[Reader-list] Solving Amarnath: New Hope in Kashmir

[Kashmir Affairs]

Solving
Amarnath: A New Hope in Kashmir


Murtaza
Shibli


[www.kashmiraffairs.org]



The bold decision of the Congress government
led by Ghulam Nabi Azad in Srinagar must be commended. By revoking the land
order to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB) that was illegal at the first
place, Azad has not only shown great courage and decision making skills to deal
with a crisis that was spiralling out of control, a la 1990, but also taken
both the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and the fledgling separatist movement of
the Hurriyat Conference off the guard, who were using the land issue to
manipulate public mind. Though the order came late; it has, however, not only
diffused the crisis, but also shown for the first time in recent decades, that a
crisis in Kashmir could be solved through bold and timely political action. It
also demonstrates to the Kashmiris that by resorting to non-violent action,
there is a room for manoeuvre and things can be changed through peaceful means.
Baring few incidents of stone pelting and burning of tyres, the massive
demonstrations were totally peaceful, without any involvement of the militant
groups, and without any communal flavour despite propaganda by various quarters
including mainstream Indian media. Sadly, the state response was not that peaceful;
five innocent lives were lost during the ten day demonstrations. However, by
Kashmiri standards, it could be classified as measured and therefore a change
from previous years, when the paramilitary forces would kill dozens on small or
no provocations. Incidentally, this is first such massive crisis in the last
two decades that has been solved peacefully and decisively, in public favour, taking
everyone by surprise.


 


Another very positive aspect that emerged
from this stand-off is that the Pakistani government maintained a studied
silence on the issue, thus not only keeping the spirit of reconciliation
between the two countries alive, but also showing maturity by not succumbing to
the pressure from the traditional hawkish elements within the establishment when
the temptation was real.  This also
prevented any wild claims within the Indian government or Hindu militants to
blame Pakistan for a role in the crisis. Though, the Pakistani silence
irritated the United Jihad Council chief Syed Salahudin, who called it as ‘surprising’,
it was in the right spirit of peace that the two countries have embarked upon.
Successful dealing of the crisis demonstrated that if the right and positive
decisions are taken, keeping in view the aspirations of the Kashmiri people, it
is possible to deal with crises without involving Pakistan. It also bought
another stark point to the fore – that Pakistan is not always involved in all
the crisis in Kashmir; a paranoia that has swept across the Indian
establishment and offers an alibi to the politicians and security establishment
for their systemic or judgemental failures or biases.


 


The peaceful outcome also shows that if the
promises and commitments are followed in the right spirit, there is a room for
massive improvement in the situation without employing more than half a million
troops and two dozen secret agencies.  If
the promises like ‘zero tolerance for human rights violations’ made by the
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh more than two years ago would have been observed,
the Kashmiri population would not have felt so distanced or disconnected from
the peace process that is now running in the fifth year. In addition, the economic
development of the Kashmir valley suffers massively either due to the massive
presence of the Army and paramilitary forces or the unspent millions that lye
wasted in the government coffers mainly due to the political rivalry between
the coalition partners – People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and Congress; the
tussle added vitriol to fire caused by the current crisis, as the PDP tried to
capitalise on it despite being an equal partner in ‘crime’. 


 


In a classic act of political opportunism, the
PDP that was part of the cabinet decision that allowed the illegal transfer of
land to the SASB, decided to withdraw the support and blame its coalition
partner Congress for the whole issue. Only days ago, Kashmir’s Forest Minister,
Qazi Mohammad Afzal, who belongs to the PDP openly boasted about his role in
effecting the land transfer. But when the public reaction grew, the PDP not
only withdrew support, but also issued public statements that sounded like
racial epithets designed to inflame the public opinion and hence provoke and enlarge
the constituency of protests and violence. 


 


The use of religion for political ends is not
new in south Asia. Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, the patron of PDP, has previously also
been accused of creating communal tensions for his electoral gains. In 1986,
during his time as Congress chief of Jammu and Kashmir, Mufti Sayeed allegedly engineered
communal riots against the Kashmiri Pandits in Anantnag district in which half
a dozen temples and homes of Hindus were damaged. This afforded Congress a
plausible reason to withdraw support from fledgling Ghulam Mohammad Shah government,
which was manufactured through defections from the National Conference at the
first place courtesy of Mufti Sayeed. Later, in 1990, when the massive public demonstrations
engulfed the Kashmir Valley, Mufti, as the Home Minister in the VP Singh government
deliberately sent Jagmohan as governor making it difficult for Farooq Abdullah
government to function. Farooq resigned and Jagmohan got a free ride employing state
terror that gave rise to massive militancy – a phenomenon that still costs
lives in Kashmir. Perhaps Mufti Sayeed was wishing to witness the repeat of
1990 to feed his insatiable desire for power, but the timely action by the Azad
government diffused the situation successfully, leaving him lost and vulnerable.



 


Buoyed by the success and free from the
fetters of PDP conditionality, the Azad government has a huge task ahead. The
winter capital of the state, Jammu, has been virtually taken over by the Hindu militant
groups who have been attacking the government buildings, offices of the
political parties and threatening economic blockade of the Kashmiri Valley. The
government should not only deal with situation wisely, but also make sure that
no anti-Kashmiri rhetoric or action is allowed that will feed into the agenda
of extremist vision of a civilisational clash. It is hoped that all the political
parties will discard electoral opportunism and mount joint efforts to initiate
serious peace efforts. The successful handling of Kashmir’s current crisis
offers a hope and a chance for the Congress government at the Centre to build
on this bold decision and work towards a final and durable solution of the
problem. 


 


The writer is a security analyst based
in London. He is also editor of quarterly journal Kashmir Affairs and
webportal www.kashmiraffairs.org


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