MUMBAI IS said to be the city of dreams; land of opportunities. It is said that the dust of the streets of Mumbai is loaded with gold and it is upon the people how much they can add to their kitty. People from every corner of the country come to this city that never sleeps with a dream in their eyes. But the naked dance of terrorism that continued for more than 60 hours rocked the financial capital - Mumbai. The terror strike in Mumbai has given birth to a number of questions that each and every Indian wants an answer to: 
 

When on earth will we have a single, unified intelligence wing such that 9/11s of this kind can be averted? If this scale of attack requires months of planning as some experts suggest, why could Indian agencies not sniff and nip it in the bud? 

Why could Indian navy and the coast guards not detect such a movement on our waters? Was the navy too busy claiming brownie points for their attacks on Somali pirate vessels? 

Why did the Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS) not know about it? Was it too busy investigating the Malegaon blasts on the behest of the progressive government hell bent on showing the opposition in poor light before the elections in the states? 

Why could the police not detect their movement from the seashore to the sites of terror especially when they were carrying so much ammunition? 

Why did National Security Guard (NSG) commandos reach the terror sites in the morning when the first strikes were reported a little after 10:00 pm the previous night? Why is our reaction time slow always?

Is it because the Mumbai Police could not comprehend the scale of attacks – ones that require not the . 303-bearing constablesof their hafta collecting brigade but the skilled commandos of NSG? 

How were the terrorists so well versed with the floor plans of the hotels? Were they staying as guests in the hotel and did a thorough reconnaissance? Did they actually set up control rooms in the hotel as reported? Did they place some of their men as hotel staff months before - as a part of a well planned strategy? And did this ‘staff’ aid in clandestinely storing large amounts of ammunition in the hotel for use by ‘friends’ on the appointed day? 

Why were the terrorists asking for British and the United States passports from the hostages in particular? Did they have any sinister agenda of an international kind on their minds? Did they make any demands? 

Where is Raj Thackeray – the self proclaimed “Marathi Maanus” thekedaar– when so many of innocent Mumbaikars have been shot at? 

Where is Shivraj Patil, our honorable home minister? Has been quarantined because every time he blabs his mouth off to the media, it becomes extremely embarrassing for party high command to face the aftermath? Why has his deputy Prakash Jaiswal been deputed to face the cameras? 

Why did the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) issue an advertisement carrying Atal ji’s message to Delhiitesthat condemned this terror attack and urged them to vote for a change – vote for his party, when Advani and Rajnath had publicly expressed their solidarity with the Prime Minister in this grave hour? Was it because they wanted to shout their lungs out and reap electoral benefit out of it but could not for the fear of being labelled as insensitive and irresponsible? 

Why did the BJP-led government that condemns terror and blames United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government for it now doesn’t follow the current government’s ‘no-talks’ policy? Why did they not order NSG to attack the terrorists while the ill-fated IC-814 aircraft was well within Indian borders? Why had the army and naval commandos, Maharashtra Police, NSG and Air Force been pressed into combat when we still had hostages at the mercy of the terrorists in the hotels and at Nariman House? Are these hostages less important than those who boarded the Air India plane? 

Why did Sheila Dixit cancel all her election advertisements in the media – expressing her condolences to Mumbai victims? Did she ever fathom that the turn of events could actually make her ‘progressive’ advertisements look like a rude joke and affect her electoral prospects? 
If US can bomb suspect areas in Pakistan’s territory through drone planes, those near the Afghan border, what stops India from bombing the training camps that breed such brutal enemies of mankind? 

Why was media allowed to telecast just about every detail from the site when it could be used by terrorists holed up in the hotels and Nariman House or their bossesin Pakistan to plot their answer? 
If a cell phone with call records from Pakistan, arrested terrorist hailing from Faridkot in Pakistan and a hand grenade with Pakistan Ordinance Factory stamp have been found, then what stops Indian authorities from blaming Pakistan – the rogue state – for these dastardly acts?

Why can’t we have an international judicial system wherein a country – without waging a war - can file a legal suit against another for disturbing its peace and attacking its territory and win a claim that in some way form or manner compensates for the colossal monetary and material loss if not the human suffering, that such acts of terror cause? Why can’t international authorities – like United Nation – actually sanction economic/financial, political, social and other embargoes of every kind against the countries perpetrating or supporting terror? 

Why can’t the Indian lobby effectively polarise the world against Pakistan’s blatant involvement in terror not just on their soil but globally? 

Much to our delightful imagination, why can’t US support India and bomb Pakistan, the way it did in case of Kuwait and Iraq – like a self proclaimed global police? Is it because India has no oil to offer? 

And last but not the least; will the arrested terrorists be treated the Afzal Guru way or do we intend making this an exemplary eye-for-eye trial – one that deters terrorists from attacking our fellowmen forever?

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