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THE TURMOIL IN INDIA’S PARADISE

By Varun Hari Prasad

Having been to the wonderful state of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) and seen its people, I am extremely saddened by the way in which things are shaping up in the paradise of India. Since July 2016, J&K has been simmering with anger and exasperation. This has not happened overnight, the lava was slowly but steadily building up and Burhan Wani’s encounter just provided the trigger.

Despite the fact that one of our state is in turmoil for nearly two years now, we as citizens, as a Nation, do not seem to have sensed the gravity of the matter. Unfortunately, even the Government of India doesn’t seem to have comprehended the situation. Day in and Day out we watch people shouting on prime time TV shows that J&K is an integral part of India, we heard the Prime Minister roar in the Parliament by making an hypothetical reference to J&K earlier this year; Ofcourse Jammu & Kashmir is an integral part of India! But are we as a Nation, as a society, awake and aware of the pain of the people of J&K? The answer may not be comfortable but the question has to be asked.

The build up

Though J&K was bubbling with activity and everything seemed normal even barely days before the flashpoint Burhan Wani episode, the people were slowly getting disillusioned with the executive. The PDP-BJP coalition was viewed as an unnatural way of usurping power. The people of J&K who had delivered a fractured verdict, rejected this alliance from day one. This coalition itself was to become a major provocation in the days to come.

Inherent contradictions within the state government, lack of collective approach on part of the Cabinet, avoidable statements by various leaders of the governing parties added fuel to the fire and further increased the regional differences within the state.

The Pakistan angle

The deadlock between India and Pakistan over Kashmir is well known. When Mr Modi took over as Prime Minister, he brought in hope when he invited the Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif to his swearing-in ceremony. The beginning as obviously good, Mr Modi was seen as the man who could solve the Kashmir issue once and for all given his grip over the Cabinet and the party (a view which I also endorsed). But as months went by he seems to have drifted away from one move to another: Be it the mango-shawl diplomacy or the impromptu visit to Pakistan or inviting an ISI based JIT into Pathankot airbase or the ‘Surgical Strike’ or even the appointment of an interlocutor; none of these seem to be part of a well chalked out plan of action.

Apart from this, we hear everyone from the ruling establishment say that the problem in J&K is an ‘internal matter’. Ofcourse it is an internal matter, but we must never ignore the fact that this ‘internal matter’ has arisen because we have not been able to find a solution to the larger political problem. Therefore, it is imperative on us to deal with that if we are serious enough to secure lasting peace. Just dismissing it as ‘internal matter’ would be oversimplification of the problem.

We often forget that when Maharaja Hari Singh acceded J&K to India, it was about 84,000 square miles. The current territory under us is only about 42,000 square miles. The remaining land is under possession of Pakistan (which we call Pakistan Occupied Kashmir or POK). A large part of that is also being leased to China by Pakistan. When the Government of India says that it won’t talk to Pakistan, is it legitimising Pakistan’s occupation of that territory? Has it forgotten the 1994 resolution of the Parliament? Therefore, it is very immature and childish on part of the Government to say that it won’t talk to Pakistan. A dialogue with Pakistan is in our own interest as much as theirs. However, it would be wise of the government to realise this soon and resume dialogue while the dispute continues to be bilateral, if we delay this could become a trilateral issue as portions of J&K have been leased out to China.

The Azaadi Issue

Since a while now we have been hearing debates about ‘azaadi’, some have been branded anti-national for using this word! But what does an adolescent in J&K mean when he shouts ‘azaadi’? He doesn’t mean that he wants freedom from India, he wants freedom in India. Throughout the rest of India, Kashmiris are harassed in the name of security and their commitment to the country is questioned, especially by a few in the media. I certainly agree that there are militant elements infused among the stone pelters, in that case it is even more important for the security forces to deal with care. Afterall, if adolescents are coming onto streets and pelting stones it is time for the Government to sit back and think where they’ve lost the trust.

Today, people in J&K do not trust the state or central government. There have been numerous working groups and round table conferences under Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. There are a plethora of excellent suggestions before the Government. There is the report of the Interlocutors lying since 2010. But no action has been taken. All that the Government has to do is to take all political parties into confidence through debates in Parliament on these recommendations and begin implementing them seriously. Once the people of J&K begin to see the benefits, the slogans of ‘azaadi’ will begin to subside by itself as some level of trust will be restored and consultations can resume.

The ‘Autonomy’ Debate

This is also linked to the ‘azaadi’ issue. Those in the Government of India today seem to forget that while all other princely states that acceded to India subsequently merged with it, the state of Jammu & Kashmir did not. The relationship between J&K and the rest of India is guided by Article 370 of the Constitution of India and the Constitution of Jammu & Kashmir that Dr Karan Singh signed into effect. It is not only J&K that has special status. If one reads the Constitution of India, one can find that Article 371 (A) to Article 371 (I) provides special status to various regions of the country. The most recent addition to this list was insertion of Article 371 (J) providing special status to Hyderabad-Karnataka region in Karnataka. Therefore there is no need to score political mileage by raking up only Article 370.

It can be ascertained from records that since 1952 the autonomy initially granted to J&K has been gradually reduced. So the natural demand of the people there is to restore that autonomy, atleast partially. When this issue is raised, it is utterly foolish on part of the government to strike it down as anti-national. Article 370 is a very emotive issue in all the regions of J&K, any irresponsible handling will only deteriorate the situation.

Governor’s Rule

Since the past two years the only development that has given me some hope to me is the decision of the BJP to withdraw from the J&K Government and the imposition of Governor’s Rule. Governor NN Vohra is a very seasoned person as far as J&K is concerned. Having been associated with the state in various capacities and having interacted with all stakeholders he understands the pulse of the people. In 2008 when a similar situation propped up due to the Amarnath Land issue resulting in the PDP withdrawing support to the Congress government of Ghulam Nabi Azad, Governor Vohra had taken the over the reins of J&K. He did a spectacular job by restoring the confidence of the people to a great extent and ran a well-oiled administrative machinery. He did the unthinkable by making conduct of elections possible in 2009 even as all parties were still busy blaming each other. Even after Mr Mufti’s death, Governor Vohra deftly administered the state and managed the floods.

However, age is definitely a factor for the octogenarian given that his term ends this July. After being lackadaisical till now in its approach, the least that the Central Government can do is to extend Governor Vohra’s term till the conclusion of the crucial Amarnath Yatra and later request him to steer the state till the 2019 elections. I am sure that if Mr Vohra is given a free hand by New Delhi he will make it possible to conduct both the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections simultaneously in 2019.

The Way Ahead

The Modi Government must amend its ‘muscular approach’ to ‘muscular approach with a human touch’. It must immediately restart the process of political consultations with all the stakeholders in J&K including the Hurriyat. Just as the Parliament begins on July 18, the Government must table the reports of all working groups for a detailed debate and evolve a wide ranging political consensus.

As mentioned in the Interlocutors’ Report, the government must review the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) without diluting it and make the Army less visible in the state. It must also ask the Chief of Army Staff to refrain from making political statements and communicate his views directly to the Defence Minister instead of the media.

Most importantly, for lasting peace, it must resume back channel talks with Pakistan and equitably address the concerns of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladak regions.

Conclusion

The lives of innocent people must not be put at stake to reap political dividends in the rest of India. Mr Modi must recognise the humanitarian crisis in J&K: Children are not able to go to school, senior citizens are not able to live peacefully, economic activity has almost collapsed. Will the PM be able to return those children their lost childhood? Will the PM be able return those moments of peace the senior citizens have lost? A 56 inch chest is of no use if it doesn’t have a 5 inch heart. Atleast at this late juncture, Mr Modi must stop being stubborn and engage with Pakistan and Hurriyat or anyone else as long as it helps restore normalcy.

These are testing times for the ideals on which India was created. It is at times like these that we as a society and as human beings ought to prove what we are as a Nation. Whether we will triumph in this test or not depends on what our Prime Minister does.

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