Painting the other side of the picture

How many news reports have we read about wailing mothers, and the trauma they are faced with because of the death of their teenage sons to the security forces in Kashmir? Haven’t we seen a number of national news bulletins condemning the Army for the death of these ‘innocent’ bystanders while their family mourns its great loss? The media, however, paints only one side of the picture.

The soldier posted at the nation’s frontiers, braving the high altitude and freezing conditions in addition to unfriendly fire everyday: he has a family too. The man fighting for the country against militants in Kashmir, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh: he has a mother at home too, counting down the long empty days before she can see her son again. The Army man killed by insurgents and militants: he also has a father at home, dreading the day when someone will arrive at his door with a folded flag and his departed son’s empty green cap. Yes, the Army men are young boys too!

It is really astonishing that some people (and the media in particular) find sadistic pleasure in degrading the name of the Indian Army. It is because of these men holding fort for national security that the common man goes about doing his daily business, subconsciously content that there are people protecting our national borders. However, when it comes to pointing fingers and slinging mud, no one remembers that anymore.

Every now and then, there is a small column in the newspaper about the deaths of a handful of our soldiers, caught in the line of fire during a counter-insurgency operation. The news item is treated as commonplace, an everyday affair which merits not even a minute’s attention of the discerning reader. However, God forbid that a young starlet celebrate her birthday without screen time of a day at least, with front page coverage in all the newspapers.

In this day and age of sensationalism and tabloid media, feelings of pride and patriotism are restricted to the national anthem displayed at the beginning of the show for every cinemagoer. While there was a time when little kids used to come running out and salute an Army vehicle passing-by, today the media is teaching us to be wary and fearful of our own protectors. While we must admit that like any other organisation, the Army is bound to have a couple of bad eggs here and there; but we should restrain from using a broad brush to paint the entire institution red.

Spare a thought for the families of these brave men (both young and old). Ask yourself if your heart does not go out to the soldier’s mother, reaching a point of despair while waiting expectantly for her little boy to come back up the garden path; to the father putting up a strong facade of courage but crying in his heart that he cannot protect his son from the bullets of the enemy no matter how he wishes to; to the wife looking out the window with hope and a prayer for her sweetheart to be safe; to the children wanting to share more than just fleetingly brief moments of their childhood with their father.

Most of all, spare a thought for the young soldier who has sacrificed his family, friends – his life – for the service of the motherland; for the Army man who is driven not by personal motive, but by the call from his country; for the soldier who trudges up the path without any light at the end of the tunnel and lays down his life for the country with two words on his lips: ‘Jai Hind’!