- Ignoring it May cost heavily for J&K Politics
P.L Khushu
While as the newly constituted Assembly has started functioning, yet, it did so with a smack of distaste, which may not be good for the overall solidarity of the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The new chief minister Sh. Omar Abdullah appears to be very much positive in his approach to have a smooth and a balanced governance of J & K, but the situations around him appears to be hilarious. The famous saying which says that it always takes two to make a quarrel, may be that he may not be able to cool down the opposition party members from Jammu, but can prevail upon his own party members to adopt a path of moderation rather than act as authoritarians being in majority. That should be the real prudence in dealing with the present political scenario of Jammu and Kashmir, particularly when full state hood for Jammu and Kashmir, is the prime requirement for a prosperous Jammu and Kashmir, when Jammu and Kashmir is already orphaned due to having the status of a union territory and Ladakh has been separated from it. The newly chosen representatives of the people of Jammu and Kashmir for the legislative assembly, in particular from Kashmir should see the writing on the wall and stop asking for sky. Yes, there may be compulsions for the legislators of a particular political party to ask for the ” Sky” that is undoing the act of the abrogation of article 370 and the like, as the same was in their political election manifesto. They owe it to the people of Kashmir when that political party sold such a slogan in its political manifesto amongst other such promises, to garner votes. But can it be done by drum beating on the floor of the legislative assembly when it is not so easy to have it annulled by just passing a resolution about it. No not at all, particularly when the other sizeable set of legislators seated in opposition benches from Jammu region are opposing it tooth and nail, for reasons, which are linked to the national interests as per them.
It has come in the press that this resolution is wisely worded, when it suggests about a dialogue with the government of India with the representatives from Jammu and Kashmir, about the restoring to pre 4th August 2019 position for Jammu and Kashmir, as it is now an act of the parliament, as also wetted by the supreme court of India, mentioning that article 370 has a temporary status in the constitution, It is not thus so easy to annul it at least by the government at the centre, which is its preceptor and originator.
The complex situation of such a resolution is caught between the hick ups of the two thoughts of thinking’s unfortunately. The legislators favoring it are mostly from the region belonging by and large to one set up of political thinking about Kashmir, and the opposing legislative assembly members solely belong to the vast thinking, when they consider J & K as an integral part of India in all respects and have mostly accepted the Indian Parliaments decisions of the 5th August 2019, about the abrogation of the article 370 etc.
In the valley, the deep ideological questions of restoration of statehood and the restoration of Article 370, as per the NC and the Peoples Democratic Party was a prime factor of this election for these political parties. In Jammu, the act of the abrogation of Article 370 evoked a very minimal response, when there was no question of its restoration even among people who argued that it had not benefited them to the extent imagined. Probably they are least bothered about it. In fact they may be even happy with it, feeling that Jammu and Kashmir is now a full-fledged part of India.
Jammu actually saw a more consolidated election campaign, on the plank of the development by Modi government, when the contest became fully bipolar, due to the issues contested by the NC and the other regional parties of Kashmir, which had more tendencies of polarization rather than having healing discourses. This si bound to create a vertical wedge between Jammu and Kashmir
Prudence speaks for the ruling political party in power, to adopt a posture in its political averments to save the situation which may not go out of hands to become a bone of contention between the regions of Kashmir and Jammu, as also may not result in any signs of communal distrust between the people of these two regions. Getting such resolutions mentioned or moved in the assembly by a legislator from Jammu and that too by a Hindu assembly member, is not the remedy. It may make it more complex as a blame on the ruling political party to exploit such an attempt as a divisive attempt, when the majority of the legislators from Jammu, belong to a different political entity and thinking because of a divergent different political faith and manifesto, which rejects it. The largest political party from Kashmir, which garnered the maximum assembly seats, has its roots for its majority victory, through its suspected parochial election manifesto. This election manifesto was loaded with some of the manifestations, which spoke of some distasteful and unacceptable clauses, not acceptable to the believers of Kashmir who consider J & K as an integral part of India without any preconditions. Why bring the issue of talk to Pakistan in its election manifesto. Yes, just to give a flip to the polarity of fundamentalism in Kashmir, for garnering votes on the basis of emotions of the people of the valley involved, who have always been exploited by the political rulers of Kashmir for their ulterior political motives of remaining in power for ever. Was it a fundamentalist communal move to show that NC continues to be a well-wisher of Pakistan? Does this political party equate J & K as a separate country involved in turmoil between India and Pakistan? The other point of their manifesto is about the changing the names of the most sacred religious places of Kashmiri Hindus in Kashmir, the Shankaracharya in to “Takht-e-Suleiman” and Hari Parbat, in to “Koh-e-Maran”. Was it a communal move of this political party, , to appease the majority people in Kashmir?
Have such pre election utterances resulted in divergent election results between Kashmir and Jammu. Thus the mandate in these elections show that the people of the two regions viz, Jammu and Kashmir were not allowed to be on the same wavelength, as far as the political aims, objectives and development about Jammu and Kashmir are concerned.
Let bygones be bygones. It can be said that anything is fair in love and war, though the security and the oneness of the country cannot be compromised at any cost. Jammu & Kashmir is an integral part of India without any preconditions. All the bitterness generated so for in the legislative assembly need to be forgotten by the both sides, when the ruling party has to play the big brothers role.
Omar Abdullah the young chief minister is an experienced chief minister having performed as the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir earlier for a full term. He probably does not need sermons for his new assignment. But the situation for him is not that easy, as he is heading a union territory when his powers and that of his cabinet members are limited. His immediate concern under such circumstances will be to concentrate on getting a full state hood back for J & K. In this regard it is necessary to mention here that Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has already cleared a resolution passed by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah-led Cabinet urging the Centre to restore the Statehood to the Union Territory,
There may bottlenecks in granting statehood to Jammu and Kashmir for the government of India, because of the recent series of militant attacks in the different zones of Jammu and Kashmir, particularly immediately after the coming of the new assembly in force. It shows that the enemy across the border is not allowing the true peace to prevail in Jammu and Kashmir. This may become a factor for the delay in the granting of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir. Then there are people who are demanding the release of all terrorists in jail, demanding restoration of Article 370, etc. With that kind of attitude by some assembly members going to the assembly and create chaos, then the grant of full statehood, may receive a setback. The chief minister, who appears to be sincere in his new job, shall have to labor a lot to create conducive atmosphere for the government of India to grant statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.
The new dispensation of governance which is colored with regional imbalance as per the electoral mandate between the two regions of Kashmir and Jammu, has to work beyond the eyes of polarity and ensure that Jammu gets its due. The new government has to perform beyond regional considerations and shall have to carry on the work done during the Lieutenant Governor’s rule, which was fully development oriented, equally for both the regions of Kashmir and Jammu. There was no discrimination with Jammu as was being done in the past during democratic governments Otherwise, this polarity of electoral mandate between the two- regions may be a last nail in the coffin of the relationship between Jammu and Kashmir. Jammu in that situation might ask for a separate identity as a separate state. The new ruling NC & Congress coalition should thus read this writing on the wall.
(The author is a chartered consultant civil engineer).
