Pulwama attack: Why I only have revenge on my mind
I am angry. Like millions of Indians, I am fuming, gutted and I want blood to spill across the border. I want the Pakistani army bloodied, bruised and hurt. I want the terrorists they feed, foster and protect, gunned down and their bodies turned to ash before the tears of our martyrs' families have dried.
Nearly 40 CRPF personnel lost their lives in Pulwama on a day the world celebrated love.
A man drove an SUV laden with IED into a convoy of 2500 bravehearts — the loss of lives was staggering. Those men were protecting us. Those men made us safe. And 40 of those braves, 40 of India's best, were killed by a coward, egged on by other cowards and mad men.
These mad men find safe haven in Pakistan — a rogue country exporting terror to India for decades.
Jaish-e-Mohammed claimed responsibility for the attack and there are no prizes for guessing where the JeM is based — Pakistan!
I remember the night of November 26, 2008.
I was in office, working on a cricket match between India and England when news started trickling in — Mumbai was under seige. It took days of gun fights and incredible military skills by our security forces to prevent a further loss of lives — but nearly 200 innocent people were dead by the time the last terrorist from across the border had been neutralised.
That was over 10 years ago and I still wonder what stopped us from retaliating.
We continued to hold talks with Pakistan, we even invited them to play a bilateral cricket series.
The perpetrators are still at large. Where's the justice for those victims?
Uri was avenged in a sensational surgical strike that left Pakistan stunned. But clearly, those rogues from across the border have not learnt their lesson. Had they done so, Pulwama would not have happened.
There was immediate condemnation for the ghastly act. Celebrities from every walk of Indian life have tweeted to express their horror, shock and sadness. But this is the time for retribution, if there ever was one.
And retribution needs to be swift and deadly.
Enough of niceties. Enough talking already. This is time for revenge.
This is simply for the meaningless loss of lives. Those men were not fighting. They were travelling in a convoy and had every right to be protected, but we failed them.
Not anymore. Mumbai 2008 went unavenged. Ajmal Kasab was caught, thanks to the heroics of Tukaram Ombale, but the real conspirators continue to spew venom against India from across the border.
This time, the brutality in Pulawama calls for more than a surgical strike. Let's see Pakistan begging for mercy at India's feet. Let them run to the UN, let them run to the United States and plead as India continues to reduce Pakistan into rubble.
I was speaking to a few friends last evening. Everyone was enraged, everyone was disturbed, but a couple still sought sanity in this world. But there is no sanity left in this part of the world, is there? How do you explain sanity and peace to the families of the CRPF men killed in this way by a lunatic?
No one can try and tell me, talking to Pakistan is still an option. Decades of dialogues have come to zilch. Pakistan is still a murderous state, bent on inflicting a thousand cuts on India.
Let Pakistan now feel the full might of the Indian army. Ask me to cool down once Pakistan has ceased to exist as a dirty spot on the global map.
Also read: We could see Pulwama coming – and there’s more to follow