact, by concealing its double game with India, under the pretext of strategic partnership— by boasting Indian defence and its role in Afghanistan, America wants to fulfill multiple designs so as to counterbalance China, control the energy resources of Central Asia, and to weaken Pakistan, Beijing, Iran and Russia.

 

But, US double game with India exposed on December 12, 2013 when Indian diplomat, Devyani Khobragade, the Indian Deputy Consul General in New York was arrested on charges of visa fraud and lying to US authorities on a visa application about how much she paid to her housekeeper (an Indian national). She was arrested right in front of her daughter’s Manhattan School, handcuffed and driven to Police Search Station for completion of investigation process. Page 1Indian government, media and general public felt the pain of collective shame and sense of culpability as their female diplomat was subjected to harsh search, generally meant for dangerous criminals and people of shady character. Her shrieking screams and strident assertions about ‘diplomatic immunity’ fell on deaf ears and she was made to bear the vulgar blow of humiliation, while undergoing awful process of cavity search. Indian media disclosed, “She was subjected to a humiliating strip search and kept in a cell with drug addicts.” She was released on $ 250,000/-bail, as she pleaded not guilty on all charges levelled against her—surrendering her passport and avowing to report to Police Station in New York on weekly basis. One simply feels sad with a sense of remorse and emotional empathy on her ordained disgrace on US soil where her diplomatic immunity has been rudely dilapidated. India has quickly reacted against such a treatment of their diplomat demanding an unconditional US apology. They have also asked the US to withdraw all cases against the diplomat, while undertaking retaliatory steps to withdraw concessions from US diplomats in India. As a protest in relation to the ill- treatment of the lady diplomat, Indian Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde called her treatment unacceptable. He cancelled his meeting with the senior US Congressional delegation. Other parliamentarians including the governing Congress party Vice-President, Rahul Gandhi and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi also refused to meet the delegation. While, Indian media projected ugly scenes of removing security barriers placed before US embassy in India, while Indian public, intellectuals, analysts and high officials expressed their anger and emotional outbursts towards US for maltreating their diplomat. However, diplomacy and maintenance of international relations suggest that civilized norms and refined customs be observed to maintain dignity and decorum entitled to other states and their diplomats. Unfortunately, the US, overwhelmed by power motives, have developed callous and cold-hearted attitude towards sensitivities of the Third World countries. Body search and cavity search of an Indian female diplomat by US authorities reflects its high-handedness. Indian bold assertions and emotional reaction appears to be justified, while the entire episode suggests to US to reexamine its deteriorating trends in diplomacy. US media and certain officials have branded Indian reaction as a revengeful tactics, without realizing that Indians are justified in their reaction to denounce violation of diplomatic immunity by US officials. Their demands for unconditional apology and withdrawal of case against their female diplomat are also legal and politically accurate. US should show greater sense of magnanimity and compassion by extending a word of apology to India and by withdrawing the case against Devyani Khobragade. This will help US improve its image and prestige. Meanwhile, her hastily-transfer to India’s Permanent Mission to the UN in New York has widely been reported as a bid to ensure her full immunity. Particularly, South Asian media should project that Washington must be aware of cultural esteem, attached to female honour in South Asia including India. Ms. Devyani Khobragade represents Indian educated middle class and her body or cavity search, handcuffing and investigation badly ripped off her personal dignity which certainly needs to be restored at all costs. Indian determination as expressed by Indian prime minister and foreign minister to get her back and restore her decorum seem praiseworthy. How far will the Indians go to restore the modesty of their female diplomat, get an unconditional apology from US and convince the latter to withdraw the case against Devyani, will also prove the audacity of Indian leadership. Regional media should also emphasize that diplomats posted abroad must respect the local laws and avoid indulging in any activity which may cause them embarrassment, shame and guilt. It appears as if Ms. Devyani Khobragade was not prudent enough to respect US laws which led to such a messy row between India and America. She was entrapped in a messy tangle which caused her trouble. But one feels pity on poor female diplomat. Surely, national interests will finally prevail to settle such an irritant between New Delhi and Washington. Notably, Indians are basically intriguing in nature and do not believe in forgiving or forgetting, especially when openly humiliated and publically disgraced. They keep the vendetta alive even after the resolution of any dispute, political row and diplomatic irritants. Their subjective grooming enables them to maintain calm while remembering the pain of the past ill- treatment. As Indian security removed barricades from the US embassy, the role of Indians seemed personified carrying emotional frenzy and belligerence to impress upon US to return their woman free of any case and also extend an apology in this respect. Nonetheless, after the maltreatment of its lady diplomat, the right hour has come that Ne Delhi must know that America which is playing double game with India, watches its own strategic interests, and is not going to prove a trustworthy friend on permanent basis. History proves that the US has always betrayed Pakistan and so it will do with the Indians. In this context, after using Islamabad in its previous Afghan war against the former Russia, Washington left Islamabad to face the fallout of that war. In the near future, along with Pakistan, Indians will face the fallout of the ongoing war in Afghanistan. So, instead of increasing its defence budget at the cost of poverty-stricken people, and pursuing war-like diplomacy against Pakistan by fulfilling American covert aims against China and Iran, India must better develop peaceful relations with these countries by resolving all disputes including Kashmir issue, which are essential for regional stability.

Amb.Sajjad Shaukat writes on international affairs and is author of the book: US vs Islamic Militants, Invisible Balance of Power: Dangerous Shift in International Relations

Email: sajjad_logic@yahoo.com 

, , , , , ,

No Comments

HOLY COW DISGUISED AS A TIGER: India’s Software Exports Figures Grossly Inflated

India’s Software Exports Figures Grossly Inflated

A 2005 study by US General Accounting Office (GAO) found that Indian government’s figures for software and technology exports to the United States were 20 times higher than the US figures for import of the same from India.

U.S. General Accounting Office looked at the 2003 data showing the United States reported $420 million in unaffiliated imports of BPT (business, professional, and technical) services from India, while India reported approximately $8.7 billion in exports of affiliated and unaffiliated BPT services to the United States.

The GAO found at least five definitional and methodological factors that contribute to the difference between U.S. and Indian data on BPT services. First, India and the United States follow different practices in accounting for the earnings of temporary Indian workers residing in the United States. Second, India defines certain services, such as software embedded on computer hardware, differently than the United States. Third, India and the United States follow different practices for counting sales by India to U.S.-owned firms located outside of the United States. The United States follows International Monetary Fund standards for each of these factors. Fourth, BEA (Bureau of Economic Analysis) does not report country-specific data for particular types of services due to concerns about the quality of responses it receives from firms when they allocate their affiliated imports to detailed types of services. As a result, U.S. data on BPT services include only unaffiliated imports from India, while Indian data include both affiliated and unaffiliated exports. Fifth, other differences, such as identifying all services importers, may also contribute to the data gap.

In theory, India follows what is known as BPM 6 (MSITS) reporting method for software and information-enabled technology services (ITES) which counts sales to all multinationals, earning of overseas offices, salaries of non-immigrant overseas workers as India’s exports. In practice, India violates it. BPM 6 allows the salaries of first year ofmigrant workers to be included in a country’s service exports. India continuously and cumulatively adds all the earnings of its migrants to US in its software exports. If 50,000 Indians migrate on H1B visas each year, and they each earn $50,000 a year, that’s a $2.5 billion addition to their exports each year. Cumulatively over 10 years, this would be $25 billion in exports year after year and growing.

There has neither been any acknowledgement nor any correction of the Indian government’s methodology for reporting software and IT services exports since the GAO report was published in 2005. This raises serious questions about the accuracy of India’s claims of $60 billion to $70 billion IT software and service exports being currently reported. If the 20X exaggeration still persists, the Indian IT exports could be as little as $3 billion to $4 billion today based on the US methodology.

Unlike the Reserve Bank of India’s claimed BPM 6 methodology, the State Bank of Pakistan uses a much more conservative BPM 5 reporting system which does not include sales to multinationals located in Pakistan and earning of overseas offices and salaries of non-immigrant Pakistani overseas workers in Pakistan’s exports figures. If the State Bank switched to BPM 6 method, Pakistan’s software and IT exports of $294 million for 2012-2013 could easily become at least $5 billion.

Reference

, ,

No Comments

India complains like a village old woman

India complains like a village old woman

 

Asif Haroon Raja

India being an imperialist power wants to become super power of South Asia and a world power. Mired in dozens of insurgencies it considers Pakistan as the lone stumbling block in the way of her imperialist ambitions. Indigenous freedom movement in Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) has become a bleeding wound for India and a cause of embarrassment that despite deploying such a large force in a small Valley and using excessive force, rape and torture as tools to crush the movement for over 22 years, it has failed to extinguish the flame of liberty. Maintenance of 750,000 security forces since 1989 in IOK is a huge drain on India’s economy which is slowing down. So is the burden of 700,000 troops employed for fighting dozens of insurgencies and separatist movements in various parts of India.

 --india--daman-and-diu--id=42112

 

 

 

 

Once India jumped out of the lap of former Soviet Union and slid into the warm lap of USA in 1991, it started working feverishly to create permanent wedge between USA and Pakistan – the two erstwhile allies – by coloring the perceptions of US leaders against Pakistan. India’s main propaganda plank was ‘cross border terrorism by Pakistan in IOK’. 9/11 gave a godsend opportunity to India to restore its lost influence in Afghanistan and to operationalize its plan of destabilizing, denuclearizing, encircling, isolating and balkanizing Pakistan through proxy war using Afghan soil. For the achievement of their common objectives, the Indo-US-Afghan nexus commenced covert war against Pakistan in 2002 with a view to cripple Pakistan economically, politically, socially and militarily.

 

Their sustained efforts have made FATA and Balochistan highly restive and Pakistan’s economy fragile. More the difficulties encountered by Pakistan on account of foreign sponsored insurgencies in the two turbulent regions and disorder in Karachi, more the closeness between the three strategic partners grew. So much so that Indo-Afghan and Afghan-US strategic partnership agreements were signed. At the same time, hostility of the trio against Pakistan also intensified. India was over the moon seeing Pakistan in dire strait and breathlessly waited to use its military instrument to axe it for good. Karzai regime didn’t lag behind in keeping Pakistan in the dock.

 

Not only the Indian political leaders have maintained an aggressive posture against Pakistan, Indian senior military officers also have been flexing muscles to overawe Pakistan, and have been looking for a 1971 like opportunity to strike Pakistan. Apart from offensive deployment of troops along Pakistan’s border in 2001-02 and 2008-09, former Indian Army chiefs Gen Kapoor and Gen V.K. Singh and even the current chief Gen Bikram Singh have been bragging about India’s much hyped Pakistan-specific Cold Start Doctrine, which in Indian military view has nullified Pakistan’s nuclear deterrence. Ex Army chief Gen V.K. Singh had set up a secret intelligence unit called Technical Services Division (TSD) without the knowledge of Ministry of Defence. Purpose was to carryout clandestine operations against officials of Ministry of Defence, IOK and Pakistan. He misused secret funds to destabilize Omar Abdullah’s government in Kashmir and spent Rs 1.19 crore for this purpose.

 

Gen V.K. Singh justified his act in Kashmir on the plea that use of secret funds has been in practice since 1947. He also admitted that the TSD had conducted eight successful missions inside Pakistan. He used his moles for phone tapping, eavesdropping officials of Ministry of Defence. V.K Singh had a tainted tenure and was accused of corruption. He submitted a petition to Ministry of Defence to adjust his date of birth so that he could serve for another ten months in office. When his petition was rejected by Supreme Court, he became a laughing stock. While in uniform he started hobnobbing with BJP leaders and soon after retirement he joined BJP. He attends Narendra Modi’s rallies and BJP is giving full support to him. Modi whose hands are soaked in the blood of Indian Muslims have been tipped as future Prime Minister of India by BJP. His sole forte is to raise the emotions of Hindus against Indian Muslims and Pakistan and make them hysteric.

 

Indian Army under Gen Bikram Singh who took over the reins of Indian Army on May 31, 2012 heated up the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir in January 2013 on a false pretext that Pak Army soldiers were involved in beheading of two Indian soldiers on January 8. It led to unprovoked firing by Indian military. After Manmohan Singh’s stern warning to Pakistan, Gen Bikram on January 14, asked his commanders in Kashmir to be aggressive and offensive against Pakistan. He said, “We reserve the right to retaliate at a time and place of our choosing”. In August 2013, yet another drama of killing of five Indian soldiers by Kashmiri Mujahideen backed by Pak Army was cooked up. The incident led to prolonged ceasefire violations in the form of firing and shelling. The guns had not silenced when another stage-managed terrorist attack on a police station and military base in Samba onSeptember 25 was enacted in which a dozen people were killed. This false flag operation was timed with Manmohan Singh’s address to the UN General Assembly Session in New York on 27th and his scheduled meeting with Nawaz Sharif on September 29. LoC was activated at the behest of BJP which wanted to scuttle Manmohan-Nawaz meeting and the peace process.

 

Unprovoked firing by Indian soldiers across the LoC and working boundary in Sialkot Sector in which scores of civilians as well as soldiers and cattle were killed became a daily routine from August to first week of November 2013 till Sartaj Aziz met Manmohan Singh and Indian Foreign Minister Salman in Colombo and both sides agreed to respect 2003 ceasefire agreement. Military coercion and jingoism spearheaded by Indian military-BJP combine are aimed at playing Pakistan card to win next elections in 2014. Indian military and BJP nexus aims at establishing Hindutva in India.   

 

India’s dangerous plan conceived in 2001 to destroy Pakistan has run into difficulties because of NATO’s and ANA’s inability to defeat Afghan Taliban. From 2008 onwards, the wind started to blow against occupying forces because of Taliban’s resurgence. When nothing worked in favor of USA, a stage came when the US was forced by circumstances in 2010 to employ its political prong to induce the Taliban to hold peace dialogue. At the same time, Obama announced that the US-NATO troops would quit Afghanistan by December 2014. This unpalatable step was taken in spite of opposition from Pentagon and CIA as well as from India, Israel and Afghanistan. It dawned upon Obama’s Administration that all the strategic allies on whom the US had leaned heavily had no influence over the Taliban and were ineffectual. On the other hand, Pakistan which was all along seen as part of the problem was the sole country which could help in arranging talks and arriving at a political settlement.

 

Increasing intimacy between USA and Pakistan is happening at a time when Indo-Pakistan relations are sailing through murky waters. This change in the outlook of USA trying to remove the distrust accumulated over a period of time and to rebuild friendly ties with Pakistan is vexing India. Not knowing how to disrupt growth of Pak-US ties, India is continuing to play the terrorism card. During his meeting with Obama in New York in September last, Manmohan Singh had a single point agenda of bad mouthing Pakistan. Throughout the meeting he kept complaining like a village old woman that Pakistan was indulging in cross border terrorism in Kashmir and disturbing the peace. Even during his address to the UN he dubbed Pakistan as epicenter of terrorism. Indian officials are propagating that there is sharp increase in LoC-crossing attempts into IOK which has led to increase in ceasefire violations and resurgence of terrorist attacks against Indian forces in Kashmir. While craving to become a world power, Indian leaders have a bad habit of putting their sins in the basket of Pakistan and then moaning like a village woman that they are the victims of terrorism.          

 

The writer is a retired Brig and a defence analyst. asifharoonraja@gmail.com

, ,

No Comments