There is a scene in Deewar. Vijay (Big B) laments that he and his younger brother came from under the same bridge and yet he had achieved so much while his brother was languishing in a lowly paid police job. Of course that was a movie with the younger brother walking away with the line “Mere paas Ma hai” because he was on the right side of things.
India and Pakistan could have a similar conversation. Of course the “bigger” brother would be on the right side of things here. Pakistan does not get to walk away with a clever line. While India has become an example in Democracy and progress, Pakistan has become a basket case. How did they come to such a pass?
Since Muslims were not really expecting a separate country, they were not prepared for a post independent Pakistan. It took them over ten years to come up with a constitution. This gave rise to a bureaucracy and Army with unlimited power. Moreover there were no land reforms so the Punjabi landowners became the almighty slave owners. I am not kidding about that. I have read that these people had their private jails where the bonded laborers were locked up in the nighttime (I read that in early 1990’s. It may have changed by now). These three power centers refused to abide by the new constitution. The army continued with its merry ways of making money and daydreaming of having a meal in New Delhi while hoisting the Pakistani flag over the Red Fort. The Bureaucracy played along and started a system where the future generations of Pakistanis were nothing more than India hating automatons. In fact, looking back at the ethnic fault lines in Pakistan (Punjabis, Bengalis, Pathans, Kashmiris stuck in Pakistan, Balochis, Sindhis and the unfortunate Mohajirs) it is amazing how long has that country stayed together (only losing half of it) despite of the fact that it’s raison d'être is hatred for Hindus and India. Matters only became worse after Zia Ul Haq became the terrorist in charge. Armed with nukes Pakistani Amry, ISI and their veritable arm i.e. the terrorists including the Taliban, they went on to take on all their enemies i.e. India. Of course they were ably helped by the Chinese, Saudi Arabians and in some parts the USA (who themselves were so blinded in their hatred for the Russians that they helped create the man who changed the world forever – Osama Bin Laden).
While this was going on, the Pakistanis still were doing better than Indians in various parameters like per capita income, Hunger and poverty. Yes. It may be surprising to the young Indians but that is the truth.
However, in the early 1990s, two things happened. Pakistan continued on its slippery slope while India saw the light through the eyes of PV Narsimha Rao who abandoned the Nehruvian policies in Economics. Even Manmohan Singh could not screw things up for us. We broke the shackles of the Gandhi family and broke free towards what should have been (that we find ourselves again in the same trouble is a testimony to our misfortune and naiveté). So today, India stands as a shining example (with miles and miles to go before we rest) in the world. On the other hands, Pakistan has become the proverbial “ga-lay ki haddi” for the world.
Unless Pakistan abandons its hatred for India and Hindus, there is no stopping it from descending into hell. Only Pakistanis can stop that.
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