Author: Balbir K. Punj
Publication: The Asian Age
Date:
URL: http://www.asianage.com/presentation/leftnavigation/opinion/op-ed/jammu-and-kashmir-a-tale-of-two-flags.aspx
The contrast between the agitators in Jammu,
holding the Tricolour and shouting "Bharat Mata ki jai," and the
separatists in Kashmir Valley, marching across the LoC to Pakistan, with the
Pakistani flag, sums up the crisis in a way which will remain in the nation's
consciousness for years to come. The clash is not between two regions, but
two value systems. The character of the two groups of agitators is defined
by their respective flags: The Tricolour represents the spirit of India -
respect for diversity in all its multitudes, be it faith or language; The
Pakistani flag denotes an exclusivist character devoid of the right to dissent
in all avenues of life.
It's not that the separatists merely wave
the Pakistani flag. They have soaked in its spirit. Following in the footsteps
of Pakistan, Kashmiri separatists had cleansed the Valley of all the Hindus
(Kashmiri Pandits), kafirs in their parlance. In spite of India being a vibrant
democracy and a secular state (biased against the majority community), the
separatists hate India. Because its demography is Hindu? They love Pakistan.
Because it is an Islamic state?
The "secular" camp in the rest of
India has not condemned this brazen display of strength in the Valley against
India. Of course, there have been subtle allegations against the BJP of politicising
the Amarnath shrine board issue. To extend support to those hoisting the Tricolour
is "communalism" and to find rationale for the ones seeking a theocratic
state is serving the cause of "secularism". Could there be a bigger
irony?
The claim of the Valley agitators that they
were only asking for the removal of the blockade on the highway from Srinagar
to the rest of India flies in the face of facts. It was the separatists' agitation,
later joined by some other parties, against the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board
that sparked the present situation. Agitation leaders were provoking the people
of the Valley to join the anti-national stream that separatists have always
fuelled in Srinagar and the Valley. The government, both in Srinagar and the
Centre, capitulated without even an attempt to drive some reason into the
general public already incited by anti-India and Islam-in-danger propaganda.
For all the claims of Valley politician like
Omar Abdullah, that local Muslims have been taking care of the pilgrims for
ages, they have failed to take into account the fact that a sea change had
taken place in the annual pilgrimage to the shrine. First, the number of pilgrims
has increased manifold. The management of facilities for pilgrims could no
longer be in a laissez faire manner, in the hands of private, small-time enthusiasts.
Only a government-supported modernisation would have assured the pilgrims
amenities they are entitled to, considering the terrain, weather conditions
and the age-profile of the pilgrims.
Those opposing lease of the property to the
board were, in fact, not interested in the land transfer itself. Their purpose
was to send a message that wherever Muslims are in majority, people from other
religions will not get a foothold. It is significant that the Jammu and Kashmir
legislature had passed the law creating the Amarnath Board and the structure
of administration for the Vaishno Devi shrine of Jammu, laying down specific
duties for both the boards. Most political parties had supported the legislation.
It is clear, therefore, that the anti-Amarnath Board agitation was a recent
phenomenon and its link with separatists and militants cannot be ignored.
The militants have always tried to disturb the pilgrimage, leading to deaths
of many pilgrims.
Even if the demand of the fruit-growers and
transporters of the Valley about their products rotting due to the blockade
were true, the way out was not another agitation - clearly meant to provoke
police firing. The Valley separatists were clearly giving warnings that any
accommodation with the Jammu agitators would bring them back on Srinagar streets.
At the drop of a hat, the separatists organise hartals in Srinagar but have
no word of sympathy for the people of Jammu who too have the right to raise
their demands.
The clear division of public opinion, between
the Valley Muslims and the Jammu Hindus, is the result of mishandling of Jammu
and Kashmir affairs for over five decades by the Congress and the National
Conference (NC). For decades, the Congress allowed NC to dominate Valley politics
without any hindrance. People of the state, as a result, watched helplessly
as the government, led by a single party, the NC, became a hotbed of corruption.
For a while, the NC leadership was sought
to be built outside the influence of the Sheikh Abdullah family. But Indira
Gandhi entered into an agreement with Sheikh Abdullah and handed the state
back to the NC, and the Abdullah family, as if it was his jagir. The failure
to build alternate leadership in Kashmir has cost the country dear. The uncontrolled
dominance of one family over the resources of Kashmir, and growing public
anger against this swelled the support base of separatists. The jihadi found
a fertile ground and provided the Pakistani establishment yet another opportunity
to pursue its agenda.
The Congress-led government in New Delhi cannot
escape responsibility for what is happening in Jammu and Kashmir. In many
ways, it is a result of the Congress' continuing selfish and family-oriented
approach to the Kashmir problem. And its myopic vote-bank politics in kowtowing
to the irredentist demands of one community.
The Central government remained unmoved when
thousands of Pandits were driven out of their ancestral land and forced to
take refuge in Delhi and elsewhere in India. It was only during the six-year
rule of the BJP-led NDA that things began to change in the Valley. The first
truly free general elections in 1999, and the goodwill it created for the
Central government, even among some of the separatists; the determined peace
initiative of the then Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee that split the
separatists and narrowed the support base of militants - all this was bringing
the state closer to a peaceful settlement. But the Central government changed
and with it the momentum of earlier moves was lost. Now, the manner in which
the government has handled the agitations in Jammu and Kashmir has enabled
the two separatist factions to come together, that too with the injection
of more pan-Islamic sentiments. The tipping point almost seems to have achieved.
The sins of omission and commission on the
part of Congress in Jammu and Kashmir will cost the country dear.