Women Snipers of the Soviet Union * 70

Generally,  most countries armies have snipers who are men. The US army, The German army and the Imperial army of Japan had only men as snipers. Snipers, as we all know, are long range riflemen who pick up high-value military targets of the enemy from a distance, using a rifle with a telescope.

 However, there is an exception to the rule of only men as snipers. The credit for this goes to the Soviet Army which during the Second World War trained women as sharpshooters and snipers. Many of these women covered themselves with glory and one can only muse on the awesome determination and iron will of these women.

Coming down to figures 800,000 women served in the Russian army during World War II. Out of these nearly 200,000 were decorated and 89 of them received the highest military honor  Hero of the Soviet Union. With so many women on the front the Soviet Officer, class selected some of the best as snipers. They were duly trained  and  did excellent service on the front as they stalked the high-value targets and shot them dead.

The Russian army employed women snipers extensively  and many of them made a name  as snipers. Notables  is Nina Alexeyevna Lobkovskaya and the Ukrainian Lyudmila Pavichenko. The latter is credited with over 300 kills. Lyudmila became  somewhat of a celebrity and on a visit to the USA was received by President Roosevelt.

 Women snipers of the Russian army  served a specific purpose and were adept at handling the heavy rifle with telescopic sight.   The Germans were surprised that Russian women were sharp shooters as no German woman was ever conscripted as a soldier or a sniper.

Many Russian army women teamed up with men snipers and that did lead to sex, but that is accepted in war time as a known hazard. Russsian army women snipers have a carved a page for themselves in the military history of the world.

Turning point in Kashmir ** 79

Blood and Iron
In a speech delivered in the Prussian Landtag ( Parliament ) in 1862, the great future Chancellor of Germany, Bismarck, said " the great issues of the day will not be decided by votes and speeches but by blood and iron ( blut und essen ) ". He said this when the Landtag members were opposing his request to increase the grants to the military which he needed for unification of Germany.

A similar thing can be said about current developments in India, which beg...inning from Kashmir are likely to spread to,other parts of the country too. 

The speech makers

For most of the period after Independence in 1947 politics in India was largely governed by votes and speeches ( though there were some sporadic violent incidents too ). The 'giants' in our national scene were people who could give attractive and seductive speeches about how they would serve the people if elected, but behind the scene indulged in their field of expertise of manipulating caste and communal vote banks, and looting the nation.

But now after almost 70 years something fundamental has changed in India, these ' giants' have been exposed as paper tigers, and it has started from Kashmir. The era of ' blood and iron ' has arrived in India, and is going to rapidly replace the era of ' votes and speeches '.

Leaders with legs of clay

Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, ex Chief Minister Omar Abdulla, PDP member Mehboob Beg, separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, J&K Congress Chief G.M. Mir, National Conference spokesman Nasir Aslam Wani, and even the Prime Minister have all been making fatuous appeals for peace, which have all fallen on deaf ears in Kashmir.. Mehbooba Mufti, like a rat cornered by prowling ravenous tomcats, made a pitiful appeal ' for one last chance ', but who listens to her ?

All these people do not understand the forces at work in Kashmir, and therefore, like King Canute, are trying to push back the oceanic waves. But like an actor who refuses to leave the stage although his role is over, they will soon be pushed out by forces beyond their control.

I am reminded of Napoleon, who was very powerful at one time ( he used to confer crowns on his favourites like a Roman Emperor distributing coins to the populace ), but on reaching Moscow in September 1812 realized that most of his power had gone ( see Tolstoy's ' War and Peace ' ), and he ultimately ended up in St. Helena. 

As Shakespeare said in ' King Lear ' : " As flies to wanton boys are we to the gods. They kill us for sport ".

And as Omar Khayyam said in his Rubaiyats :
" They say the lions and the lizards keep the Court where Jamshed gloried and drank deep
And Behram that mighty hunter, the wild ass stamps over his head, but cannot break his sleep "

Now that the era of blood and iron is dawning in India, beginning from Kashmir, we will witness a rapid, qualitative, change in our politics. All our great netas will be thrown into the dustbin.

The Drone and killing of Mullah Mansoor Akhtar

The Taliban is an extremist Muslim political-religious outfit were defeated by a combined NATO force and their leaders fled to their benefactor Pakistan. It looked like a bad dream that Osama Bin Laden the most wanted terrorist was given a safe house just 200 meters from the Pakistan Military academy at Abbottabad. His colleague Mullah Omar, the Taliban leader also went into hiding in the mountains of Balochistan. Mullah Omar died of natural causes and he was succeeded by Mullah Mansoor.

The American hunt.

The United States had long been hunting for Mullah Akhtar Mansoor. They were able to neutralize Osama, but the Taliban leader Mullah Omar escaped their dragnet and died after an illness. The sad part is that he was treated by Pakistani doctors in Karachi and Quetta.  After his death, he was succeeded by Mullah Mansoor.  American intelligence, which had been tracking the movements of Mullah Mansoor, finally got confirmation that the terror group leader was in Balochistan near the Pakistan-Afghan border.

Killing of the Taliban leader.

Reports indicate that the Taliban leader was killed in the missile attack. Pakistan protested at the violation of its sovereignty, but it was hard put to explain how the terrorist group leader was operating in Pakistan with impunity. The Americans have rejected the Pakistani charge. The Pakistani's had to show the world that they do not support terror and they arrested two minor officials who had facilitated the stay of the Taliban leader by helping him get false identity papers.  All this is a white wash as all along the Pakistan military were aware that Mullah Mansoor was in Pakistan. The killing of Mullah Mansoor is a blow to the Taliban, but in no way finishes them off.

Forgotten Theatre: The US airlift to China from India

WW II is remembered and Americans commemorate the D-Day landings and the battles in the East against the Imperial Navy. However, one theater of this war known s the " forgotten theater " is not given its importance. This theater in Eastern India in the state of Assam was the base of the American airlift of supplies and war materials to the beleaguered Chinese national army fighting the Japanese. This was the sole supply line as all the sea ports were blockaded and after the capture of Burma, the famous Burma road was closed. An intrepid band of fliers from all corners of America under the command of General Joe Stillwell did America proud with around the clock airlift to China.

The airlift.

The airlift commenced in late 1942 and continued till the surrender of Japan in 1945. The Americans also constructed a number of airfields in Assam at Tezpur, Chabua, Mohanbari and Kumbhigram. C-47s of the USAF were based at these airfields. The British had also constructed a rail line right up to Dibrugarh that connected this forward city to Karachi and Bombay and supplies came by rail to this rail head. They were manually transported to the C-47's which then took off for China, flying over the lofty Himalayas. The American fliers kept alive the air bridge over the Himalayas and the lofty peaks took their toll and many crashed on the mountain heights, never to be heard off again. It was daredevil flying and the aircrew demonstrated tremendous courage in the face of adversity. Flying over the Himalayas was taxing indeed, with these piston engine planes, but in China, there was always the danger of AA fire and attacks by Japanese fighters.Yet the aircrew stuck to their tasks. 

The finale.

The 'forgotten theater' needs to be remembered more and the bravery of the crew that flew over the Himalayas acknowledged. In hindsight,one can see that it was this airlift that gave sustenance to the Chinese National army to fight on against theJapanese. They served a very significant purpose in the war. Bravery needs to be remembered and the tens of aircrew that perished on the snow-clad peaks of theHimalayas given their due. With the month of May just past, the time when Japan surrendered, these pilots must be remembered

Justice Katju is forthright and asks to pay Pakistan back in same coin

.Eent ka jawab patthar se

When Pakistan repeatedly incites, encourages and supports agitations and militancy in Kashmir, why should our government not pay Pakistan back in the same coin by doing the same in Sind, Baluchistan, and NWFP ?
I agree with the P.M. in this respect, and in fact, would go much further 

Nehle pe dehla
Eent ka jawab patthar se

Azadi for Sind, Baluchistan and NWFP should be our demand
Let Kanhaiya, Umar Khalid & other heroes of JNU and Jadavpur University also demand this openly if they have the guts.
And let Kashmiris demanding Azadi for Kashmir also start demanding Azadi for Sind, Baluchistan, and NWFP

Muslim Peer impregnated 300+ Muslim women in Pakistan

Peer Baba who imgregnated over 300 women who desired sons arrested by Punjab police

A Muslim Peer is a religious man; a man of god.He is supposed to be a guide who helps the layman to stay firm on the path to God. A Peer is a part of the Sufi tradition of Islam and most Peer's are greatly respected and revered. 

Exploits of the Peer

In the Punjab province, a Muslim Peer who was fairly young was arrested by the police on a charge of having impregnated nearly 300 women. However, this figure is debatable. This desire to beget a son by married women led them to this Peer. He promised a son and induced the women to sleep with him. It will surprise western readers that the desire for a son was so strong among these women that they went to the extreme to sleep with the Peer.The Peer baba had a special couch or bed to which he referred as the Noor bed for the act, which women believed would help them have  a son after Peer had sex with them. All women were married

The Baba claimed that he had the power to gift a son to any woman who slept with him. However news of the Peer's "exploits" leaked and rationalists approached the Police. Hearing the police were after him the Peer escaped but he was arrested later.

Last word

The Pakistan Penal Code is a legacy of the British Raj. The Punjab police have arrested the Baba on a charge of rape, but  the charge will probably not be proved in the court as no woman wants to give evidence against the peer. It is not known how many of the women impregnated by the Peer had sons. Such a statistic would be interesting.

 People have varied opinions about the religious leader. One lady has commented that the Peer did a good thing to give childless women a new life by impregnating them as otherwise in Pakistan society the lives of these women is pure hell.

Fertilizing the European women on injunction from Imams

The exodus

Fertilizing and the harem

Europe is besieged by a great exodus from the Muslim lands from the arc of the Mediterranean Sea to the Middle East and even as far as Pakistan. This is mass migration and follows the famous pull and push theory. Such migrations have taken place throughout history. However, this migration is different as Europe has a shortage of labor and the Islamic followers are looking for a better life away from their war-ravaged lands. An initial lot of migrants were welcomed by the European powers. The motive was selfish as the European nations were in need of labor to service their menial jobs.

Exhortations of the Imams

In the harem

.
The reason for this shortage of labor is the low birthrate of the European women, which means a declining younger population. They were soon at their wits end as they were flummoxed by the magnitude of the exodus. and had to down shutters.The exodus was also given a religious twist and this appealed to younger Muslim men.

The Imam of the Al Aksa mosque in Jerusalem broadcast in his sermons the need of the Muslim men to fertilize the European women as the Christians had failed to do so. He pointed to the low birth rate of the European women and exhorted his followers to spread Islam by fertilizing them. Many Muslim felt this was an excellent method to spread Islam. In any case, the Koran looks favorably on migration as a means to spread Islam.

Women in Islam.

Arab women

Islam is an insular religion that has global appeal. Many Muslims have been taken in by this rhetoric and felt European women are easy game. This came to the fore in Germany, where on New Year eve many German women were assaulted. Basically it's a clash of cultures as in Islam women are subservient to men and Muslim personal Law as codified in the Sharia gives hardly any rights to women. In addition, for centuries, the Arab Sheiks have always coveted pure blonde European women, particularly from the Slav countries, for their harems. 

This was the genesis of the white slave trade, carried on by the Berbers and others. The problem has no easy solution as Europe does need cheap labor and cannot turn away all the migrants. How will they strike the middle line i.e balance the migrants with the needs of labor? 

Dacoit Jagga; legend from the days of the Raj **. 91

The Dacoit Jagga and His Exploits During the Days of the Raj in India

Jagga was a dacoit who built up a gang and got hold of a white charger and roamed the Punjab countryside. He became famous as the man who rode the white steed and the Police were scared of him. Unconfirmed reports suggest that so great was the awe that Jagga inspired that at night the Police in Lahore District barricaded themselves inside their police stations.

Before the advent of the British a situation of near anarchy prevailed in North India. It was almost like a free for all and with a weak central authority, many dacoit gangs and thugs appeared on the scene. This scenario lasted for about 200 years till the British consolidated their hold over India. Men like William Sleeman and others broke the backbone of dacoit gangs and the cult of thuggery and an element of peace descended on India. However at the turn of the 20th-century dacoit gangs again surfaced. This was basically a reaction to the Indian police.

To understand this aspect of the social milieu, it must be realized that all top officials of the Indian police like the Superintends of police were English, while the Dy Superintendents were generally Anglo-Indians. The rank and file up to the rank of the inspector were all Indians. Thus a station house officer called theThanedar was a big man in the Indian countryside and social scene. He was the man in touch with the masses and in a number of cases power went to the head of these men. As a reaction to this many honest Indians in the villages took up arms.

 One such case that has now become folk lore in the Punjab is that of Jagat Singh Sidhu. Popularly called Jagga, he was a Jatt and belonged to the martial caste of the Sikhs. He was born in 1902 in the Lahore District now part of Pakistan. Many ballads now eulogies Jagga as a sort of Robin Hood who robbed the rich and donated to the poor , but there is not much evidence of any such activity by Jagga.

Jagga started a normal life and after the death of his father married as per his mothers wish a girl from a nearby village. Her name was Inder Kaur and Jagga had a daughter from her named Gulab Kaur. Not much is known of his married life, but some information is available that he was a man of immense strength who could lift a sack (Boree) of wheat weighing 82 kg and throw it with ease.

 Jagga was an honest man and at that time corruption had started eating into the vitals of the revenue system. The local surveyor called a Patwari was often a man who would not work without his palm being greased. This infuriated Jagga and as per reports one day he thrashed the village Patwari. Jagga repeated this act many times and his actions were noticed by the local police inspector named Asgar Ali who arrested Jagga and hauled him before the court. Jagga was awarded 4 years imprisonment. This term in prison embittered Jagga and on coming out in 1926  he decided to avenge himself against society. This was the beginning and there was no going back.

Jagga built up a gang and got hold of a white charger and roamed the Punjab countryside. He became famous as the man who rode the white steeed and the Police were scared of him. Unconfirmed reports suggest that so great was the awe that Jagga inspired that at night the Police in Lahore District barricaded themselves inside their police stations.

 Jagga now committed many daoities and he became feared, particularly among the rich. He made it a point to rob gold smiths and his writ ran in the wilds of the countryside.

Jagga lived a reckless life, perhaps he knew that his days were numbered as he lived on borrowed time. With a reward dangling on his head Jagga knew he faced a tremendous odd to continue to live. He ate drank and lived a merry life, till his own cook decided to earn the bounty on his head and after a raucous night of drink and wine laced with spicy food the cook shot Jagga dead. This was in 1929 and signaled the end of Jagga.

 His wife lived on till 1983 and his daughter still lives in Sri Mukatsar sahib district of the Punjab, her husband having deceased in 2005. Jagga is now a folk hero in the Punjab. His actions have been given a nationalist cover and his dacoities are classified as a fight against the Raj. His songs are sung in the villages and people talk of the bravery of the dacoit Jagga on his white charger.

Coming USElection: It may be the Last Swan Song

America is a superpower and for that reason the world is interested in the coming election to the White House. The white house is the official residence of the American president. It has great symbolic value. The road to the white house is through a long drawn election and nomination process. There are 2 major political parties namely the Democratic party and the Republican party. Both parties choose their representative, who will fight the election. It is thus a one to one affair.

Presently, both the Republicans and the Democrats have chosen their representatives. Donald Trump will be the GOP nominee and Hillary Clinton the Democrat nominee.

In many ways, this is a crucial election as the US has a 10 trillion dollar deficit and is weighed down with overspend to support regimes all over the world from NATO to Afghanistan. Trump is asking to reduce this overseas burden while Hillary is the old world politician and will follow the beaten track.

 In case, Hillary wins the US is sure to slide down and if Trump wins and the US sheds responsibility on economic grounds the result will very much be the same. One wonders whether the US has no better man to lead them in this hour of crisis. Maybe the mighty empire is cracking. Who can tell?