Looking for a scapegoat!

There are two global events, impacting Indo-Canadian relations and causing severe military and security concerns in the Middle East, with the ongoing confrontation between Israel and ‘terror group’ Hamas — along with its affiliates — who are fighting for prestige, revenge, territorial claims, and other geopolitical interests, further intensifying.

Touching upon the first issue is the plummeting of bilateral relations between India and Canada in the wake of unstatesmanlike, undiplomatic, and rash statements made by the Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, on the floor of the Canadian Parliament. Choosing a most inappropriate forum for such accusations, Trudeau levelled baseless allegations against India, claiming it was complicit in the killing of the Sikh radical Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil (June 18) in Surrey, British Columbia. Either due to deliberate amnesia or by design, after prompting from the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Trudeau didn't think of naming rival Sikh separatist groups for getting rid of Nijjar. Accusing India in a sweeping statement with such irresponsible remarks amounts to a serious political folly of Himalayan proportions.

Such uncalled-for and manufactured criticisms, bereft of any evidence and facts, have changed the entire geopolitical scenario. In light of this, it's highly improbable that Indo-Canadian bilateral ties will see any amelioration in the foreseeable future.

Amid these developments, not altogether surprising, Pakistan has conveniently walked into the troubled waters in support of Canada, condemning Nijjar's killing and blaming India for masterminding the assassination. This endorses Trudeau's wild and baseless allegations. Why is it not surprising to the security analysts the world over or to the watchers of India, Pakistan and Canada? This is because of a simple fact that is already in the public domain about Pakistan ISI’s unstinted support to the cause of Sikh separatism right from the 1980s, and its fresh blueprint for its revival by lending the newly resurging movement in the Western countries through funding, propaganda-linked training and providing all the logistics’ support. This is also an attempt to fuel the already dormant Sikh radicalism, which had died down more because of the majority and mainstream Sikhs rejecting the basic concept of a separate Sikh state.

Now, no sooner had Pakistan heaved a sigh of relief from the Nijjar killing and the divisive, negative fallout it caused, a recent assassination of a terrorist on Pakistani soil evoked uproar in Pakistani polity and media circles. It immediately started blaming a hostile intelligence agency, insinuating India in the murder of individuals in Pakistan. A prominent Pakistani English newspaper, with considerable readership, recently claimed in its editorial that in the last two months alone, there have been at least four targeted killings either directly or indirectly attributed to an Indian agency. More specifically, the reference is outrageously made to a recent incident when Jaish-e-Mohammad activist Shahid Latif was killed along with others in the Daska mosque, Pakistan.

The Pakistani police, on its part, have claimed to have busted a network involved in carrying out a vendetta for a "rogue" nation. It is pertinent to state that this is the same Shahid Latif who was directly involved in the Pathankot Indian Air Force (IAF) terror attack of 2016.

That said, it must also be credited to the newspaper for questioning the security establishments of Pakistan. How could they let so many individuals be murdered on Pakistani soil before a syndicate, apparently being run by an enemy power, was finally busted? They further asked that pre-empting such attacks is the cardinal task for counterintelligence officials responsible for Pakistan’s security. The paper further blamed the security agencies for embarrassing the country by enabling the so-called hostile quarters to infiltrate the country while they are busy addressing domestic issues they legally and otherwise have no business to be involved with.

Now, returning to the use of the word "rogue." The loose use of the term in the context of killing is very undesirable and unparliamentary according to media ethics and conventions. Sadly, it exhibits the frustration and rudderless attitude of a failed nation, a term often referred to by experts as rogue and even assessed as being on the brink of disintegration. This is thought to be attributed to its incessant economic fallacies, nonstop terror assaults penetrating its intelligence and security armour, and its abject failure to pursue harmonious external policies with neighbours or even with countries in the Islamic bloc. To name a few, Afghanistan comes foremost in mind. Despite the fact that both Pakistan and Afghanistan share and practice the same religion; they are far from any bonhomie. As for its continued India bashing, Pakistan seems to be looking for India as a scapegoat, purely to divert attention from its prevailing domestic ills as enumerated above.

Other than this, Pakistan now looks poised to capitalize further on the ongoing Israel-Hamas imbroglio. Its open support for Hamas and its affiliates is nothing but a showcasing of Islamic solidarity without condemning the terror angle, which has plagued the nation and other parts of the world. Homegrown terror outfits, including Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), Hizb-ul-Mujahideen (HM), and numerous others, have been wreaking havoc within and outside Pakistan for years with no signs of any abatement. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is also on record not easily letting Pakistan off the hook from the grey list. Sectarian violence occurs as a pattern at regular intervals, with rising cases of religious intolerance and forced cases of blasphemy.

Meanwhile, former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s son-in-law and Pakistan Muslim League (N) leader Captain Muhammad Safdar Awan openly called for Jihad against India and Israel at a pro-Palestine rally in Peshawar. The rally was addressed by Hamas leaders. It would, therefore, appear that with state support, Hamas will inspire the Pakistan political leadership, the military, and the ISI, in addition to countless terror groups posing a threat to peace and tranquillity not only within Pakistan but also in the immediate neighbourhood, with India as the primary focus.

The writer is a retired IPS officer, Adviser NatStrat, and a former National Security Advisor in Mauritius. Views expressed are personal