Today is 16 December.
Today is the day the proud nationalists on the Indian side will speak of 90,000 POWs and of breaking their arch-rivals, Pakistan into two while equally proud nationalists on the Pakistani side will speak of doing the same to Kashmir and of Abhinandan’s cup of tea. They will have a flame war on social media, mock, abuse and threaten each other, all in the name of their soldiers. And then, they will go on with their day, their chests filled with pride of having shown the ‘enemy’ their place online.
The soldiers on duty, though, won’t know about this great battle, or care. They will stand their post in the remote areas of the country, defending our borders and our ideas and ideals. Just like they swore on the flag when they first put on their rank.
Happy Vijay Diwas, India and Bangladesh. To all my friends and family in uniform, serving and retired, I salute you for your service to this nation. 50 years ago, a just war was fought swiftly, professionally, and conclusively to create peace in the region and bring about a new nation where its citizens can live in safety and be governed by those they choose rather than those that are imposed on them from afar. All-in-all, means and ends meeting harmoniously in a win-win-win for all concerned, I’d venture to say, even West Pakistan, who would only have suffered if India had not performed this amputation in time. If we were more evolved nations and societies, perhaps all three: Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh would have looked back at the time more maturely. But that time is far away, if at all. And till such a time, we can only console ourselves in knowing that India and Indians stood by the ideals we had adopted and without having territorial designs even after such an emphatic win, we were gracious in victory.
Once again, on the Golden Anniversary of the very first conclusive victory in any war after WWII, I congratulate the Indian Armed Forces and the Indian and Bangladeshi citizens.
