Include ladakh, PoK in Kashmir dialogue
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's stress on all four parts of the Jammu & Kashmir — Jammu, Kashmir valley, ladakh and the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) — while outlining the contours of the roadmap for a dialogue on the Kashmir issue at the All Party Meeting that was held on Friday will help in bringing out a comprehensive solution for the State. All the parties attending the meet, coming in one voice that ‘there can be no compromise on security' shows how serious all political parties are about the growing threat coming from militancy in the State. It was absolutely a timely intervention by the Prime Minister on the Kashmir issue while agreeing to address the genuine concerns of all categories of people within the ambit of the Constitution. When there has been rising concern around the actions of the security forces against the protesters after the day of the killing of the Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani, it was in fact very urgent on the part of the Government to convey to the people that currently the forces are displaying enough restraint while dealing with protests. The Prime Minister has rightly highlighted that J&K is an age-old symbol of harmony between different communities. Therefore, Pakistan's decade's old struggle to foment terror and create instability in J&K should be equally foiled both by our armed forces and by the ordinary people of the State. It is time now, as Modi had stated, Pakistan must be hold accountable for committing brutal terror against the people in Balochistan and in the PoK. While underlining the fact that PoK is an integral part of J&K, he has once again reminded Pakistan that it has to cede this territory to India sooner or later for sure. Sending a strong signal to Pakistan that it is solely responsible for the current saga of unrest in State, he had reiterated the Government's uncompromising stand on terror.
Roping in on the opposition, all political parties in the State and infusing an atmosphere of safety, security and confidence will go a long way to bring back peace to Kashmir. Further Modi's invoking of the ideals of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee that is ‘insaniyat, jamhooriyat, Kashmiriyat' days before addressing the all party meet, can be an added strength for the Government to speed up the confidence building measures among the people of the State. While walking the tightrope, the Government must bear in mind that unless the issue of cross-border terrorism is resolved, the State will never come back to normalcy and this will eventually derail all the developmental projects that are being initiated by both the Union and the State Governments so far. Henceforth, lack of development accompanied by high rate of unemployment and insecurity of a decent living, will exacerbate the growing unrest among the youth. Pakistan, as usual, will be happier ever to exploit the youth of the State, aptly described as the ‘economic powerhouse for India', but for our devilish neighbour, they will serve as the breeding ground of Islamic jihad and hate mongers against the genuine people of Kashmir. Precisely, the Islamists have never espoused the cause of the commoners of J&K, but loyally serve their masters on the other side of the border for years who simply want them to spread terror targeting the very people for whom they have been supposedly fighting for. However, time has come for a permanent solution in J&K. Modi must unveil the new path.