Kasab says "I came to Mumbai to land up in movies"

On the 18th of December 2009, I woke up like everyday, with sleep refusing to let go of the cushion of my eyes. It was a cold morning and the winter had just begun to spread its tentacles. The first thing I did, like the norm was, that I opened the door to have a glance at the newspaper before I could go ahead with my morning chores. I was hoping to see some news about a planet-saving deal being cracked at Copenhagen. But I was greeted by a headline which screamed ' Kasab says "I came to Mumbai to land up in movies"...'

I was stupefied for a minute.. Was this the same Ameer Ajmal Kasab talking, who had owned up to killing scores of Indians earlier???? Was this the same guy who appeared in newspapers all over the country on 27/11/08 for attacking the financial heart of India?? I somehow blandished myself to go through the entire article. It was reported at length as to how he was "framed" ,that he had come to India on the 6th of November to make a living out of working in movies, that he was caught just because he was a Pakistani and that the one who partook in the manslaughter was a look-alike..

Ever since, I have had many questions bolting through my mind, which I would like to raise here.. First things first, what is the rationale in keeping Kasab alive by spending crores together on his security? Have we extracted anything worthwhile out of him??? The answer to this, sadly, is a big NO..... Agreed that every man has a right to a fair trial. But what about a man whose crime has been witnessed by 600 odd citizens and the camera lenses of the media? Should he be given a chance to speak at all, let alone defend himself? I may sound extreme in my views, but why don't countries like Iran , Saudi Arabia or even UAE have terrorist attcks on them? That's because the moment someone tries to so much as look at their countries with a wicked intent, they gouge their eyes out. The rules there may sound very fundamentalist, but aren't their citizens ensured that no Kasab dares to step on their motherland?

We claim to be a Gandhian state, but I'm sorry to say that in the world of today, people are least bothered about you, let alone respect you for your patience and persistence. If you are humble, others take that as a sign of cowardice. If you are meek, people make sure they step on you to reach the zenith. In such a world, there is no room for piety, especially for people like Kasab. I know killing him won't serve to be a lesson for the terrorists as they are hardly concerned about their lives. But make his killing a national event, telecast it on the national television and the world will know India wont take it lying down anymore.

I know I'm sounding too viscious and vitrolic here, but why do we have to put up with the killing of our innocent fellow-Indians? When are we ever going to realise that the life of every Indian is equally worth, if not more, as that of an American. When 3000 people were killed in the WTC attacks, USA went hammer and tongs against the supposed perpetrators of the crime against their state.. Why don't we make it a point to sound the bugle about more than 30,000 innocent people killed in terror attacks on Kashmir in the last decade? Do we care about the lives of our fellow countrymen at all?

That Kasab has the audacity to make such statements is a reflection of the loopholes existent in our judicial system. We are reluctant to change our system and are still follow the same old rules the British left us. It's high time we bring some drastic changes in the system to address such issues. I know it's easier said than done, but if we make no efforts towards that end, we are going to have our political class cover up their inefficiency and ineptitude by using the "Gandhian" veil.

I do believe in the notion that no innocent soul should be punished for a crime he hasn't committed.. But as long as we give people like Kasab a chance to go ahead with their tomfoolery, we are making a mockery of ourselves and running the risk of such petty clowns jeopardising the integrity of our beloved motherland.