Kargil grief brought to tackle Kandahar anger

Kargil grief brought to tackle Kandahar anger
PRIYA SAHGAL

NEW DELHI, DECEMBER 28: Having bungled in crisis-management so far, the Government on Tuesday began its own public relations battle to counter the images of angry relatives. Also, with quite a few of the hostage relatives openly demanding the Moulana's release, the Government turned to the relatives of Kargil martyrs in its attempt to nudge public opinion towards a more "balanced" course.

On Monday evening, Sudeendhra Kulkarni, director in the Prime Minister's Office arranged for the widow of Squadron Leader Ajay Ahuja to call on the Prime Minister. The media was allowed a photo-opportunity of the meeting and later she briefed the press. Alka Ahuja was escorted to the meeting in a car organised by the PMO. Today, a delegation of Kargil War Widows called on the Prime Minister. This group, too, was escorted by Kulkarni who then ushered the women into a bus and a meeting with the media soon followed.

"It is not stage-managed," said a spokesperson from the PMO. "It's government-organised," he said. "The mediais full of the plight of the relatives while everyone forgets that there is a war out there. It's a psychological war and the hijackers should not get the impression that we are helpless and ready to give in," he added.

So it was not surprising that the delegation that went to meet Vajpayee came out carrying placards which echoed the PM's own statement on the hijacking: Sar kata sakte hain, sar jhuka sakte nahin (They can cut off our heads, but we will not bow down). At the very least, many felt that the PMO writers could have been a bit more sensitive.

It was also time for the party to come to the Government's aid by activating its various organisations. Jaiprakash Aggarwal, an RSS supporter organised a workshop at the Hotel Siddharth in the capital on Tuesday. The speakers at this `Workshop on Hijacking' included former CBI director S K Datta and J S Uberoi, one of the passengers who had been involved in the 1984 hijack. Predictably, both echoed the Government's line. "You can't start talksimmediately," Datta told The Indian Express. "That could be seen as weakness. The Government is doing fine," he said. Uberoi added that in his opinion, the hijackers start to crack up after a while. "But it will take time, and we can't be seen as giving in." Another panelist quoted opinion polls which asked the Government not to release the Moulana.

There is also a feeling within a section of the Government that the entire situation has been politicised by various groups. A Cabinet Minister noticed that both Brinda Karat of the AIDWA and H N Krishna, former PS to Chandreshekhar, were part of the group that demonstrated outside the Prime Minister's residence on Monday. It was then decided to field Vasundhara Raje Scindia who invited the relatives over to her house.

"Vasundhra Raje has hijacked the relatives," said Brinda Karat. And today, the BJP stationed Mahila Morcha activists outside Race Course Road to deal with those relatives who hadn't gone over to Scindia Villa. The women tried to placatethose who could not meet the Prime Minister.

There is also an impression in the PMO that media photographs of relatives lying on the road outside the Prime Minister's residence and media coverage of people being lathi-charged did not augur well for the Government's image. The Government was seen as being insensitive in not aceeding to the demands of the terrorists. It was then decided to give publicity to a group that would echo the Government's point of view. Which is why Kulkarni organised for the Kargil widows to call on the Prime Minister.

"Everyone forgets that it is another war out there. Our husbands have died in Kargil. This is just another incident in the war against terrorism," said Santosh Devi, one of those who lost her husband in Kargil.

This is exactly the line that the Government wants to adopt.