Little less than
four years ago, our commercial capital was under siege. In the most
daring attack on our country, a group of terrorists managed to slip in
quietly and held some of the most prominent hotels in Bombay to ranson
and killed 166 people. Of all of them, only one, going by the name of
Ajmal Kasab was caught alive. An obvious death sentence was awarded and a
few years later, he was hung amidst high secrecy. But once the news
spread, the entire country celebrated the death of the terrorist. I too,
was happy at first, but on further thought, I believe we do not have
sufficient reason to celebrate.
I will never play down his heinous crimes, he deserved to be punished. But we must understand that the problem was not Ajmal Kasab. By executing one terrorist, if we believe that it will set an example to all the others, we are sadly mistaken. Terrorists don’t get life insurance for a reason, they’re very much aware that death is a part and parcel of the job. The do not welcome it, but do not fear it either. Kasab wouldn’t have started his mission 4 years ago thinking he’d get out of it alive. His real goal was accomplished, just as per his plan. The only difference being, instead of being shot dead at the scene, he was caught alive, treated like a King and was then killed by the noose 4 years later, living on borrowed time all the while. We spent crores to keep him safe, why? Only to know he was from Pakistan? I believe we already knew that a very long time ago. Also, an attack of this scale could never have been carried out with the help of people in India itself. Has all this changed? Absolutely not.
Now that Kasab is gone, is our country truly safe? What have we accomplished by executing him? Security? Peace? Has our country really done what it should’ve done ever since 26-11-2008? I fear not. If Buela M Sam, thankfully, a normal harmless citizen could just walk into ISRO’s headquarters and enjoy its hospitality with just a fake I.D card, I believe we have a lot of catching up to do. In the entire ruckus over Kasab’s execution, the real plot in the story has been lost. We are still susceptible to attack, just like we were 4 years ago. With the LeT warning us of dire consequences over the execution, I'd like to see how India has changed in the aftermath of 26-11-2008.
On humanitarian grounds, we do not have the right to take what is not ours. I believe one human does not hold the right to take the life of another living being. Our high IQ doesn’t give us any holding over any other living being. All of us have an equal right to the Earth’s resources.
How are we any different from Kasab? A punishment is meant to reform the person, death doesn’t give him that opportunity. We have no idea what background he came from, he must’ve been brainwashed with false claims about India. His last words before being hung were, “Allah kasam maaf karna, aisi galthi dobara nahi hogi. (Forgive me Allah, such a mistake won’t happen again)” If he truly repented his actions, I believe our constitution has accomplished its goal. Even if he was considered a security threat thereafter, he should’ve been imprisoned for life. Giving him a chance to meet and interact with the people from the very country he waged war on and realize what he did was a mistake and all that he was told in Pakistan was utter nonsense. Who knows, he might’ve even written a book asking his fellow Pakistanis to never follow his path, who knows how many terrorists we could’ve prevented that way. By executing him, we only took down one terrorist, but left room for thousands more.
We never even gave him another chance, everyone deserves a second chance, even if is confined within the walls of a prison cell.
I will never play down his heinous crimes, he deserved to be punished. But we must understand that the problem was not Ajmal Kasab. By executing one terrorist, if we believe that it will set an example to all the others, we are sadly mistaken. Terrorists don’t get life insurance for a reason, they’re very much aware that death is a part and parcel of the job. The do not welcome it, but do not fear it either. Kasab wouldn’t have started his mission 4 years ago thinking he’d get out of it alive. His real goal was accomplished, just as per his plan. The only difference being, instead of being shot dead at the scene, he was caught alive, treated like a King and was then killed by the noose 4 years later, living on borrowed time all the while. We spent crores to keep him safe, why? Only to know he was from Pakistan? I believe we already knew that a very long time ago. Also, an attack of this scale could never have been carried out with the help of people in India itself. Has all this changed? Absolutely not.
Now that Kasab is gone, is our country truly safe? What have we accomplished by executing him? Security? Peace? Has our country really done what it should’ve done ever since 26-11-2008? I fear not. If Buela M Sam, thankfully, a normal harmless citizen could just walk into ISRO’s headquarters and enjoy its hospitality with just a fake I.D card, I believe we have a lot of catching up to do. In the entire ruckus over Kasab’s execution, the real plot in the story has been lost. We are still susceptible to attack, just like we were 4 years ago. With the LeT warning us of dire consequences over the execution, I'd like to see how India has changed in the aftermath of 26-11-2008.
On humanitarian grounds, we do not have the right to take what is not ours. I believe one human does not hold the right to take the life of another living being. Our high IQ doesn’t give us any holding over any other living being. All of us have an equal right to the Earth’s resources.
How are we any different from Kasab? A punishment is meant to reform the person, death doesn’t give him that opportunity. We have no idea what background he came from, he must’ve been brainwashed with false claims about India. His last words before being hung were, “Allah kasam maaf karna, aisi galthi dobara nahi hogi. (Forgive me Allah, such a mistake won’t happen again)” If he truly repented his actions, I believe our constitution has accomplished its goal. Even if he was considered a security threat thereafter, he should’ve been imprisoned for life. Giving him a chance to meet and interact with the people from the very country he waged war on and realize what he did was a mistake and all that he was told in Pakistan was utter nonsense. Who knows, he might’ve even written a book asking his fellow Pakistanis to never follow his path, who knows how many terrorists we could’ve prevented that way. By executing him, we only took down one terrorist, but left room for thousands more.
We never even gave him another chance, everyone deserves a second chance, even if is confined within the walls of a prison cell.
