Why Congress is wrong to make Yakub hanging about Indian Muslims

What the Yakub Memon case proved more than anything else is the need for a serious reform of our judicial system, to rectify the fact that it takes over 23 years for "closure", however fraught. But does the case also demonstrate something else? Isn't the fact that the investigative teams could not move faster, despite having identified the ruthless killers, more of a reflection on the shadowy world of terrorism, than about the government? Because the latter works within the rule of law and the former outside of it. It is always easier to break the law, than defend it.

This must, therefore, have been a terrible time for the survivors of the attack, and the family members of those who were killed. They waited and waited for justice, and unfortunately by the time the judgement was delivered and followed through it began to be questioned. Had this moment arrived 20 years sooner, perhaps there might not have not been this debate, essential though it might be to a democracy.

Ironically, as someone who actually was on Ground Zero, as a journalist covering the case, I remember how quickly the investigation moved ahead. That, in fact had given hope for speedy justice, now long belied.

I had flown into Mumbai the day after the bombings to find a city bleeding, while still bravely struggling to limp forward. But when one visited families who had lost their loved ones, or when one met victims in the hospital, there was a sense of bewilderment at what had happened. Why were the innocent being targeted? I met Muslims and Hindus both who had suffered. Those were more innocent days, and to all of us, being a terrorist was evil, anti-national. There was never any mythology created around the perpetrators, which sadly, is happening now.

Everyone in the city was focused on finding the terrorists, rather than their religion.

The evidence at the time was plentiful, and the investigation relentless, though of course, many of the culprits had got away, eventually apparently settling abroad.

I remember how swiftly, after the discovery of the RDX in a two wheeler, we were led to the building where the Memons had lived before fleeing the country. It soon became quite clear that some among them were involved in money laundering, as well as smuggling. Wouldn't it be somewhat naive for us to actually believe that: a) Yakub knew nothing, despite the fact he was the accountant for his family or that b) He had no idea on how the money generated was spent. Surely he would have known, if he was in the midst of a havala racket, what the money was being used for?

In any case, the courts in their wisdom, have come to a decision, and one would like to believe in the impartiality of the justice system. But what is very shocking is the effort by some of the opposition, especially the Congress, to try to make this out to be some kind of an attack on the minorities. That is truly reprehensible, and these kind of statements tend to make matters worse, because they feed into the very sentiment the puppet masters exploit.

The best would be to focus on improving the intelligence gathering, the investigative networks and course the judiciary, and not on mud-slinging.