Azam Khalil I am disgracd, impeachd and baffled here, piercd to the soul with slanders venomd spear. Shakespeare The storm unleashed by some devastating memos written by the American diplomats to the State Department has helped to uncover the duplicity and deceit of successive Indian governments, who as a matter of routine have always blamed Pakistan whenever an act of terrorism is committed on their soil. Therefore, when the Prime Minister in-waiting, Rahul Gandhi, expressed fear that Hindu extremist posed a greater threat to India than Islamist and perhaps Pakistan, it left the entire Indian leadership red-faced. The Indian opposition parties criticised Rahul, especially Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), demanding an explanation from the young politician for his remarks about saffron terror. It took a while for the Hindu nationalist sentiments to calm down, especially of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which described his remarks to be out of place due to sheer ignorance of the realities of his own country. However, Rahul has been vindicated after the Indian security forces have arrested four Hindu extremists alleged for the 2007 bombing in Ajmer Dargah Shrine. Earlier also, Hindu extremists were arrested for the bombing of several mosques. But whenever such an act takes place, the Indian government immediately accuses Pakistan for it and tries to mislead the international community by stating that the Islamic State is exporting terror across its borders. However, this slanderous approach of the Indian government is never properly challenged by Pakistan, except for routine denials that are issued and that do not carry much credibility. More so, the weak diplomatic approach adopted by our leadership has encouraged the Indians to continue their malicious propaganda. Now that it has been established that the Hindus are responsible for terrorism not only against minorities, especially the Muslims, in India, but also in Pakistan, our government is well within its right to demand from the Indian government the details of the investigations conducted on the Samjohta Express bombing and the killing of Muslims in Gujarat. Also, it should acquire the data collected by Amnesty International, Red Cross, Human Rights Watch and other international NGOs about the atrocities committed by the extremists against the minorities. Without delay, Pakistan should raise the issue of Hindu extremism, which has culminated in criminal acts of terrorism both in India and Pakistan, on international forums to portray the true picture of the so-called Indian democracy, as it is now trying for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council. Probably, after this the West will exert pressure on the Indian government and force it to take action against these terrorist outfits. Pakistan should also mobilise the US and Europe to declare these Hindu organisations as terrorist outfits. In addition, it would be appropriate if our government places the criminal activities of all these Hindu terrorist organisations before the UN, which are used by the Indian army and the intelligence agencies to achieve their political goals. It is interesting to know that when the BJP government was negotiating with then PM Nawaz Sharif to normalise relations between the two countries, the Indian policymakers, including L.K. Advani, were secretly encouraging these outfits - dubbed as saffron terror by several members of the Congress Party - to perpetuate acts of terror against the Muslims in India. Several leading human rights activists in India have accused both BJP and Congress Party of using religion to achieve their political objectives. According to them, the political parties have seriously damaged the foundation of the Secular State. BJP has and still is openly encouraging Hindu zealots against the Muslims, so that a majority of the Hindus vote for them during the next general elections. The Congress has tried to pose as champions of the Muslims and the dalits in an effort to win a maximum number of votes from these communities. However, it has, unfortunately, encouraged the army and intelligence agencies to monitor the Muslims and other minorities, who are graded as second class citizens. For example, the Congress Party was recently accused of encouraging Hindu extremists in the Indian Held Kashmir (IHK), which resulted in the killing of innocent Muslim students, besides women and children, by the Brahmin extremist force that has sprung up specifically in the Jammu district under the partys patronage. The record of Indian atrocities must be tabulated in detail and all acts of saffron terror committed by Hindu extremists should be placed before the international community, especially where India is lobbying hard to have itself declared a major global power. While the Chinese and the Italians are the only stumbling block for the Indians at present, it is extremely important if the Muslim world is provided the facts about saffron terror, so that the ugly face of the Indian government is fully exposed. So, it is hoped that the Pakistani policymakers will not allow the Indians to get away now that material evidence is available with them and not only blunt the Indian propaganda that has continued against Pakistan for a long time, but will also aggressively seek to expose the real face of the Indian government. The incumbent leadership will be well advised to look at those local organisations, which under the guise of friendship with India or protection of human rights, are working against the basic interests of the country. However, this does not mean that efforts towards normalisation of relations between India and Pakistan should be abandoned; it just means that Pakistan should protect its legitimate rights and should not allow false Indian propaganda to spread against it. Pakistan must continue to seek an honourable solution on all its outstanding disputes with India and make it clear to the Indians that the way towards progress, prosperity and peace in the region lay in the resolution of the issue of Jammu and Kashmir between the two countries. The writer is a freelance columnist. Email: zarnatta@hotmail.com