I have been relatively quiet the past few days … because we are fast approaching the year end and it is that time of the year where all of us have to close our open engagements to free our time for the holiday of the year … and because I was waiting for an appropriate - read inspiring - moment to break the silence. That moment came today when I saw the BBC news item that the two Mumbai hotels that were hit by the terrorists opened today for regular business and that made me reflect on the whole Mumbai tragedy … once again.
While nothing can be said or done to alleviate the pain of those who were directly impacted by the whole situation … there is a slight silver lining here. Contrary to all projections, the sad episode in Mumbai did not trigger any more human tragedies. Even in my own circles, I had people taking bets that a communal riot was inevitable, that vigilante justice will follow … I had my fingers crossed and I am so heartened that my hopes came true. We all agree that the Mumbai tragedy is littered with skeletons of mistakes and oversights on the part of Indian politicians and bureaucrats. There should not be any forgiveness for that … We all agree that there was indeed a colossal failure on part of the government of the day - and all other politicians to that matter - to protect its citizens. We all know now how repeated warnings were ignored, how enough security arrangements were not put in place and how the initial response to the emerging situation was bungled … but it is the ordinary people who have come out as hero’s here. By not coloring this incident in a communal vein, by standing together in their time of tragedy and by not playing into the hands of those who wanted themto go that way, the people of Mumbai (and India) have made all of us so proud. As I said in my last post, this was not a hindu or a sikh or a muslim tragedy, this was a human tragedy. And let us now make it look like anything else. I stressed in that post that the bullets and the bombs used by the terrorists did not discern between the people of different faiths, and I would stress it again here. The final official death toll listed 40 Muslim fatalities - which goes to prove that all of us lost something in the mayhem. In these tough economic times confronting the whole world, the return of the English cricket team to India to finish its cricketing engagements within a week or so of the mumbai tragedy is a testimony to how we can all come together in tough times to give each other much needed strength. I will take this moment to salute the English team for their support and camaraderie not just with the Indian team or with the Indian nation … but with the whole world. We needed them to do what they did … and they did it in the right spirit and the right time. This is just one of the gazillion gestures that were made to show solidarity with the people who lost someone dear in the madness, and each one of them is indeed helping with the healing process. Even as the events were unfolding in Mumbai .. almost a world away for most of us … all of us everywhere were watching with abated breath and hoping against hope that in all this madness humanity will come on top … I am proud and happy to say that people of India in general … and Mumbai in particular … surpassed all of our expectations. It is indeed … something to be proud of … in these tough times …
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on Sunday, December 21st, 2008 at 4:27 pm and is filed under Thoughts/Musings.
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