JK PANORAMA DECEMBER 2017

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Whither Kashmir ? We need to understand the whole issue in a historical perspective It is bitter and very few people understand that:- 1) India wants to retain Kashmir, with people if possible; with the help of Gun if necessary. 2) That ultimately, India's secular democracy will be on trial in Kashmir. he above observation is based on experience and as the things stand now. So much has been Twritten on Kashmir and so much is in store to be written. Writers, Historians and scholars {library products} have forayed into past, dug deep graves to get skeletons of the forgotten kings. Some have written what others have already tried. A mere repetition of facts. Very few have gone deep into the labyrinths of actual pain and agony of the people of Kashmir. I have tried to keep the historical perspective in view on the changes that have occurred in the last seven decades in the subcontinent and on the global level. I also want to clear that we should not be much bothered about individuals; however high their projection. What matters is the problem confronting us. We know that the speed of technological engine has shaken the concepts of politics, economy, sociology and history. (A prominent intellectual has said that history has seized to exist- though debatable). Walls of nation states are crumbling; territorial boundaries are vanishing and oceans shrinking. A new trend of ethnic assertion is emerging as in Crimea and Eastern Europe. We are confronted with the mindset of an epoch where identities are blurred in political, religious and ethnical mist. PARTITION Tumultuous events of the 1940's have not only changed the history but also geography of the subcontinent; creating multiple problems of diverse dimensions. Partition of India as is believed now was in essence, the partition of the Muslims of the subcontinent who are now scattered in three countries viz India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Pakistan and Bangladesh are free and independent countries. People there though poor, are psychologically satisfied and have a sense of belonging. It is the Indian Muslim, who has become the worst sufferer of partition. Even worse is the plight of those Muslims who migrated from India to Pakistan to Bangladesh and vice versa. These people have lost their sense of belonging because the three countries have not accepted them as their real and genuine citizens. Now they are neither Indians nor Pakistanis nor Bangladeshis. Their identity is floating in the air. Their number is in lacs. Dispute Kashmir dispute would have never come into existence; had the Britisher's conceded district Gurdaspur to Pakistan. Britisher's had a long drawn strategy visa-vis this subcontinent. They needed a pocket of irritation to keep the subcontinent on boil and keep their hegemonistic mindset intact. More importantly they needed a market for the sale of their armament. The practice is still in vogue so they created the problem of Kashmir. Options Kashmir dispute was taken to U.N.O by India. Security counsel passed a resolution by virtue of which right of self-determination was in principle accepted as the best solution of the problem. India and Pakistan became the two parties to dispute. Prior to partition, on 2nd July 1947:- Northwest frontier (now Pakhtoon khwa) voted to join Pakistan in a referendum. Afghanistan has a claim on Pashtoon dominated western areas of the territory as its own. Its noteworthy that Afghanistan was the only country to vote against Pakistan's admission to United Nations because of its claim on the Pakhtoon territories. A political question as to the doctrine of merger arises. By joining Pakistan; did the people of Pakhtoonistan lose their independence or they protected it. It is on the same analogy as happened in America. At the end of American civil war (which was later called the war of independence), almost all the warring states merged into one state and called themselves The United states of America. It simply implies that the political 03 14 December <strong>2017</strong>
doctrine of merger of small states is not only convenient but sustainable political method to protect their freedom and independence. Division or break up of states on the other hand provides some kind of succor but also carries with it the seeds of destruction. Take the case of Pakistan's break up: - emergence of Bangladesh created new legal, social, political and constitutional questions. Based on the principles of inheritance, Bangladesh can, when it decides to do so claim to be the party to Kashmir dispute. It is like breaking of a family when the legal heirs inherit assets as well as liabilities of their parental legacies. In the beginning of the conflict, right of selfdetermination was the first law of Kashmiri people – because in their heart of hearts; it would simply mean joining Pakistan. They have not abandoned this right even today. But with the passage of time as the events unfolded and after the three wars that India and Pakistan fought; there is a discernible tendency that the people have towards an independent Jammu & Kashmir. It is understandable if the people of Kashmir seek independence for the Kashmiri people (Kashmiri Speaking) but when you bracket Jammu with it; the context changes. There is no way the issue of independence can be treated in isolation without taking into consideration, all the hundreds of years of history that goes with the entire subcontinent and the specific parameters and conditions which the British created when they decided to leave the subcontinent. So nobody can ignore these specific conditions and treat the problems of the subcontinent in isolation. It is a fact of history that no state of the subcontinent has ever been independent and sovereign. They have been ruled by Raja's, Kings and Nawabs and lastly by the British. Independence and sovereignty were born out of a nation state- a phenomenon of nineteenth century. The characteristics that have been associated with sovereignty, territory, autonomy, recognition and control- do not provide an accurate description of the actual practices of sovereign states. Not only that nation states are crumbling but non-state actors such as international corporations and non-governmental organizations are widely seen as eroding the economic and political power of Nation states; potentially leading to their eventual disappearance. Making of the State of J&K The state of Jammu and Kashmir came into being on 16th March 1846 (treaty of Amritsar). Dr Abdul Ahad writes- “The welding together of a bunch of unconnected and unrelated territories, inhabited by sharply contrasting ethnic, linguistic and cultural identities, by unconcerned peoples, into a new state of Jammu and Kashmir, for their own aggrandizement and profit, was a rare event that history has seldom witnessed. It was an extraordinary occurrence of 03 15 weaving and unholy political, social and territorial alliance.”(Kashmir Rediscovered- Page 217) So it is clear that state of Jammu and Kashmir was brain child of the British with ulterior motives and with an intention to keep the subcontinent burning by manipulation and intrigue. It is a fact of history that Kashmiris have never ruled their land. A dim glimpse of emergence of Kashmiri power emerged in 1947 when the Non Kashmiris areas remained on the other side of L.O.C. The present desire to make Jammu & Kashmir an independent state is fraught the danger of diluting Kashmiri Power. It is as clear as white snow that sacrifices are being given by Kashmiris, there women being molested, children being killed and the irony of the fate is that the beneficiaries are sitting on the fence waiting for the Apple to fall. (Beneficiaries are Gilgit, Askurdu, Baltistan, Muzzafarabad, Mirpur, Jammu Province, Kargil and Ladakh). It is also a naked fact of reality that in these areas there has been no organized support, demonstration, nor actual participation in support of the struggle Kashmiris have launched. Should such a miracle happen that Jammu & Kashmir state becomes an independent sovereign state and the whole world agreeing to this formation, the fall out of such an occurrence will be a mixture of pain and pleasure? Pleasure, because independence is in place and Pain, because the Kashmiri Power gets diluted. In such an arrangement, the President or the Prime Minister will always be from Non- Kashmiri Belt. And Kashmiris may get 3 or 4 ministerial berths, they will have to play second fiddle role. After giving sacrifices of such a greatest magnitude, is that worth. What about the present system we are living in. The three regions are at daggers drawn. Each ethnic region vies for political, economic and social empowerment. “On the other end of the spectrum, the political polarization is also exemplified by the fact that there has been no single pan state party representing aspirations of all the people. Even when a party has emerged on a pan state level, it has had to posture differently in the three regions to stay relevant”- V.S So the need of the hour is that leaders of Kashmir come together, sit, debate, analyze and reach a consensus on the basis of which an ultimate resolution of the vexed problem can be found. It is important as long as people do not describe the idea of what they are fighting for, they shall keep on walking on an endless road, following shadows. Vague, ambiguous slogans clouded in emotional structure will not help. Ordinary leaders are satisfied with removing frictions over embarrassments- Statesman create and transform situations. They are visionaries who can look destiny in the eye without flinching. A man who does not change; can change nothing. December <strong>2017</strong>
Page 1: DECEMBER 2017 VOL 2 ISSUE 9 DECEMBE
Page 5 and 6: The Incredible America E D I T O R
Page 7 and 8: JK Panorama Desk FREEDOM OF EXPRESS
Page 9 and 10: Ministry in Delhi ordered the withd
Page 11 and 12: security personals and others have
Page 13: Graduation in Mass Communication &
Page 17 and 18: seventeen years but we will continu
Page 19 and 20: some 'mainstream' leadership talks
Page 21 and 22: Manufacturer of Poly-carbonate and
Page 23 and 24: ight decisions in complex situation
Page 25 and 26: 2017 Year End Review: Department of
Page 27 and 28: Betab Pages B N Betab Shene Peto-Pe
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JK PANORAMA DECEMBER 2017

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