As the loud blast behind me made me switch gears from the world of business into the world of gunshots and grenade explosions in front of the iconic Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai, I only wondered why these posh hotels were a target of such a brutal attack?

Clearly India has come a long way in redefining itself as a nation which can create wealth and give opportunities to those who want to do well and Mumbai is one such symbol of opportunity.

But this time round, standing next to the Arabian sea staring at the hotel structure with smoke coming out, it was clear that this symbol of opportunity is the very basis why terrorists decided to attack it.

Unlike America, we don't have our World Trade Towers. The Bombay Stock Exchange thanks to the bearish sentiment is no longer the sign of wealth but hotels like Taj and Trident which attract the worlds most powerful business people are clearly at the heart of large and mega business deals.

As Mumbai grapples with its latest and one of the most damaging bomb attacks resulting in the loss of hundreds of lives...even these new symbols of opportunity are not safe.

If you can't hit the physical structures of wealth then go after the symbolic structures of wealth.

Places like Taj and Trident are no longer reserved for luxurious lunches or dinners, they are symbols of the best that India offers in hospitality.

More than that, these are places where confidential meetings result in multi billion dollar acquisitions.

It is only ironic that I myself were present at the Trident in the morning of 26th interviewing the worldwide head of Ernst & Young quizzing him about the potential of India in pulling the world out of the crisis. Clearly that is the potential the terrorists are not in a mood to let unleash.

So as I stand outside the Taj Mahal Hotel and stare at the destroyed top floor of the heritage wing of the beautiful Taj Mahal Hotel, I only have one question. Where are the politicians at a time of crisis? They are not there when there is an economic crisis, they are not around when there is a crisis of confidence in the financial markets and of course they are not present even after 14 hours of the first gunshot in the heart of the commercial capital.

Are they only to be seen making statements which neither pacify nor solve the terror problem. We pussyfoot when our markets crash and corporates raise the red flag, we are too nervous to come out and make a strong statement on Mumbai's night of terror. We talk of corporate governance, strong regulations and transparency in Indian industry but when corporates demand the same of the government in terms of cracking down on terror, making a strong case on how India will handle it there is hardly any reciprocity, Why?

It was a very very long night but not once did I feel confident that this will be the last time.