Mainstream WeeklyLetter to Readers, Mainstream
Dial Down the War Talk, Time to Talk Peace
The recent ceasefire on the border between India and Pakistan is still holding. The sound of artillery guns & drones is gone, but the social fires that were lit in an atmosphere of war-mongering and hostility towards Pakistan have not died down. The focus of ruling Hindutva nationalists is to extract full political advantage from the recent military confrontation with Pakistan, to target critics or people from minorities within the national borders and to beat its drums abroad. They have no qualms about following accepted yardsticks as to how they go about it. Vijay Shah, a minister in the BJP