It was in late-2007, I was a young magazine editor invited to a social do at the French Consulate in Mumbai. It was a nice party and I had had one champagne too many. Who else would I be talking to, but the then French Consul General. Having just come off a trip to Paris, I had quite a few things to say to him, mainly on the art, culture and business landscape…but also about geopolitics.
Therefore, the strategic objective in the 1940s was to physically separate a soon-to-be independent India from the then USSR and Afghanistan. Pakistan was to be the buffer state to realise the insidious British strategic objective. That explains why the India-Pakistan border is roughly parallel to the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
Here is an insightful piece from former head of RAW, AK Verma. Much before Manmohan Singh and Gen. Musharraf tried to resolve Kashmir, Gen Zia and Rajeev Gandhi had come even closer. Hours before his death in 1991, Rajeev said this in an interview about the progress during Gen. Zia’s tenure, ‘ India and Pakistan were close to finishing agreement on Kashmir. We had the maps and everything ready to sign.’ The Pakistani Army seemed to be fully on board.
The fact is our nation states are recently imagined realities. They are an amalgamation of ethnic, communal and linguistic identities – each driven by powerful political forces with vested interests. So, it is easy for an invading power to divide and rule – historically and even now.
The Chinese don’t want to fight a war any more than we do. Their raw soldiers are being chewed by the nasty winter every day and they are not nearly as well-geared as they lead us to believe. Sure, India is decidedly the weaker side. But can we give the Chinese a bloody nose? Surely yes. So, China wants to win the war by subduing our will to fight. Propaganda is thus a force multiplier for China.
There is no absolute truth. There are many.
Grey Truths explores life, news, and opinions beyond the obvious. Detail, depth, and nuance are of the essence.
This blog is an attempt to find balance in a world defined by black truths, white lies, prejudices, and closed extremist positions.
Context, connections, and perspective separate truth from lies and one truth from another.
Truths converge and diverge like drops of rain. Some have longer shelf lives. Others have nine lives.
Ultimately the truth(s) lie(s) in your eyes.
Happy reading!
A communications professional for nearly two decades, I have studied accountancy, management, and journalism. But more than anything else, I am a student of and for life.
Rebel against left and right-wing extremism, kite-flying, pretentiousness, and determinism. Fan of dry humour.
I run regularly. It is a form of meditation. I enjoy reading and watching eclectic content. But second only to observing people and nature.
Writing poetry and cooking are occasional indulgences.
Sridhar Chari
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