Tale of two messages

Published on:

14 Aug 2014, 12:00 am

Modi slams Pakistan, promises progress in J&K

On his second trip to Jammu & Kashmir within a span of a few weeks, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday sent out two key messages. The first was intended for the Establishment across the border, and the second for the people of Jammu & Kashmir. In the first case, he noted that the “neighbouring country”, having lost the ability to fight a conventional war against India, has been waging a proxy war. In the second, he promised progress and development to Jammu & Kashmir. Both elicited responses along expected lines.

The Foreign Office of Pakistan, the country Mr Modi was referring to, rejected the charges as “baseless rhetoric”, while the war-weary people of Jammu & Kashmir welcomed the Prime Minister's focus on economic growth. Both messages are in keeping with Mr Modi's stated policies and priorities. During the lok Sabha campaign itself, he had made clear that his administration would focus on inclusive economic development — now, it is good to see that Jammu & Kashmir, often excluded from the country's economic blueprint, has found a place on Mr Modi's map. With regard to foreign policy, Mr Modi had underlined that, unlike previous regimes, which had gone soft on security issues, thereby emboldening anti-India elements, he wouldn’t tolerate aggression on India's borders.

Mr Modi’s critics, who call him a war-monger and will surely deride him now for taking a ‘hardline' stance, only weeks before the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan meet, must keep in mind that the Prime Minister's comments come in the backdrop of increased hostilities along the line of Control. Apart from the routine ceasefire violations by Pakistan, a militant attack in Pampore injured eight men from the Border Security Force on Monday night. On July 16, a BSF jawan was killed in Pakistani firing along the International Border. And this is not even to mention the damage caused by jihadi forces nurtured by Pakistan. Since 1947, Pakistan has resorted to proxy warfare because it believes that it cannot win a conventional war against India. This has been problematic on several counts — it assumes that India will launch a conventional war which is absurd in the current context. Also, it is rather odd that the Pakistani Army, despite being such a powerful force, is forever insecure about its abilities to perform its most basic task. Finally, the the jihadi groups, which have been able to inflict limited damage upon India, have wreaked havoc in Pakistan.

At home, Mr Modi's focus on development in Jammu & Kashmir marks a break from the past. For too long, New Delhi has sought to maintain its hold on the State by throwing money at the Government in Srinagar. This has caused a vicious cycle of political co-dependence that discourages economic development. Hopefully, Mr Modi will reverse this cycle. Apart from the power projects he inaugurated in leh and Kargil, and the one he launched during his trip last month, his Government has also announced an Indian Institute of Technology for Jammu and a mega solar power project for ladakh. He promised several initiatives to boost tourism in the State. One hopes that unlike what happened during the previous regime, these promises will be kept and the local people will benefit.