The weak-kneed policies of the Congress-led UPA regime have emboldened Kashmir’s leaders to the extent that they are brazenly promoting anti-India, pro-Pakistani causes in J&K
Gone are the days when Kashmiri leaders like Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad and Ghulam Mohammad Sadiq used to take up cudgels against the likes of Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah and work in tandem with New Delhi to integrate Jammu and Kashmir with India.
Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad, who ruled J&K as Prime Minister for 11 years, from 1953 to 1964, not only neutralised the influence of Sheikh Abdullah and Pakistan, but also introduced revolutionary changes in the Constitution to establish democracy and rule of law in the State. It was he who abrogated the obnoxious Section 75 of the Jammu & Kashmir Constitutional Act of 1939 under which the “final interpreter” of the State Constitution was the “Council of Ministers” and not the Jammu & Kashmir High Court of Judicature.
It was during his regime that the anti-democratic Jammu & Kashmir Press and Publication Act of 1932 was repealed and the Press granted full freedom; the Supreme Court’s jurisdiction extended to the State, and the obnoxious permit system too was abolished. GM Sadiq’s contribution to the politico-constitutional integration of J&K into India was equally splendid. It was during his regime (1964-1971) that the offices of Sadar-e-Riyasat (constitutional head of State) and Wazir-e-Azam (executive head of State) were abolished and the offices of Governor and Chief Minister introduced. It happened in 1965, the year the National Conference was disbanded and Sadiq became the first-ever Congress Chief Minister of the State. It was during Sadiq’s time that the State was brought within the ambit of Central laws and institutions like the Comptroller and Auditor-General and the Election Commission of India.
But things started changing in 1975, when then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi brought back to power Sheikh Abdullah after bringing down the Congress Government. Her father, Jawaharlal Nehru, had got the Sheikh dismissed from the office of Wazir-e-Azam and had him arrested for having conspired against India with the help of the United States to set up a ‘Switzerland-type Independent Kashmir’.
Instead of being grateful to Indira Gandhi, the Sheikh again used his position to muddy the waters in the valley. The process continues unabated, and today, it is impossible to distinguish between the Kashmir-based mainstream and separatist organisations, which are conducting themselves as Pakistan’s representatives in Kashmir. On June 24, the eve of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and AICC president Sonia Gandhi’s two-day visit, the mainstream and separatist outfits in one voice urged the Prime Minister to restart the dialogue process with Pakistan, aimed at finding a lasting solution to the Kashmir problem.
“While we want a developmental package for the State, we would also like the Prime Minister to use the soil of Kashmir for extending a hand of friendship to Pakistan and restart the dialogue process with it,” the National Conference said. “Whenever the Prime Minister visits the valley, hope is generated. The Prime Minister has already welcomed the election of Nawaz Sharif and the elections in Pakistan saw no animosity with India”, Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee president Saifuddin Soz helpfully explained.
Chief spokesperson of the Opposition PDP Naeem Akhtar, said that “peace process needs to be revived” and “it was time to go beyond local issues and reach out to stakeholders in the region as well as across the border”.
CPI(M) State secretary MY Tarigami said that the “people of Kashmir expect significant intervention from the Prime Minister which can create confidence among Kashmiris. He should reach out to Pakistan and initiate a dialogue process with the new Government there”. And Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who holds a constitutional position, during a presentation on developmental issues at the Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre, said that New Delhi must resume “sustained and meaningful dialogue with Pakistan”. Kashmiri separatists, including All Parties Hurriyat Conference (M) chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, felt that the Prime Minister should initiate a dialogue with Pakistan.
He said, “New Delhi should look at Kashmir beyond the prism of development, economic and security angle and work on finalising confidence building measures so that the trust of Kashmiris is rebuilt.” There is no fundamental difference in all these remarks towards Pakistan. Not a single Kashmiri leader spoke for India, or that J&K is a settled issue. But they all spoke the language of the separatists. It is obvious that the weak-kneed policies of the Congress-dominated UPA Government have emboldened the Kashmiri leaders to the extent that they are brazenly promoting the anti-India, pro-Pakistani cause in the State.
(The writer is Chair Professor, Maharaja Gulab Singh Chair, University of Jammu)