LUCKNOW, India — It was refreshing to hear the views of Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer, a Right Livelihood Award recipient, on the politics of terrorism. He rightly believes that terrorism is not born of any religion, but is the outcome of political situations.
In India, the demolition of the Babri Masjid mosque triggered the spate of terrorist activities in the country. The Indian government's pro-America stance aggravated the situation further, with America getting a lot of flak for its activities in Afghanistan and Iraq. All this prepared the soil for volatile activities.
"We feel that if the Babri Masjid had not been demolished and if the nuclear bomb had not been tested in 1998 then our country would not be facing the problem of terrorism today. The first bomb blast occurred in Mumbai in 1993 after the demolition of the mosque. After the nuclear test, the then BJP government adopted pro-America policies and in 2001, when America began the war against terrorism, India joined this U.S. war against terrorism without invitation. It was precisely at this time that we had the first 'terrorist' attack on the Indian Parliament. After this, there was a spate in terrorist activities in India, the latest being the recent daring attack in Mumbai.