With the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led coalition government completing 100 days in office, it has hardly had any time to focus on the developmental issues in Jammu and Kashmir. From Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed’s statement of “thanksgiving” to Pakistan and the militants for ensuring an incident-free election, to Masarat Alam’s release and waving of Pakistani flag and now Khalistan flags, it has been caught in a web of denials and justifications. It was mainly PDP that faced the heat more from its coalition partner Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) than any opposition party.
Despite having intense discussions prior to government formation and inking the much touted “Agenda of Alliance’, which was more about tackling the political sensitivities rather than having a grand idea of development. As Mufti himself affirmed, it was the meeting of North and South Pole, thereby emphasizing the differences in their ideologies. They had narrowed down to an acceptable language on critical issues. However, from day one, BJP has disregarded its own words, proving the critics of the coalition right. Not only has the central leadership of BJP snubbed PDP on more than one occasion, the state leaders have also made them uncomfortable at a bigger level. Recently, Minister of State in Prime Minister’s Office Jitendar Singh, who happens to be the Member of Parliament from Udhampur, was supposed to talk about the one-year performance of the Narendra Modi led government but preferred to speak on a host of issues with the potential to create more trouble in the state. From advocating that Amarnath Yatra could be run round the year, to the setting of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Jammu first, he did everything to further the wedge between Kashmir and Jammu.
However, after a long time, a saner voice emerged in BJP when Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh sought to play down the issue of waving flags in Srinagar and Jammu. Perhaps it was the waving of Khalistani flag waved by some angry Sikh youth in Jammu that made him understand that “it was not a big issue”. When a Sikh youth was killed in Jammu last week after protests rocked the city, BJP realized that the tension was reaching its turf and could take an ugly turn. The Jammu protests were triggered when posters of slain Sikh leader Bhindrawale were removed. As the number of demonstrators swelled, police opened fire and one youth was killed. Later on, the death anniversary of Bhindrawale was allowed to be observed, with a large number of Sikhs taking part amid restrictions. In those demonstrations, some Sikh youth waved both Khalistani and Pakistani flags. This is an extraordinary situation in Jammu where Bhindrawale has been rediscovered after long time and Sikh separatism is raising its head. In his press conference, Dr Singh said that there was nothing new. But the fact is that it is a new reality in Jammu that has risen with BJP ruling both in New Delhi and in Srinagar.
There was a marked difference in BJP’s approach when we compare it to the reaction over Pakistani flags waved in Srinagar, first in early May when hard-line separatist Syed Ali Geelani returned to Srinagar and another hard-liner Masarat Alam led the rally amid pro-Pakistan slogans. At that time, BJP joined the chorus in condemning not only those who were involved but subtly even the Chief Minister for not taking any action against Geelani and others. Eventually, Alam was re-arrested pricking the balloon that the new government was soft on separatists and was seeking to open up space for a wider dialogue. Intense pressure right from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who according to him joined the nation in “its anger over the release (of Alam)”, down to state BJP leaders forced Mufti to send him to jail.
When Pakistani flags were waved in Kashmir, the media in Srinagar, like other voices, had reminded New Delhi about it being a fact of Kashmir politics for more than six decades. The Pakistani element in Kashmir society has been a reality that has hardly been challenged. It was further cemented with the onset of armed rebellion in late 1989 leading to excesses by government forces. Politically, Pakistan might have lost the ground in Kashmir since the violence in the state is attributed to the country, but the deep sense of alienation towards India that has been increasing has opened up space for things like raising Pakistani flags and slogans. So, in complete absence of political engagement and total disregard shown towards the political realities on the ground by New Delhi, this is the space that is occupied by those who espouse a Pakistani cause in Kashmir.
But Dr Nirmal Singh’s statement about accepting the flag-waving as a reality only came after a new dynamic in politics of Jammu became visible. What happened in Jammu has serious lessons for BJP, both at the Centre and state. Pushing people to the wall and consuming time in rhetoric could only lead to opening of new fronts. Since the Government of India is in a denial mode as far as the political issues in Jammu and Kashmir are concerned, this does not augur well for the situation in the state. It has become clear in three months that BJP just agreed to a document called “Agenda of Alliance” in which status quo over Article 370, reviewing Armed Forces Special Powers Act and addressing the political issues have been agreed on, but in practice they have been tearing this document apart. Not only has the BJP government at the Centre shown contempt towards its political engagement with PDP, it has also let them down vis-a-vis development, particularly the rehabilitation of the victims of the September floods. How long they can go together, without leaving a positive imprint, remains to be seen.
Tail Piece: Meanwhile, the “lone warrior” Engineer Rashid, who is an Independent MLA from Langate, celebrated the Flag Day of Jammu and Kashmir and unfurled the state flag amid the anthem first sung in the Constituent Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir in 1952. He deserves credit for at least making a bid to protect the “remains of Autonomy” that this state enjoyed. But those talking about restoring Autonomy and giving Self Rule do not even show solidarity to such acts by Rashid. These slogans are merely on paper and are used during elections. But Rashid deserves kudos for making at least some difference.
The author is a veteran journalist from Srinagar and the editor-in-chief of Rising Kashmir
Despite having intense discussions prior to government formation and inking the much touted “Agenda of Alliance’, which was more about tackling the political sensitivities rather than having a grand idea of development. As Mufti himself affirmed, it was the meeting of North and South Pole, thereby emphasizing the differences in their ideologies. They had narrowed down to an acceptable language on critical issues. However, from day one, BJP has disregarded its own words, proving the critics of the coalition right. Not only has the central leadership of BJP snubbed PDP on more than one occasion, the state leaders have also made them uncomfortable at a bigger level. Recently, Minister of State in Prime Minister’s Office Jitendar Singh, who happens to be the Member of Parliament from Udhampur, was supposed to talk about the one-year performance of the Narendra Modi led government but preferred to speak on a host of issues with the potential to create more trouble in the state. From advocating that Amarnath Yatra could be run round the year, to the setting of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Jammu first, he did everything to further the wedge between Kashmir and Jammu.
However, after a long time, a saner voice emerged in BJP when Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh sought to play down the issue of waving flags in Srinagar and Jammu. Perhaps it was the waving of Khalistani flag waved by some angry Sikh youth in Jammu that made him understand that “it was not a big issue”. When a Sikh youth was killed in Jammu last week after protests rocked the city, BJP realized that the tension was reaching its turf and could take an ugly turn. The Jammu protests were triggered when posters of slain Sikh leader Bhindrawale were removed. As the number of demonstrators swelled, police opened fire and one youth was killed. Later on, the death anniversary of Bhindrawale was allowed to be observed, with a large number of Sikhs taking part amid restrictions. In those demonstrations, some Sikh youth waved both Khalistani and Pakistani flags. This is an extraordinary situation in Jammu where Bhindrawale has been rediscovered after long time and Sikh separatism is raising its head. In his press conference, Dr Singh said that there was nothing new. But the fact is that it is a new reality in Jammu that has risen with BJP ruling both in New Delhi and in Srinagar.
There was a marked difference in BJP’s approach when we compare it to the reaction over Pakistani flags waved in Srinagar, first in early May when hard-line separatist Syed Ali Geelani returned to Srinagar and another hard-liner Masarat Alam led the rally amid pro-Pakistan slogans. At that time, BJP joined the chorus in condemning not only those who were involved but subtly even the Chief Minister for not taking any action against Geelani and others. Eventually, Alam was re-arrested pricking the balloon that the new government was soft on separatists and was seeking to open up space for a wider dialogue. Intense pressure right from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who according to him joined the nation in “its anger over the release (of Alam)”, down to state BJP leaders forced Mufti to send him to jail.
When Pakistani flags were waved in Kashmir, the media in Srinagar, like other voices, had reminded New Delhi about it being a fact of Kashmir politics for more than six decades. The Pakistani element in Kashmir society has been a reality that has hardly been challenged. It was further cemented with the onset of armed rebellion in late 1989 leading to excesses by government forces. Politically, Pakistan might have lost the ground in Kashmir since the violence in the state is attributed to the country, but the deep sense of alienation towards India that has been increasing has opened up space for things like raising Pakistani flags and slogans. So, in complete absence of political engagement and total disregard shown towards the political realities on the ground by New Delhi, this is the space that is occupied by those who espouse a Pakistani cause in Kashmir.
But Dr Nirmal Singh’s statement about accepting the flag-waving as a reality only came after a new dynamic in politics of Jammu became visible. What happened in Jammu has serious lessons for BJP, both at the Centre and state. Pushing people to the wall and consuming time in rhetoric could only lead to opening of new fronts. Since the Government of India is in a denial mode as far as the political issues in Jammu and Kashmir are concerned, this does not augur well for the situation in the state. It has become clear in three months that BJP just agreed to a document called “Agenda of Alliance” in which status quo over Article 370, reviewing Armed Forces Special Powers Act and addressing the political issues have been agreed on, but in practice they have been tearing this document apart. Not only has the BJP government at the Centre shown contempt towards its political engagement with PDP, it has also let them down vis-a-vis development, particularly the rehabilitation of the victims of the September floods. How long they can go together, without leaving a positive imprint, remains to be seen.
Tail Piece: Meanwhile, the “lone warrior” Engineer Rashid, who is an Independent MLA from Langate, celebrated the Flag Day of Jammu and Kashmir and unfurled the state flag amid the anthem first sung in the Constituent Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir in 1952. He deserves credit for at least making a bid to protect the “remains of Autonomy” that this state enjoyed. But those talking about restoring Autonomy and giving Self Rule do not even show solidarity to such acts by Rashid. These slogans are merely on paper and are used during elections. But Rashid deserves kudos for making at least some difference.
The author is a veteran journalist from Srinagar and the editor-in-chief of Rising Kashmir