Daily Times

Well I am quite uninformed when it comes to cricket, but would like to give my two cents, on all the brouhaha, that has been brewing about the game, especially Pakistan Super League (PSL). The opinion is divided about holding the finals at Lahore, though the powers to be have decided that it would proceed in Lahore as originally planned. If it brings joy to the public, who are generally depressed from terrorism and other woes, then why not?

The opponents have valid arguments too, but at the end of the day, what drives everything is the demand. If demand is there and people are willing to bear the consequences and the state is giving their assurances, then so be it. Personally, I may have a whole lot of reasons to support the opponents, but as they say, it is not about me or my opinion but about the happiness of the nation,which trumps everything else.

Across the border, there is another kind of controversy that has hit the news wave lately. It is the reaction of our neighbors towards a 20 year old Delhi-based student,GurmeharKaur who had expressed her opinion about the senseless Kargil war. The young lady made placards of her messages and showed them to the world on social media, leadingto a controversy in India. Extremist and nationalistic zealots belonging to the BJP trolled and mocked her innocence.

She had lost her father, an Indian soldier in that war, and wants the two countries to bury their hatchet by living peacefully, so other daughters do not face a predicament like hers. The trolls have been quite unkind and even threatened her with bodily harm, including possibility of something as heinous as rape. The world’s so-called largest democracy has been rapidly sinking its much-touted credentials, without any shame or remorse. The right wing righteous, more Indian than any Indian crowd, has plastered its fascist attitude towards their dissenters. In a country of a billion plus people, it is not uncommon to find people who can stoop to this level.

Her message is very innocent, yet true to every sense of its words. The people who impose their style of nationalism by force, whether through fear, intimidation or harassment are the lowest of the low lives on the face of this planet. Their position has been consistent about their narrative and anyone who dares to disagree with their brand of patriotism is immediately labelled as a traitor. But being so heartless and indifferent towards the offspring of a fallen soldier, who gave his life for his country, is regrettable.

Some seemingly educated lotof notoriety have ridiculed her for taking such a stand. These are the educated and enlightened people who are caught in their own cobwebs of hatred. It would be dishonest to overlook the people who have supported her stance there and encouraged her to speak her mind, without any fear, for democracy is all about the inalienable right to freedom of speech. The so-called nationalists who are literally chastising her for her desire to live in peace, are quite short-sighted.

Let’s be honest. We are not much different either. Assuming this was a 20 something old Pakistani girl, in a similar unfortunate situation, requesting her government to make peace with their arch rival, she would have met with similar resistance. It is years of lethal venom which has been injected in our veins. on both sides of the border. We have our share of lunatics, who would never want to live in a peaceful and friendly environment.

As they say, not everything is a complete doom and gloom. With every such incident, a new wave of dialogue takes place. Thus, a new round of debate ensues. People like to see and hear about this sorry situation. The coverage, even though negative, brings the issue to the forefront and solicits discussion. The discussions eventually end up suggesting solutions. Those solutions though discarded promptly by either side with the rapid excuse of the ‘lingering core issues’.

By the year 2047, a century after the horrific partition, chances are that I will not be around. But the people around that time, would be much different from us. These people would represent a generation of my children’s children perhaps. The level of animosity would drop as these people would not generally represent people directly impacted by the partition or the multiple wars. These people will be very different.

They will be emboldened by modern technology, that would shrink the physical boundaries to an unprecedented level. Mutual cooperation and inter-dependency will become natural. The electorate will be overly informed and sophisticated. The so-called nationalists and ultra-patriots will probably be out of their ‘digestive aid’ they sell today. Too bad that I will not be able to witness that tranquil and blissful South Asia. If I had the ability and courage to hold a placard much like that young lady, it would read, “Live and Let live.”

The writer is a Pakistani-US mortgage banker. He can be reached at dasghar@aol.com. He tweets
at http://twitter.com/dasghar