The beating retreat ceremony has resumed in the Wagah Border, which had been suspended after the tensions escalated following the Pahalgam attack. The aggressive military drill from both sides is no longer the ritual closure of day but a spectacle of military jingoism for the consumption of the ever increasing tourists. It feeds the primal thrill of the people and is akin to the Roman blood sports. It has been toned down since 2010 to lower the aggression, but it makes no sense in restarting it. It is not sporting in any sense and amidst the chill in the relations where even real sporting activities have been withheld there is no reason to restart this mindless display of mutual aggression. It does not help in improving the people to people contact or awareness about each other either. Going by its scale and mannerism it derogates our soldiers too, who are reduced to performers or mock gladiators in the colosseum.
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