Inside the crossroads of power

Woodward became famous for his exposes on the Nixon Watergate scandal in 1972, and has published many books since then. Concluding his recent lengthy book on US policies, the Russia-Ukraine War and Israel’s unchecked massacre of Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank and taking the war into Lebanon, Woodward makes his views on the White House occupants since 2016 known. On Trump, “he was the most reckless and impulsive president in history…governed by fear and rage… and demonstrating the same character in 2024.” On Biden, he writes, “I believe Biden and this team will be studied in history as an example of steady and purposeful leadership.” As we now know, the American majority do not agree with Woodward on either president’s virtues and failings. On the contrary, the US public and most outsiders think Biden’s failures and mistaken policies are largely responsible for Kamala Harris’ failure to win the election. Noting these misguided conclusions and false assumptions, therefore, those interested in contemporary international politics may not consider Woodward’s views on current US politics worth any attention.

Spotlight

War

By Bob Woodward

SimonSchuster, New York, 2024

448 pages, Rs 999/-

Partition’s lingering echoes

This searing book of a minority population is timely, with yet another report of maltreatment of Hindus in Bangladesh after the overthrow of the Awami League regime this year. Written by a son and grandson of refugees from Muslim-dominated East Pakistan/Bangladesh, they note that anti-Hindu targeting is endemic in Bangladesh where family names still make them vulnerable to extremists. Even in contemporary times, a Hindu exodus has resulted each time there is political ferment in that country usually prompted by political elements like the BNP and Jamaat, as a result of social fissures and the heat of Islamism rising to engulf society. On average, as of 2016, 632 Hindu people are abandoning their life in Bangladesh every day and the authors warn that “thirty years from now, no Hindus will be left in Bangladesh.”

The authors praise Bangladesh’s founding father Mujibur Rahman for his secular and democratic instincts, shared by his daughter Sheikh Hasina Wajed. However, as is seen in recent history, Hasina was frustrated in her effort to create a just society, and failed to meet the challenges which were undoubtedly daunting. There is huge commonality between largely Hindu West Bengal and mainly Muslim Bangladesh; as the authors note, “beyond the certitude of power and the righteousness of religion is the love of language.”

What cannot be gainsaid is that resident minorities, Hindu, Christian, Buddhist, or other, are insecure in significantly Muslim-dominated countries. No book on minorities in Bangladesh will enjoy the same traction on world opinion as Lajja (Shame) by Taslima Nasreen because she is a Muslim Bangladeshi now exiled due to hostility from the extremist sections of her compatriot Muslims.

Spotlight

Being Hindu in Bangladesh

By Deep Halder & Avishek Biswas

HarperCollins Gurugram, 2024

180 pages, Rs 399/-

Anatomy of terror

This lengthy opus is a granular study of one of the notorious terrorist bodies operating in India and the trans-national arena. With nearly five pages explaining acronyms, this is not a book for the non-specialist public and its target audience is limited to those in the security arena.

JeM is an al Qaeda and Islamic State affiliate with links to the ideological Deobandi movement and ties to the Taliban and Pakistan’s ISI intelligence and was responsible for attacks on India. In this web of alliances Masood Azhar is a key figure. JeM “exploded in Kashmir” shortly after Pakistan’s nuclear tests and was involved in Africa, Middle East and Europe. The lack of a clear chain of command makes it somewhat elusive and “ISI’s tenuous control” over it is weaker than with other such groups. Pandya notes an increasing tend to recruit females and ISI’s strategy of linking Kashmir and Punjab terrorism. The Afghan Taliban has so far shown little interest in targeting India.

Pandya’s obvious sympathies with hard-right Hindu politics throws doubt on his general objectivity including Indian Muslims. He believes “India will have to deploy an array of harsh covert and overt measures to curb Islamist organizations, terrorist groups and their sympathizers, financiers, and coordinators…with Pakistan India will have to continue its formidable posture.”

Spotlight

Inside the Terrifying World of Jaish-e-Mohammed

By Abhinav Pandya

HarperCollins, Gurugram, 2024

496 pages, Rs 699/-

The reviewer is a former foreign secretary