NO LET-UP IN INTERVENTION

It is in the light of the above that the remarks made by Strobe Talbot on Kashmir and prime minister Nawaz Sharief's exclusive interview to The Indian Express have to be viewed. While Strobe Talbot made the observation, during his recent visit to Delhi, that the Kashmir issue is of crucial importance in Indo-Pak relations and is an issue to be settled bilaterally, Nawaz Sheriff has sought to throw the blame on India for the stalemate.

Taking a dig at the Indian government, Nawaz Sheriff said that while on other matters India is willing for third party mediation, in the case of Kashmir it is refusing to go for it. Nawaz Sheriff, however, called for immediate resumption of dialogue between the two countries and sorting of all pending issues including Kashmir. He sought to appeal to popular sentiments by inviting prime minister Vajpayee to go to Lahore on board the New Delhi-Lahore bus on its inaugural run and also affirmed that he would accompany Vajpayee on his journey back. Sheriff nevertheless wants that the Kashmir problem be settled within the year 1999 itself. Though Kashmir constitutes the key to an improvement of relations between the two countries, Nawaz Sheriff did not insist that, pending resolution of the Kashmir issue, no other issue could be settled. This is a tactical shift from the earlier Pakistani stance.

While the gestures of Nawaz Sheriff are welcome, they do not signify any scaling down of Pakistan's interventionist role in Kashmir. Mercenaries who fought alongside the Taliban in Afghanistan are being infiltrated into the valley in large numbers. While Pakistan on the one hand proclaims its intent for negotiations, on the other hand it continues with its interventionist activities.

It has to be acknowledged, however, that the Kashmir dispute can be solved only through negotiations between the two countries, accepting the existing realities. When the Shimla agreement was signed, Bhutto had accepted these realities and realised the futility of carrying on the quarrel with India on this question. But with Bhutto's execution and the military establishing its hold, under the presidency of Ziaul-Haq, things took a turn for the worse. Even after Zia's death and the installation of elected governments in Islamabad, the military establishment has been engaged in a proxy war with India in Kashmir, taking advantage of the delicate situation in the valley. The Pak administration trained, armed and infiltrated insurgents to fight this war. All major parties in Pakistan have been trying to misutilise the Kashmir situation, both to divert attention from the urgent unresolved problems of the country and to gain cheap political mileage.

PROMISES STILL UNREDEEMED

Though extremist activity had somewhat abated since the last assembly elections in the valley, frustration among the people, particularly the youth, is discernible and disturbing. The unredeemed promises made during the assembly elections, both by the state and central governments, are agitating the people who are feeling that despite having a popularly elected government, their problems and grievances are not being addressed to. Such a sense of frustration can have disturbing consequences for the already fragile political situation in the valley, which the Pakistani rulers are waiting to utilise.

We will have to look back to the recent history of Kashmir to understand the problem in its proper perspective.

The Mountbatten Plan, while dividing the country into India and Pakistan, envisaged creation of independent states other than these two, if the ruling princes opted for it. Hyderabad and Kashmir were the two states marked for this plan. However, under pressure from the people's movement in these two provinces the move was foiled. The people of Kashmir foiled the game of British imperialists and of the Maharaja of Kashmir, Hari Singh, to make Kashmir an independent state. When British-led arms tribesmen attacked Kashmir and the Maharaja fled, it was the National Conference under the leadership of Sheikh Abdullah, which stepped in. It mobilised the people and fought an armed battle against the raiders, and defeated them. Subsequently, the Maharaja was forced to sign the instrument of accession.

It is under these circumstances that a separate Constituent Assembly for drafting the constitution of Kashmir was set up. The state, as per article 370 of the Indian constitution, enjoyed special status and autonomy, with its own flag and constitution. The centre had control over three subjects only -- defence, foreign affairs and communications. These rights were given to the people of Jammu and Kashmir in recognition of their separate and distinct identity and the circumstances under which they had joined the Indian Union.

 CONGRESS AUTHORITARIANISM

However, the period since 1954 has seen consistent erosion in the powers of the state. The jurisdiction of the centre was extended to most of the subjects in the Union list; subsequently the all-India services were extended to Jammu and Kashmir through an amendment to article 312 of the constitution. Many other changes were brought in the constitution of Jammu and Kashmir, reducing the powers of the state and incorporating them either in the concurrent list or in the central list.

At the time of the Indira Gandhi-Sheikh Abdullah agreement in February 1975 assurances were given to undo the erosion which has taken place in the powers of the state since 1954. But nothing was done.

That is why when the extremists intensified their activities, the demand was raised for the restoration of all the rights provided under article 370 and for restoring its core and essence. It was realised only after a bitter struggle and the aggravation of the situation that if Kashmir is to be kept within the Indian Union it is necessary to provide it maximum autonomy. The National Conference leadership highlighted this aspect to bring back normalcy in the state.

The governments that came to power in the state since then failed to tackle the real problems facing the people. In fact the people of the state were denied necessary economic development, investment in infrastructure and the creation of more avenues for employment. This neglect of the state by the centre, which was ruling the state through the institution of governor, and its failure to protect and develop the linguistic and cultural heritage of the state also generated discontent among the people.

Over and above this factor, the Congress party, which ruled the centre for most part of the period since independence, could not reconcile to the existence of non-Congress governments in the states. Like in other states, it sought to foist its own rule in Jammu and Kashmir also. This attitude of the ruling Congress party helped the extremist forces backed by Pakistan to infiltrate into the state in large numbers and intensify their activities. People of Kashmir became the worst victims of the activities of the extremists and fundamentalist forces who succeeded, partially, to disrupt the unity of the Kashmiri people and even went to the extent of creating a situation where the people belonging to the minority community were forced to migrate from the valley.

ROLE OF BJP & ITS PREDECESSORS

The BJP and its predecessor, the Jan Sangh or the Praja Parishad of Jammu and Kashmir, never favoured the existence of article 370 in the constitution. The BJP has been most vociferous in demanding its abrogation. It may be interesting to recall the dubious role-played by the BJP-RSS in this regard. Even while the people of the state were fighting against Maharaja Hari Singh and his attempts to keep Kashmir independent, the Praja Parishad, the precursor of the present BJP in the state, supported his move. Its role, even after Kashmir acceded to India, has been reactionary. When the National Conference government, immediately after defeating the raiders, started distribution of land to the peasants, abolished landlordism without compensation and introduced several other reforms for the welfare of the people of the state, the Praja Parishad launched an agitation against it.

Presently, the BJP is trying to project as though article 370 is the root cause of the problem in Kashmir, and demands its abrogation as the panacea for all the ills in Kashmir. They refuse to recognise that the main cause for the discontent in Kashmir is that the people feel that their identity is being threatened and their aspirations are not being fulfilled.

The present incumbent in the communications ministry, Jagmohan, had also played a dubious when he was appointed governor of the state in 1990. Knowing his dubious past record, Farooq Abdullah tendered his resignation in protest. Jagmohan, over the head of the central government, without even bothering to consult it, dissolved the state assembly. Under the J&K constitution, the state governor is conferred with the right and it does not require the sanction of the president. His tenure as governor saw extremist activities rising to new heights; a new dimension was also added -- the migration of minorities from the valley started. This was a sad feature given the fact that Hindus and Muslims had lived in harmony for centuries and there had been no communal discord in the valley. The BJP, through its outfits, began communalising the atmosphere in the refugee camps.

The period also witnessed increased intervention by Pakistan.

DEMOCRATIC DEMAND

To meet the situation, the democratic movement has raised the demand that maximum autonomy should be provided to the people of Jammu and Kashmir and proper development of various regions ensured. Regional autonomy with sufficient powers has to be provided to Laddakh and Jammu regions. Even the Congress party was forced to make a declaration under Narasimha Rao government, when migration started, that maximum autonomy is to be provided. When asked about the limit of that autonomy, Rao answered that the sky was the limit.

The elections undoubtedly brought about a favourable situation, but they were not followed by an attempt to redeem the promises made to the electorate who, defying the extremists and fundamentalists, had voted in large numbers for restoration of peace in Kashmir.

Unfortunately, after the elections the National Conference failed to live up to the people's expectations. On the other hand it again started to maneuver with various sections and could not even create confidence among the minority community which were forced to migrate from the valley.

The present NC leadership seems to have forgotten its past history; sheer opportunism has led them into the company of the BJP. Moreover, the National Conference has had a certain secular credentials while the BJP is a rank communal party. This gamble of the leadership has given rise to resentment within the NC and has not been taken by the people lightly.

Unless a determined and concerted bid to address the grievances of the people is made, the situation in Kashmir will continue to be troubled. While strengthening article 370 and assuring the people of the protection of their identity, development of their culture and preservation of their heritage, rapid economic development has to be simultaneously undertaken. Infrastructure development, measures aimed at promoting tourism and horticulture, and bringing in other industries that can generate large-scale employment are required. This will assuage the feelings of the youth, within which the sense of frustration is growing.

The democratic minded people of Kashmir have to come forward to defend the traditions of the movement led by the National Conference, build the unity of all the people of Kashmir, try to overcome the difficulties they have been facing, unitedly fight against insurgency and terrorism, and get their demand for more autonomy accepted.