In an effort to pay homage to the fallen soldiers of Bharat in the terrorist attack at Uri, some citizens of Delhi NCR got together at Jantar Mantar on 21st September, 2016 at 7 pm. They also called for action by the Government of Bharat, hoping the best from PM Narendra Modi.
They were joined by eminent political commentator and Kashmiri activist Sh. Sushil Pandit. Hindupost.in took the initiative to organize the event, where common citizens paid homage to our martyrs, and asked the Government to downgrade relations with Pakistan as the first step.
A couple of people along with Sh. Sushil Pandit first paid floral tribute to the martyrs at Amar Jawan Jyoti, India Gate, and then proceeded to Jantar Mantar where the whole group was to collect.
Those gathered at Jantar Mantar showed solidarity with the sacrifices of defense forces and paid homage to the fallen soldiers of Bharat at Uri. People lit candles and observed a 2 minutes silence as a mark of respect to our brave soldiers.
Post the lighting of candles, Sh. Sushil Pandit ji spoke for a few minutes to echo the feelings of the groups and added valuable insights calling upon the Narendra Modi government to take some concrete actions. The main points of his address were :
- Narendra Modi government is the best Government we have had in a long time and hence people have more expectations.
- For how long will an average Bhartiya show patience and keep paying the price by spilling the blood of his / her brave sons?
- Downgrading diplomatic relations with Pakistan is the need of the hour.
- Pakistan embassy in Bharat is the largest they have anywhere – this huge staff collaborates with separatists and anti-Bharat forces in media etc. They should be asked to downsize and operate with a skeletal staff asap.
- Bharat needs to lead the diplomatic fight with Pakistan, we can’t expect other nations to lead this cause.
- We should be the first ones to officially declare Pakistan as a terrorist state.
- Diplomatic relations between Iran and USA have been non-existent since decades – the pressure of sanctions and the diplomatic isolation led to Iran finally agree to stop developing nuclear weapons. This shows that there are ways to continue negotiations even with minimal diplomatic relations.
- We need to reach out to people and create more awareness  as responsible citizens
- This is a new beginning and we have to make our views heard though social media, letters to editors, neighborhood/family gatherings etc.
Subsequently, a few others too spoke to express their views such as Kritika Khatri, who manages the Delhi region of Hindu Janjagaran Samiti. Advocate Prashant Patel, known for his anti corruption work and who had filed a successful petition on the Office of Profit issue against wrongful appointments of AAP MLAs, too paid homage. Some VHP and RSS members too paid homage.
Reports are coming in of similar events being held in other cities like Pune, Mumbai etc. It is pertinent to note that many of those who are stepping out on the streets to express their pain and anguish over repeated terror attacks and our confused Pak policy are those who had passionately supported Narendra Modi for PM. This shows that for these citizens, the nation is above any individual.
Our intellectual class has failed us on the Pakistan issue, like they have on so many others – it is time for the common man to make his voice heard.