Er P L Khushu
What is happening in Kashmir presently takes us back to the situation of Kashmir which prevailed there in 1990. But it is with an addition now, which is that then the Kashmiri Pandits alone were the targets of the guns and the bullets of the terrorists, when this time apart from Kashmiri Pandits the others who are the targets are non-Kashmiris too who are working in Kashmir in one form or the other. The base set by the Jehadi’s this time unfortunately is that the Kashmir is for the Muslims of Kashmir and none else. A common Kashmiri living in Kashmir is helpless to negate such a move, for the fear of the gun of the terrorist which is now nurtured and reared by the sponsors of terror in Kashmir from Pakistan amongst the local youth, which is another disaster for the youth of Kashmir. It is a seed of a poisonous plant if not a tree, which will result in extreme bad blood between communities even at the national level. The unscrupulous politicians around are taking an undue advantage of such a situation to make one section of people quarreling with the other for their political vote bank politics. These opportunist politicians have already resorted to show their opaque approach towards this grave issue of human killings by linking such a situation with the failure of the present government in achieving peace and harmony in Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370. This suits their clumsy approach by drum beating the same mantra that the present government has failed in maintaining peace and development in Jammu and Kashmir, when such a situation is their initial creation of being soft to the terror and its roots in Kashmir during their dynasty ruler ships of Jammu and Kashmir, by turns for remaining in power through their vote bank politics. These dynasty rulers of having ruled Jammu and Kashmir for decades have never allowed the peace and development to take the lead in Jammu and Kashmir, by indulging in sectarian politics, particularly in Kashmir valley by creating wedges between various sections of the people like ‘Sher-Bakra, Shia-Suni’, and often denigrate the presence of Kashmiri Pandits in the valley by different modes of showing apathies towards them. Kashmiri Pandits were treated like second class citizens, in all activities of the administrative set ups, in the educational fields both technical and non-technical, proper employments in government jobs, appointments to senior posts of administration, transfers in government services, etc. Then ultimately these very dynasty-based leaders who are beating their breasts today for proper peace in Kashmir are fundamentally responsible for the massacre and the genocide of KP’s along with their mass forced exodus from the valley, which is evinced by their conspicuous silence on this issue with a blunt refusal about the KP’s settlement in safe clusters in the valley in the past. This has drastically drifted away the KP’s from their Muslim brothers of the valley, viz, their one-time neighbors, who are now looking like different specie very much inimical to the rehabilitation plans of the displaced KPs back to their homes in Kashmir. Coming back to the recent spree of killings in Kashmir, when brutal killings have been done by the terrorists of KP migrant employees, a Hindu teacher belonging to Jammu, serving under Prime Minister’s special employment package programme, a young Hindu bank manager belonging to Rajasthan and a non-Muslim laborer working as a laborer to earn his bread and butter in Kashmir. These so-called political leaders with dynastic bases raised a lot of hue and cry about the law and order situation in Kashmir and around and never had a word of condemnation for such brutal killings by the terrorists who are operating at the asking of their mentors across the border. They all have acted as the silent spectators for all such killings and have been doing so since long for their vote bank politics, acting as the silent sympathizers of these terror operators, by not spelling out a single word of condemnation about these killers. They are thus apparently the silent abettors for all such killings. They are the one’s who have been fanning that with removal of Article 370, not a single soul outside Jammu and Kashmir will be allowed to come to Kashmir for permanent living.
The present surge in error attacks on the various communities particularly the Kashmiri Pandits and outside Hindus, is thus a calculated programme designed and developed across the border and implemented in Kashmir with an unfortunate consent of some of the local majority community members of Kashmir, which is further abetted by the reputed slogan mongering of the earlier dynasty rulers of Kashmir. It is on record to quote when leaders of major political parties of Kashmir who were in governance from time to time for decades in Jammu and Kashmir, have often attributed the annulling of Article 370 and 35A to fact that Government of India wants to bring Hindus from other states of India to settle and live in Kashmir thus making the present Muslim majority in Kashmir into a minority. Simultaneously, while with their utterance they have repeatedly warned India that such acts will be resisted by equivalent repulsions. So what has happened this time so far as the terror attacks are concerned, it seems that all such leaders are secretly privy to all such programmes of the terrorist’s designs drawn and drafted across the border? So a Kashmir Pandit is now caught between the devil and the deep sea, in going back to Kashmir in the present scenario when apart from the fear of terrorists acts, some amongst the local majority population of Kashmir are equally not only a silent spectator to these designs of the terrorists, but equally the major silent partner in this whole game, not to speak of the political leaders who are shedding crocodile tears showing sympathies with the Kashmiri Pandits and other non-Muslim affected persons.
The resultant solutions to this problem of terrorist acts in Kashmir, which are not just terror acts but a full-fledged proxy war, waged by Pakistan against India through Kashmir since a long time is to teach Pakistan a lesson by waging a war against it and its designs of mass killings and genocide in Kashmir. Probably India is now left with no solution other than that. One is reminded of 1965 war with Pakistan, when initially Pakistan pumped in terrorists then who were then known as ‘Mujahdin’, in Kashmir to create internal disturbance in Kashmir. Their main location in Srinagar was located as ‘Batmaloo’ locality of Srinagar. G M Sadiq was the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir at that point of time. He directed the security forces to ask the civilian population of Batmalloo area to move to safer places and move out of Batmalloo. After the civilian population vacated this area entire Batmalloo locality was put on fire, when the Mujahadin got identified and caught and even killed in this fire. Probably the situation demands such a type of actions now particularly in some South Kashmir localities. While it might tantamount to human rights violations, but what is the remedy when locals are giving shelter to the terrorists in their houses. Human right is not one-way traffic. The civil society of Kashmir should come out with open condemnation of all such killings. So far there has been no resistance or resentment or even rejection of such actions of the terrorists about such brutal killings of innocents, by the civil society of these areas. Are they thus privy to all such brutal killings? If it is so, the law enforcing agencies which in the instant cases will include the army too, shall have to act with heavy hands now to stop bloodshed of innocent, who are being killed on a simple pretext of not allowing any one else other than a Kashmiri Muslim to live in Kashmir, particularly after the removal of Article 370 and 35A. The sovereignty of Jammu and Kashmir particularly Kashmir has to be ensured as a part and parcel of Indian Union. All those political leaders who are the hidden sympathizers of the terrorists, by their unscrupulous utterances, like talk to Pakistan for peace in Kashmir need to be booked under the relevant law of the land which covers the seditious activities of anti-national elements, what so ever big and mighty one may be. A full-fledged sate hood needs to be given to Jammu as to why should the people of Jammu suffer for the problems of Kashmir which they have been facing since 1947. Problems related to KPs needs a onetime solution, which is to create a ‘separate homeland’ for the KPs, within Kashmir, having a status of ‘Union Territory’. Such a demand is not any political proposition. It is in fact the only way to ensure the return of the KP’s to their ‘homeland’ securing their return with safety and dignity. Government of India has to keep it in mind that no solution will be perpetual for Jammu & Kashmir unless the Kashmiri Pandits do not get their due which is a ‘Home Land’ for them within Kashmir, their mother land. It is their fundamental right and fundamental demand. Enough is enough now. A tangible space has to be carved within the Kashmir valley, in between the ranges of south Kashmir and North Kashmir, for the creation of the ‘homeland’ for rehabilitation of the KPs, which has to be given a status of the Union Territory, with in the Union of India. This space to be called as the ‘Homeland of KPs’, will have separate independent governance absolutely free from any encumbrance from the state of Kashmir.
(The author is a Chartered Consultant Civil Engineer, passionately attached and devoted to his Motherland-
Jammu & Kashmir).