Threat from passive terrorism, More real and dangerous

While the term passive terrorism could be an oxymoron, I use it to refer to various ways of betrayal a country, community could face. While terrorists have openly taken arms and are quite easily visible as them, enemies, the people involved in various acts of betrayal are generally our own, neighbors, office clerks and such who would make us not believe if we are told that they are agents of another country. But it is true.

Reading the history of India, one can time and again see that a major reason for the fall of armies defending the country is treason/betrayal by commanders guarding crucial points of the forts. This has been our history right from the time Somnath temple was sacked.

The recent events including the Navy war room leaks, escape of RAW officer to USA thru Nepal, greatly underlines the effectiveness of foreign agencies in infiltrating India's National security apparatus. That such an infiltration could take place in just 8 years either speaks volume of CIA's honey traps or our own fraility. Remember CIA failed to predict our Nuke tests back in 1998 and were in a state of disbelief and denial that we could conduct such a test with so much secrecy.

How come that wall of secrecy was breached so quickly ? In case of terrorist acts like what we witnessed in Mumbai, the Govt. can only be reactionary. Occasionally we do have success like the way the attack on RSS headquarters was foiled. Our effectiveness is measured by the reaction to such attacks.

But breaches in national security groups like IB/RAW are totally preventable had the Govt. paid attention to what is happening. Here reaction is bolting the door after the horse has left the stable, that too with all the secrets. I can only hope that the central govt. wakes up and establishes stringent security measures to make sure such breach doesn't happen in the future.

As they say, the enemy is always with in....

T