In the lives of terror-targeted nations, there's often a before-and-after moment. For America, it was 9/11; for India 26/11 - the horrific serial attacks in Mumbai in 2008 that evoked shock, rage and sorrow across the country. Lashkar terrorist Ajmal Kasab's hanging four years later raised passions as well - celebratory or satisfied in some, reflective or restrained in others. Media headlines also conveyed the varying emotions.
Consider this newspaper's front-page headline, "A puppet's life ends on a string". It combines the elements of compassion, dark irony and meditative matter-of-factness to suggest Kasab was a pawn led inexorably to the sacrifice by his nefarious handlers. In short, he was an agent, without agency. The Economic Times gets the message across with wryness: "Kasab hangs, govt gets some oxygen". It indicates that a terrorist's execution has its political uses for an embattled government.
Hindustan Times's headline has the judgmental bluntness of a sledgehammer: "26/11 butcher hanged". If "puppet" is the operative word for TOI, the emphasis here is on "butcher": Kasab was a savage killer whose death by hanging is just desserts. The Indian Express's "Op X-ecution: Kasab hanged, buried" is also a bald statement of fact, but with word play relieving the grimness of the news conveyed. It highlights the fact Kasab was delivered to his executioners in a top-secret operation codenamed 'Operation X'.
Mint's open-ended heading "Has India achieved closure?" finds fuller elaboration in The Hindu's "Kasab hangs, justice for 26/11 still elusive". The latter is no consolatory message; it is a reminder Kasab's death may not denote justice delivery with the real masterminds of his crime still not apprehended. Business Standard's headline "Justice done after four years; Kasab hanged" suggests otherwise. Here, punishment that ends Kasab's life seems independent of larger narratives, because it involves dispensation of justice where required.
Mail Today's title "Qasab hanged Guru next?" is free-ended in a 'watch this space' kind of way. It raises suspense about the fate of another high profile terrorist in India's custody. The Pioneer's "Kasab hanged, India rejoices", in contrast, is about unalloyed celebratory closure for a country that suffered Kasab's attack. The Asian Age's "Secret death, public celebration" is a more neutral variation of the same theme.
Kasab's story can be put in a nutshell in various ways, conveying myriad emotions. TOI's readers are invited to make suggestions and share their views on headlines that brought the news of Kasab's end to them. More info visit this site: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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