Our Great Democracy Tamasha

Democracy, a precious jewel in the crown of any government, came rather easily to us for historical reasons. And in utter ungratefulness, we have only contributed towards its subversion, one of them being a new, reprehensible process and terminology called ‘stalling Parliament’. This is the licence that the opposition has appropriated for itself of not allowing Parliament to function, on any illegitimate pretext that it chooses.

The great Indian tamasha seems to be fast becoming an institutionalised fixture of our dysfunctional version of democracy, manifesting itself day after day. MPs have come to believe that once they are elected, they acquire a fundamental right to derail democratic processes of decision making in Parliament, particularly against the greater good of the country, without any accountability to their voters for wasting crores of rupees of the tax payers’ money meant for running Parliament.

The stalling of the monsoon session of Parliament was quite expected. The most popular interpretation is that the Congress Party is taking its own sweet revenge for similar tactics employed by the BJP when it was in the opposition, particularly during UPA 2. But what it forgets is that BJP stalled Parliament during that regime because the answers it sought from the government regarding the mindboggling scams engineered by the UPA government, such as the 2 G scam, the Asian Games scam, the Coal scam, never came nor were they allowed to be debated in Parliament. The situation today is a little different. The ruling party wants to make a statement regarding allegations against its ministers, particularly, Ms Sushma Swaraj, but the Congress still wants to prevent Parliament from functioning. So clearly, the motive for stalling Parliament appears to go beyond discussion on topical issues.

There is also speculation that this ‘stalling’ Parliament is really neither a tit for tat by Congress Party nor an act of simple vendetta. Yes, it certainly does seem to be turning into an ugly corruption competition, but apparently the motives are actually far more sinister, namely that the Congress Party will not allow Parliament to function, as they would like to prevent the Government from undertaking any economic reforms that will bring dividends to the country in the next 2-3 years. For example, the GST Bill, The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2015, popularly known as the Land Bill, must not be allowed to pass, lest they bring about economic growth and attendant trickle-down prosperity to the common people of India, and enhance the BJP’S prospects in the next election. If this is indeed so, and there appears to be no reason to believe otherwise, judging from the fact that every new headline for the day is being used as an excuse to disrupt Parliament, then this is one of the most anti-national acts that the Congress Party is indulging in, for which they will have to pay dearly.

Democracy was a great gift we received at Independence. It had remained buried in the Dark Ages after the glory of ancient Greece until it was resurrected again, gradually step by step, through Bills of Rights, punctuated in turns by bloody revolutions and constitutionalism, revolutions and regicide, spanning over almost six centuries in Europe and Britain. The generations who inherited democracy in the west had fought hard and shed their blood for it. To this day, they consider their hard earned political rights sacrosanct, and passionately respect and protect them.

In our case, democracy was acquired in a reverse process. We received it without a political or ideological struggle. True, it was embedded in the concept of Swaraj, during our struggle for independence, but the real fight against our colonial rulers was for Independence. Democracy to us came as a huge collateral benefit on a platter without shedding a drop of blood, for which others in foreign lands had fought for and sacrificed their lives . We gave to ourselves the most magnificent democratic Constitution that embodied the struggle and wisdom of centuries in foreign lands. But how many of our people in 1947 understood what it meant, and how many of us today understand its true meaning? Certainly not the political parties or MPs who believe that ‘stalling’ Parliament is a high expression of democracy.

The Congress Party while it led UPA 2 perfected the art of innnovative "floor management" with multiple strategies — inducements and rewards, political and budgetary quid pro quos, walkouts by amenable Opposition parties at the right time to defeat legislations like the Lokpal Bill, and the CBI stick of course. And now that it is in opposition it is banking upon a misguided strategy of ‘stalling’ the constitutional process of Parliament, a strategy that seems to be boomeranging on it.

All streams of the media should explain these facts to the people of India, and the harm that stalling of Parliament is causing to the progress of our country and our people, all because the Congress wants to prevent the BJP government at all costs from achieving a positive report card to take to the voters for the next election. The media and enlightened civil society organisations should mobilise voters to hold their representatives in Parliament accountable for thwarting democracy and wasting crores of the tax payers money for this anti-national activity.

Since both parties, the one before and the other after May 2014 have liberally made use of this atrocious parliamentary behaviour, it has become difficult for honorable non-party men and women to make an effort to outlaw this abominable practice. But even if the effort has slender chance of success we must try. Perhaps sanity will prevail.

Pakistan’s Truculence and Obduracy

Yes, even the holy festival of Id-ul- Fitr did not prevent the ugly fighting on our international border. Both leaders through their joint secretaries while in Russia condemned terrorism in all its forms and agreed to cooperate with each other to eliminate this menace from South Asia.” Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif reiterated his invitation to Prime Minister Modi to visit Pakistan for the SAARC Summit in 2016. Prime Minister accepted the invitation. This was clearly too much for the Pakistani army to swallow, and the guns went firing again at innocent civilians.

Now what should be India’s firm response? This is my answer and not necessarily of Modi ji or Sushmaji. So long as Pakistan will remain an Islamic state India will not compel a single Indian citizen in any part of Jammu & Kashmir to be a citizen of a non secular state. Pakistan must recall the famous speech of Quaid Azam Jinnah Saheb the day Pakistan came into existence. Obviously Pakistani leaders have totally forgotten it and reduced it to a cruel joke. But there was one person who was an honorable exception. Paradoxically, he too happened to be a military dictator. I think he was and is more sensible than many in Pakistan with whom we have had to deal with from time to time.  I want to reproduce briefly the Quaid-e-Azam’s forgotten wisdom:

He spoke of the unprecedented happening in the political life of the Sub-Continent. ‘There is no parallel in the history of the world’ he said. “This mighty Sub-Continent with all kinds of inhabitants has been brought under a plan which is titanic, unknown, unparalleled. And what is very important with regard to it is that we have achieved it peacefully and by means of an evolution of the greatest possible character.”

He then dealt with the first duty of the Government of Pakistan. It is not merely to maintain the rule of law but also to fully secure the life, property and religious beliefs of its subjects. Then he referred to the curse of corruption in both India and Pakistan – black marketing, evils of nepotism and jobbery.

Then he dealt with the question of minorities. I quote his exact words, “Now, if we want to make this great State of Pakistan happy and prosperous, we should wholly and solely concentrate on the well-being of the people, and especially of the masses and the poor. If you will work in co-operation, forgetting the past, burying the hatchet, you are bound to succeed. If you change your past and work together in a spirit that everyone of you, no matter to what community he belongs, no matter what relations he had with you in the past, no matter what is his colour, caste or creed, is first, second and last citizen of this State with equal rights, privileges, and obligations, there will be no end to the progress you will make”

Referring to the British example, he proceeded and said “Now I think we should keep that in front of us as our ideal and you will find that in course of time Hindus would cease to be Hindus and Muslims would cease to be Muslims, not in the religious sense, because that is the personal faith of each individual, but in the political sense as citizens of the State.”

I believe that General Musharaf always wanted to act on this and bring peace between India and Pakistan. I have the testimony of eminent journalist Tavleen whom I greatly admire and respect. She had met the General at Davos about ten years ago and she frankly asked the general what he meant by his ‘out of the box’ solution for the two nations. The General patiently explained to her what he had in mind. Nothing in General’s proposal meant independence or redrawing the borders but it only meant self governance for Kashmir with security guarantee by a Managing Council consisting of Indians, Pakistanis and Kashmiris.  The General was concerned about wasting of national resources on a futile conflict which must be stopped to make Pakistan prosperous. He was determined to terminate terrorist activity in the state.

Therefore the moderate Hurriyat leaders and the Kashmir committee evolved five principles of a permanent solution:

1. Terrorism and violence are taboo.

2. A lasting and honorable peaceful resolution must and can be found.

3. The resolution must be acceptable to all political elements and regions of the state.

4. Extremist positions held by all for the previous five decades have to be and will be abandoned.

5. Kashmiri pundits will be rehabilitated with honor and rights of equality.

I must confess that when General Musharraf came to India and negotiations for settlement were going on in Agra, President Musharraf had come determined to solve the problem. Unfortunately the talks failed and the failure was the result of Indian obduracy. The General was  sad and angry, but he did not give up his noble effort. I got from him through his friend Mr. Bhandara his draft proposal for a settlement. With his permission I made some changes which he gladly accepted. I published them as proposal of the Kashmir Committee. These occupy more than a full page in my book ‘Maverick Unchanged, Unrepentant’.

The Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir framed by its independent Constituent Assembly should be accepted by all rational politicians as the end of the Pakistani ambitions in that State. Its preamble reads:

‘We the people of the State of Jammu and Kashmir, having solemnly resolved, in pursuance of the accession of the State to India which took place on the twenty-sixth day of October, 1947, to further define the existing relationship of the State with the Union of India as an integral part thereof, and to secure to ourselves

‘Justice, social, economic and political; liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship;

‘Equality of status and of opportunity; and to promote among us all; Fraternity assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity of the nation.

‘In our Constituent Assembly this seventeenth day of November, 1956, we do hereby adopt, enact and give to ourselves this constitution.’

Then came the elections of 2011 in the State. These elections were watched closely by press reporters from all over the world. Without any dissent from any responsible quarter elections have been declared as totally fair and free. There is no evidence that any vote was cast in favor of Kashmir becoming a part of Pakistan or seceding from India. International law and a Judgment of Supreme court of Canada rule out any right to secede.

Listen To A Genuine Well-Wisher

It has been my declared ambition of life to see India and Pakistan locked in a genuine embrace of mutual love and understanding and become together a bulwark of World Peace. Sitting in the departure lounge of God’s airport my hope of success is fast fading out. I am in a hurry and I must declare my last wish and testament for my friends in Pakistan who care to listen and ponder.

Indian statesmen despite serious objections from many influential sections of our people decided not to become a Hindu state. It was not an easy decision to make when the demand of partition was wholly based on the ambition of Muslims to constitute an Islamic State. Many Muslims residing in Indian part would have migrated to their new homeland but for the surprising Indian decision not to act in anger and retaliation. I am quite sure that almost all the Muslims who did not migrate to the homeland of their dreams and creation because of this adorable decision of Indian statesmen. I have been and remain proud of this. Secularism is the rule of reason over blind faith and the triumph of science over superstition. I am glad our leaders understood the oceans of innocent blood that had been shed in the name of religion in the long history of our sorry world. I know that Muslims now citizens of India obviously unanimously want India to be a citadel of secularism. The few malevolent hypocrites are hoping to make India too an Islamic State. The ISIS certainly harbours this evil ambition. These are certainly some Muslim traitors who secretly share the ISIS evil ambition but fortunately they are few and almost harmless.  

The hope of a friendly and peaceful coexistence which had almost died out seemed to be coming back to life when Modi ji and Nawaz Sharif Saheb met in the city of Ufa in Russia; a vain hope was flickering in some hearts but not in mine. I know that when they are far away from their countries. They try to behave better but they know that at home a mere assertion ‘I have been misreported’ is a complete defence and convincing excuse.   

It has not been more than a couple of days for our borders to become a hot territory of unprovoked firing and cross border terrorism. India has already threatened an ‘effective and forceful response’. It is a small mercy that the armed forces on both sides are a little reluctant to die without good cause. The devilish orders of their army bosses would not even ensure a gate pass to heaven. Before the horrendous mutual killings start let me recall few well known facts of history:

1. It was agreed that on the partition of India coming into-force the hundreds of semi independent states will become free from British paramountcy and the rulers would become sovereign masters of their future destiny in the Indian sub-continent. 

2.The State of Jammu & Kashmir have been a peaceful state though with a Muslim majority with a Hindu ruler.

3.He was busy negotiating a standstill agreement with India and Pakistan when Pakistan organized armed raiders entering the state and taking the state by force in complete defiance of rules of International Law or decency. Maharaja the legal sovereign invited Indian help which was readily made available and the Maharaja signed an instrument of the State’s accession to India.

4.Legitimate Indian forces recaptured occupied territory and the intruders pushed back compelling Pakistan to sue for peace and a ceasefire. The foolish Pandit Nehru accepted this and a good chunk of the state remained in Pakistani control. They call it Azad Kashmir. Under the law of nations it remains illegally occupied territory.

5.India’s title deeds to the whole of the state are completed, de-jure. Even de-facto they are perfect with regard to the territory now part of Indian Jammu and Kashmir.

6.India has not been serious in claiming the area called Azad Kashmir and by us the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir.

7.We took the matter to the United Nations. They passed some resolutions the main one being a plebiscite. But this was to be held after every intruder vacated the POK and Indian Flag flew over the whole state.  Pakistan had no hope of winning while Shekh Abdullah was alive and his loyalty to India undiluted.

8.The state created its own Constituent Assembly to frame a Constitution. That separate Constituent Assembly, not the one which was framing or framed the Constitution of India” made the State a part of India and adopted some parts of the Constitution of India as applicable to the State. Article 370 of the Indian Constitution reflects the near sovereignty of the State. India cannot change the Constitution of India or that of the State without the consent of the Constituent Assembly of the State.

9.In 1965 the military dictator Ayub Khan decided to capture the State again by force. It was a shameful act of aggression and repugnant to modern International Law and the U.N Charter. The illegal and aggressive attack failed. Peace accord was signed under Russian auspices and its terms are simple but eternal in effect. Called the Tashkent-Declaration it ordained that neither party shall attempt to change the status-quo by force or war and will even refrain from propaganda for changing it.  

If Pakistan wants change it can only be by litigation in the International Court Of Justice. Is Pakistan Ready? A peaceful dialogue between two brothers is the only solution. Any war will be suicide, for both or one, providence will decide. 

Will the PM ask the real Arun Jaitley to please stand up?

My critics love to accuse me that whenever I criticise Arun Jaitley for his anti national activities, I tend to sound very personal. Let me assure them and my readers that I have no interest in Jaitley’s personal life or any of his activities if they are confined to it. But if his actions as a person, private or public, compromise public good or our national interest, no force on earth will keep me quiet.

I have written enough about how his actions as finance minister have done everything that is possible to ensure that our black money abroad never returns to India. He has packed the Enforcement Directorate, who are key to the SIT for Black Money, with persons of questionable antecedents, many former henchmen of the former Finance Minister, P Chidambaram, for whom he has appeared as lawyer in the Fairfax case. And now the appointment of the CVC, Mr. K V Chowdary, former Chairman, Central Board of Direct Taxes, (under Chidambaram) for which Jaitley is reported to have been present in the Selection Committee, (of which he is not and was not member), only confirms in my mind that his actions are anti national. Chowdary, the new CVC, against whom there are reams of evidence of irregularity and impropriety, is many shades worse than ‘tainted Thomas’ who appears so tame now, whose selection by the previous Prime Minister drew outrage in the nation. The Prime Minister is surely aware that the highest flak he is receiving for anti-national decisions, whether for the black money issue or the selection of the tainted CVC, are all the result of the public action of Arun Jaitley. And the question everyone is asking is how the Prime Minister allowed all this to happen.

The Central Vigilance Commission is required to be an office in combating corruption and he himself should be possessed of unquestionable integrity. Holders of such office have not to prove beyond reasonable doubt to have this great qualification. This is required when a person is to be convicted of crime and sentenced to punishment prescribed by criminal law. I had four heavy bundle of evidence of his complete unfitness for the office of CVC yet the gentlemen was appointed after I had sent one bundle to the Prime Minister and promised to send 3 more without any delay. The Finance Minister’s certificate of fitness proves nothing but it certainly proves beyond doubt that Mr. Jaitley is not fit to be a Finance Minister who is not even a member of Cabinet Committee of Appointments. Yet he participated in the process. It reflects on the Prime Minister too. I do not wish to say more because the matter will be hopefully thrashed out in courts of law or the Sovereign People of India.

I was quite surprised to see an article in the May edition of the Caravan magazine that does an in depth analysis of Jaitley’s rise to power, how he managed always to step higher, through a deliberate cultivation of the media, the power brokers, corporate, the glitterati, and the influence and power that he came to acquire over them, officially and unofficially. Media moghuls, many of them his good friends, refused to publish any information that exposed or criticised his questionable, and sometimes corrupt actions. I give my highest compliments for Caravan magazine, for their courageous piece “Talk of the Town”, despite the facts they are writing forthrightly about not only the present Minister for Information and Publicity, but also the Finance Minister, with his intimidating outfit called the Enforcement Directorate.

The article explains Arun Jaitley’s steady rise to the commanding heights that we perceive today, beginning from his student union days of 1974, riding a well calculated, well orchestrated strategy right from the start of net-working, disinformation and manipulation, and befriending and controlling the media. He realised the strategic necessity of befriending media captains. He used the latter as his political career progressed to stifle information about his murky side in some of the prestigious Indian newspapers of some extremely dubious legal opinions given regarding allocation of coal blocs, a scam that the BJP was loudly accusing the UPA Government of. These facts were effectively obliterated from the mainstream national media. So too, have his past relations with Chidambaram and NDTV, with Vodaphone, and Ketan Parekh who faced charges of defrauding the Madhavpura Mercantile Cooperative Bank, been deleted by mainstream media.

He also cultivated the right Delhi durbar style for building up his social, corporate and media constituency, in lieu of the political constituency that he so badly lacked, all of it based on expediency to move on, and not ideology. And with their support he appears to have become master of the plantation industry – for planting stories and entrenching disinformation about his political foes and friends, and people whom he wanted to demolish. Several leaks planted in media, that have tried to damage reputation of many of his party colleagues are reportedly traced to him.

According to the Caravan article, Jaitley appears to have hobnobbed with every important politician of the Congress, the BJP and other parties, and is a pathological gossip and bad mouther, even of his friends and political leaders, including Prime Minister Vajpayee, and Advani, who has been his greatest benefactor. He hobnobbed with the Judiciary as Law Minister, misused his power, particularly regarding appointment of judges, inspite of advice and opinions from the IB.

His relationship with Narendra Modi seems interesting. To begin with, both were trying to draw advantage from each other’s strengths. Jaitley, a suave English speaking Delhi durbari with no political base, but by now, with a vast high society, business and media network; and Modi with a vast political base, but no savvy, sophisticated Delhi durbar. In the Vajpayee years, Jaitley had to play second fiddle to Promod Mahajan, who was much higher in the BJP pecking order, but after Mahajan’s death, he found his great opportunity to rise within the party.

His elections from Amritsar was a disaster, but Modi instead rewarded him and for whatever reason, placed Defence and Finance in his control. His ironfist in velvet glove romance with the press continues, more so, after he was removed from Defence, and given the ministry of Information and Broadcasting, where he can call the shots with greater force to black our stories about his own misdeeds.

I had warned Modi ji not to set him up as the party candidate and I assured him that he will lose. My advice was based on my belief shared by millions that Jaitley is a member of the notorious 160 club which hoped and worked on the project of ensuring that BJP does not get an absolute majority in Lok Sabha.

His role as President of Delhi and District Cricket Association a post he is said to have headed for 13 years, has brought to light by eminent veteran cricketers like Bishen Singh Bedi and Kirti Azad, smacks of nothing less than manipulation, nepotism and corruption. The usual cheap corruption tricks of a low level minion, construction of a stadium, falsification of bills and accounts. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs constituted a three-member team of the Serious Fraud Investigation Office to investigate Azad’s claims, but by the time the SFIO’s report was completed, in March 2014, Jaitley was no longer DDCA president, and he did not contest the 2013 election. The SFIO’s report confirmed Azad’s allegations of financial irregularity, but Jaitley managed to escape any indictment for the corruption under his watch. Clearly, a scam closed up by the scamster who occupies a position of great power in our country.

                                          

Why this Blog?

I must start today's piece with a confession I am a well known lawyer, an erudite student and teacher of law and the Constitution jurisprudence and philosophy and something of many other things but I am a total ignoramus when use of modern technology is concerned for example I own an I phone but I can use it only for making and receiving calls  and listening to some recorded music. My Juniors make use of it which leaves me amazed and in admiration.

Last week I was talking with my old friend T. Ramachandran, Senior Editor of  g-files found a solution, a blog which he designed for me and even put into circulation my views on a subject of great importance to me and the Indian Nation which is 'What Muslims are doing to Islam'. I must now write what I postponed just for this second piece of mine.

I have been the Chairman of the Board of Sunday Guardian for years. I have never missed my weekly piece even once during the last more than five years. Most of these articles of mine have  been published in two book, 'The Conscience of the Maverick' and another 'Maverick unchanged unrepentant'.

I had resigned from B.J.P government after serving as a minister of 'Urban Development' and later 'Law and Company Affairs'. This was mainly the machination of Mr. Arun Jaitley fully described in my earlier publication 'Big egos and small Men'. I have not seen the face of Prime Minister Atal ji or ever called on him during the last fifteen years. I had resigned from the Party and I was enjoying my freedom and better company. It was 2010  that I was expressly requested and invited to join again. I agree but made it clear by a letter not secret but made public and reproduced in one of the two books I have mentioned, that I have been invited to come back with the Party full knowledge of my views on all issues, policies economic and social. 'You have no right to change me but I have the right to change you'. This has never been denied. I was invited because they wanted me particularly for the defence of their current Party President or even the Prime Minister Narendra Modi nor my actual Client Amit Shah will deny this.

The elections of 2014 were troubling many party aspirants. I had made it clear that my choice would be Narendra bhai. All the aspirants arranged to remove me from the Party on a false excuse that I had criticised Party leaders. What I said was never disclosed. I knew that Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj were trying to install as Director CBI a person whose stinking record was known to me and the Highest Court has since sustained my views about him. The UPA government appointed Mr. Ranjit Sinha who did not prove to be an angel but ultimately much better than the one whom the BJP leaders wanted.

It is well known that throughout the Election Campaign I had painted Modi Ji as prophet sent by Providence for the salvation  of the poverty striven fellow Indians the victims of multiple scam that blackened the Congress image beyond redemption for a long time. I did not waver even for a day even though I have been convinced for a very long time that his Finance Minister is congressman in disguise and Soniaji is dearer to him that Bharat Mata. I have conveyed this to Modi Ji often and in writing too. When he set him up as BJP candidate from Amritsar I wrote to him that I will ensure that he loses. Modi ji had different plans. When Modi ji won the elections I assured him by my Sunday Guardian article that "I am living in the departure lounge of Gods airport, I want nothing from you". I did not attend the swearing ceremony and in writing explained to him that I will not attend because I do not want to see the people whom I hate. Some Congress leaders were anxious that he should be India's Finance Minister, this would ensure that not a single dollar of black money will be returned from abroad. He has deliberately acted for a whole year to make whole Black Money venture a disgraceful flop. His now accomplice in crime Mr. Amit Shah publicly confessed that all his talk of black money was Election Joke (Jumla). It is inevitable that my respect for Modi diminished every day of the year gone by and I frankly told him publically that it no longer exists.

I am still a Member of Parliament and my rights as a citizen are intact. I had some inconvenient questions to ask the Finance Minister and the questions would have convinced the people that the Finance Minister is not acting as prosecutor but as accomplice. My article containing my questions and inevitably loaded with evidence behind them were to appear in the Sunday Guardian in the last week of April, 2015. My piece had reached the editor and it was cleared. Next morning I found it missing from Page 11 its designated location for years. I charge that Arun Jaitley conspired with the staff and got this done. I even know how?. Yes congratulations to Jaitely for successful murder of Indian democracy, but it did him no good. I got the whole Article published as paid advertisement in the Indian Express. It has been read within India and outside. If Prime Minister Modi has any political rectitude left, he must dismiss this Minister. He will destroy him not me.

I have now found my solution, The Blog. Thanks to my friend who designed it.                  

THE VICIOUS DESTROYERS OF A GREAT RELIGION

I have never left my readers or those who attend my lecture mainly to grown up students in various colleges that though as Hindu I revere the Prophet of Islam as the one teacher who told his followers: "...When you walk in search of knowledge you are walking in the path of the God; the ink of the scholar is holier than the blood of the martyr...". When Muslims followed this great lesson they conquered a large slice of civilized world. Muslims produced brilliant kings like Harun-al-Rashid, the greatest of medieval philosopher, like Avicenna, the greatest medieval physicians like al-Razzi. It is they who brought about the enlightenment in Europe and literally brought civilization to it. None of this is possible without the application of reason, without questioning established ways of thinking or without forbearance.

Only when in the 13th Century under the advice of a mad Khalifa Muslim Court all the books and entire libraries except the Holy Quran were destroyed. I have often alluded to the birth in Saudi Arabia of Mohamed-ibn-Abdul Wahhab, founder of a sect called Wahabi. He misunderstood the gentle religion of Prophet Mohammed, a religion which by its name, stands for peace. He misunderstood the causes of Muslim decline and the political and military ascendancy of the Christian West. He concluded that the degeneration of Muslim empires was caused by their abandonment of fisrt principles. Wahhab misconstrued what the Prophet had preached, picked up stray lines and convinced himself that his faith decreed death and annihilation to all mushrikhum, i.e. polytheists. By his definition, Christians, Jews, Shias and Hindus, among others, are  polytheists, who have forfeited their right to live. He wanted to use jihad as 'cleansing' was against fellow Muslims. The Holy Quran clearly forbids aggression; 'fight in the way of God against those who fight against you, but do not commit aggression... (Quran 2:190-92)'

During my recent vacation trip I visited, as is my habit book stores in search of latest publications. Amongst the books that I picked up one turned out to be, as the cover page indicates, the story ISIS. It is a joint authorship of Mr. Michael Weiss and Hassan Hassan. First one is a reputed  columnist on foreign policy and the second is a Middle East analyst and columnist for the The National. Both are experts of foreign affairs. The book claims to be the story of what ISIS is seeking and why they are such a threat to the World. It claims to disclose a revelatory look inside the World's most dangerous terrorist group. No wonder that the British Prime Minister David Cameron told BBC to stop calling barbaric ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and al-Shan)    and he also announced that there will be national one minute silence on Friday in honour of people killed in Tunisia. He said that there would be major training exercise in London over the next two days to test Britain's preparedness for serious terrorist attacks. He also said that it was thought the killer in Tunisa could be part of 'an ISIL-inspired network'.

The book that I mentioned shows al- Zarqawi as the founder of this foundation and its ideology it is he who first discovered Salafism, a doctrine, that in its contemporary advocates a return to theological purity and the traditions of the prophet Mohd. the most vicious part of his doctrine is that Salafis deemed western style democracy and modernity not only fundamentally irreconcilable with Islam but the main pollutants of the Arab civilization which after World War 1 stagnated under the illegitimate and apostate regimes in Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Iraq. At the most extreme end of their continuum, the Salafists are also adherents of Jihad, a word that denotes'struggle' in Arabic and contains a multitude of definations. .al- Zarqawi had his first meeting with Osama Bin laden in Talibans de-facto capital Kandhar. He also had much more promiscuous definition of kuffar ('unbelievers'), which he took to include all the Shia and any fellow Sunnis who did not abide by a strict Salafist covenant. Bin Laden had never drawn a bulls eye on these categories before, no doubt for filial reasons: his own mother was a Syrian Alawite, or a member of the offshoot of the Shia sect.

Iraq has a Sunni population of about 20%, a overwhelming Shia majority and the curds in Iraq were ruined by a Sunni minority under dictator Saddam Hussain. This was change by the American Conquest and large number of Shia Minister became the new rules, ISIS is determined to restore Sunni rule. al-Zaqawi made his plan clear: The Shia, it read, were "the insurmountable obstacle, the lurking snake, the crafty and malicious scorpion, the spying enemy and the penetrating venom". This genocidal rhetoric was followed by genocidal behaviour. The Shias have been slaughtered without any mercy. In June 2014 the ISIS boasted that they had executed 1700 Shia soldiers, the Iraqi army had surrendered. The Human Rights Watch confirmed the existence of mass execution sites of Shia with collective death toll of 770. In Mosul, the very same ISIS took the city, it stormed Badoush Prison and hauled off its some 1500 of its inmates. It drove them all out to a nearby deserts and separated the Sunnis and Christians from the Shia. Members of the first two categories were carted away elsewhere; the Shia were first abused and robbed, then lined up and shot over ravine after they each called out their number in line.

What was happening to Shias may well be described what American Soldiers found when they opened the doors of a dungent prison in which they found 160 blind folded Shia prisoners all those who had been held there for months in overcrowded room filled with fesis and urine. It is not as if Shias are retaliating in some places but this new Sunni terrorist organization must shock the conscience of the World. Muslim intellectuals in India must protest and condemn this.