Can no longer afford to spare those harbouring terrorists: PM Narendra Modi

LUCKNOW: In a clear unspoken reference to Pakistan, PM Narendra Modi on Tuesday declared that the global war on terror can no longer afford to spare those harbouring terrorists.

The PM, however, indicated that India has no interest in further military escalation after the strikes following Uri terror attack. “Hamein yudh se Budh tak jaana aata hai (We know how to traverse the journey from waging conflict to peace),” said Modi in his Vijaya Dashami speech at Lucknow.

Modi, who broke the tradition of past PMs to attend one of the oldest Ram Leelas in Aishbagh, Lucknow, started out with a thunderous “Jai Shri Ram, jai Shri Ram” before launching into his stern message on terror.

From Gita to Gandhi
“In 1992-93 when I was discussing terrorism with officials from the United States, they described it as a law and order problem. But this has changed…now even those harbouring terrorists cannot be spared.”

Keeping in mind the composite cultural mix of Aishbagh and Lucknow, Modi also brought up the topic of seven-year-old girl Bana Al-abed, who has been tweeting from the Syrian city of Aleppo, describing the horrors of living through daily aerial bombing and attacks.

“The world is seeing the face of this girl from Syria…we cannot ignore acts of terror any more.” He then went on to say: “Sometimes conditions are such that war appears necessary but we must strive for peace. If there’s the Gita, awar treatise, …there is also Gandhi. We know to balance both.”

With crucial assembly polls coming up in Uttar Pradesh, the PM made sure he got his metaphors right. If he went with the Ram script, he also made a reference to Krishna upfront in his address.

“This is the land of Ram and Krishna. I come to bow before this land.”

He then dwelt considerably on Sita, making the point that even though war happened because Ravan abducted Sita, the girl child still does not enjoy the pride of place in the society.

“Look at our Olympic medalists. All girls. Yet there are Ravans who want to kill Sita in the womb.” Seeking to strike a direct chord with women across communities, the PM said: “I must say here we have to rise above community, caste and creed on this issue.

If there is injustice to women somewhere, we must remove it.” The Modi government recently submitted an affidavit in the Supreme Court against triple talaq as going against the Constitution, taking the stand that this practice was not a matter of faith.