A NATIONAL debate is raging in the middle of the controversy and commentaries surrounding the web series ‘IC814: The Kandahar Hijack’, opening up a disturbing chapter in India’s security mechanisms. The web series has come with its faults and some illogical “artistic liberties” but at the same time it has redirected focus on the Indian response to the hijack drama played out in 1999. The hijacking of IC 814 flight from Kathmandu to Kandahar and the way the sordid saga was handled by the security and Intelligence agencies remains a painful memory for the entire nation. The silver lining, always, will be the release of over 150 passengers and crew members of the illfated flight after hard negotiations for over four days. But it came with a heavy price when India was forced to release three hard-core terrorists. Was it a surrender to terrorism or a necessity to avoid mass bloodshed of innocent lives? The jury is still out. The web series has come with its own flaws and has failed on many counts like going unnecessarily soft on the role of Pakistan’s ISI in the hijack.

 

t has also tried to portray the hijackers as kind-hearted despite the fact that they killed one passenger in cold blood. It is a typical timid mindset of Bollywood, pandering to outsiders and missing out on correcting some deadly narratives set against the country. Yet, the series has put the hijack drama back into public consciousness and ignited a debate on what could have been had Indian forces stormed the plane when it was smartly brought to Amritsar by the pilot. It was a hard call which the then Government could not take for multiple reasons. The question still haunts the country. And there are no easy answers. Looking at the saga from Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee’s lens, his Government was confronted by an unusual situation never seen by the country. His choices were limited in absence of a definite plan. Growing pressure from the kin of the hostages and pulls of coalition politics added to further confusion. Finally, it was a collective decision to release the three dreaded militants – Masood Azhar, Omar Sheikh and Mushtaq Ahmad Zargar. It was bound to incur repercussions. And the echo is still ringing loud. Raiding a plane with over 150 hostages held by unknown hijackers called for a daring and dangerous operation full of precision. With so many lives on the line the decision was packed with heavy backlash. Pressed for time, the agencies fluffed and allowed the plane to go.

 

All the players later admitted in separate accounts that it was a missed opportunity. It was an extremely hard choice that even the best in dealing with terrorism are still apprehensive to take. There was talk of carrying out a rescue operation on the lines of Israel’s raid on Entebbe airport in Uganda to release passengers held by Palestine radicals. The 1976 operation is still pure gold in rescue missions undertaken by any country. The Indian authorities are often reminded of the Israeli way of dealing with terrorism unknown to the fact that Israel had almost decided to give in to the demands of the terrorists from Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine in absence of a rescue plan. Behind the scenes account of the 1976 crisis tells that then Israeli Prime Minister Yitzak Rabin was firmly of the view that a deal was the only option but was confronted by Defence Minister Shimon Peres who called for more time. With Israeli Defence Force chief Mordechai Gur still working on a military plan, Rabin was ready to bypass the “no negotiations with terrorists” policy to save his countrymen’s lives. Opposition leader Menachim Begin, who later became Israel’s PM, also nodded for a deal in absence of a military plan. History changed its course when the IDF came up with a daring rescue plan at the last minute.

 

The legacy of the raid on Entebbe is very inspiring for the Israeli boldness but at the same time it is very complicated. The operation set a new bar for success but it has also proven to be the exception to the rule of securing release of hostages. The behind-the-scenes episode again underlines the thinking of a Government in times of hard choices. It is always the call for saving more lives than risking a few deaths. India, too, went for the safe option in absence of a foolproof plan. What is often missed in nostalgic euphoria and mystique surrounding a crisis is practical truth. The IC 814 episode has again posed many questions for the country. It calls for a fresh study on policies to deal with extremists (which the current dispensation at Centre is following with remarkable authority) and it also demands honest introspection by the people whether they have matured into a society bold enough to stand by the ‘no negotiations with terrorists’ policy. It’s a brave, courageous, difficult choice to make.