Azam Khalil My strength is made perfect in weakness. II CORINTHIANS It had long been suspected that the Indians and, to a certain extent, their stooge in Afghanistan were fomenting trouble in this country. The recent spate of bombings in Lahore has finally provided concrete evidence to the security agencies that proved, without any doubt, the involvement of the Indian government in the acts of terror in which nearly 60 innocent people lost their lives. The Indian administration has since long been playing a double game where it has almost successfully convinced the Western world that whenever there was an act of terror in their country, Pakistan was responsible for it. However, it was the Indians who were not only vigorously training insurgents in camps located in Afghanistan, but have also been providing them with financial support, arms and ammunition. For years, the Indian strategy has been to bleed the economy of Pakistan, so that it is unable to mount a formidable challenge to their expansionist designs in this region. According to the latest reports, the mastermind of the Lahore terror blasts was not only trained by the Indians in Afghanistan, but also his group was provided with financial help and other logistic support that indeed plays a critical role in these dirty games. It will now be up to the Government of Pakistan to approach the international community and show them the evidence, which is presently available, that would prove the involvement of the Indian administration and its intelligence agencies in every second act of terror that happens in this country. It is very easy for the western countries to believe that the war, which is being waged by the insurgents, is the creation of Al-Qaeda or Taliban, some of who are supposed to have their bases in the border areas of Pakistan. Perhaps, this suits the strategic interests of the United States and its allies who have been increasing pressure on the Pakistani government, demanding more and more concessions in what they call the 'global war on terror. However, this does not mean that the war against terrorism is not Pakistans war. It is now being fought in the Pakistani territory by our armed forces that are constantly engaged in curbing this menace in which the innocent people are being killed everyday. In this context, the evidence that the Pakistani authorities have now could not have come at a better time because recently the Indians, like their previous hypocrisy, demanded that they will only talk on the issue of terrorism. This time they have also asked the Pakistani government to take more serious measures against the terrorists before they resume the peace talks, which was derailed by the Indian government on a flimsy pretext. Perhaps, it is Pakistans turn to pursue its case more aggressively and expose the Indian double standards before the entire world. For this purpose, a competent and comprehensive policy must be followed at the federal level. The independent media can also play its role by digging deep into what happened in Lahore and then reveal the facts before the people of Pakistan and also to the international community. The alarming issue that has come to light after the attacks, in which six to seven low intensity devices were also exploded in a densely populated area of Allama Iqbal Town in Lahore, was the fact that some of the devices discovered and the ammunition used in the RA Bazaar bombing had explicit Indian markings on them. Undoubtedly, it is a great success for the intelligence agencies of this country, which were able to nab some of the terrorists that were involved in this heinous crime. Preliminary investigations showed that the suspects were working as Indian agents in Pakistan. While the investigations continued and it is expected that more incriminating evidence will be collected by the agencies who are investigating these acts of terror, the Pakistani government should, without wasting any time, place before the people of this country and the US administration the evidence that proves Indian involvement in this horrible act of terror in which several people died and nearly 150 were seriously injured. In case the government fails to aggressively pursue its case at various international forums, like the European Union, they will fail to discharge their fundamental duty towards the people of this country. Moreover, there was no need for the government to take an apologetic approach because national interest demands that diplomacy must be set aside in this case, and every effort should be made to place the facts that are available before the international community. This may not be considered a tit-for-tat diplomacy because the Indians have been trying to damage not only the vital interests of this country, but also to tarnish its image and were reportedly spending a fortune to achieve these objectives. The Government of Pakistan should only talk about the facts that are available with them and keep on hammering the issue till the time the western countries accept that the Indians were the main culprits in what was going on in the border areas between Pakistan and Afghanistan. And, at the same time, were also responsible for the suicide attacks that sporadically occur in various areas of this country. Once the government was able to clinch this issue, it may be able to solicit a more productive relationship with the international community that can then help Pakistan to rebuild its weakened economy; this should be the prime subject of Pakistans negotiations with the west. The Indians, besides creating lawlessness in this country are, also trying to deprive Pakistan from its legitimate requirements of water. Therefore, this issue also needs to be agitated by the Pakistani diplomats along with the issue of Indian involvement in the acts of terror. That has been proved by the arrest of the mastermind who orchestrated the acts of terrorism in the capital of Pakistans most populous province. One hopes that the western democracies, trying to please the Indians without seeing the real picture of their administration that is based on deception and hypocrisy, will use their influence to rein in the Indians. The West needs to have an even-handed approach as far as taking into consideration the economic requirements of India and Pakistan are concerned and in case that is not done, it would mean that the Americans also have a hidden agenda against this nuclear powered Islamic country. The writer is a freelance columnist. Email: zarnatta@hotmail.com