The Prime Minister in his first public comment on the continuing spell of violence in the Kashmir Valley sounded conciliatory, offering talks and accommodation to the people if they returned to the path of peace.
Speaking at a function in Alijapur in Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday, Narendra Modi in an elliptical manner responded to the oft-heard chant in the Valley, saying that the azaadi that every Indian feels, Kashmir can feel as well. Notably, reference to azaadi followed the assertion that every Indian loves Kashmir.
Clearly, the separatists cannot be pleased with Modi putting all Indians on the same footing as the Kashmiris. But the Prime Minister was merely reiterating what has been the consistent stand of the country all along.
However, Modi offered to discuss the problem in the Vajpayeesque spirit of insaniyat coupled with jamoorriyat (democracy). Modi’s appeal is unlikely to be heeded by the separatists whose actions are dictated by their ISI minders in Pakistan. At least the political elements in the Valley who are pushed to the margins in times of violence will feel encouraged by the prime ministerial intervention.
The complaint that Modi did not weigh in on the on-going spell of unrest will also lose sting after Wednesday’s virtual offer of talks. It is notable that a day earlier Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti in her meeting with central leaders had called for a dialogue in a spirit of insaniyat. It did not take more than a day for the PM to respond positively.
It is now for Mufti, more than anyone else, to create conducive conditions for the start of a formal conversation with the relevant interlocutors. Though nothing may eventually come out of the nth dialogue with those who are not their own free agents, but nonetheless such an exercise would help lower the temperature.
For nearly a month Kashmir has been in the grip of violence following the death of Burhan Wani in an encounter with the security forces. Shedding all pretence of neutrality, Pakistan has openly ignited fires, calling Wani, a self-styled commander of the Pakistan-based Hizbul Mujahideen, a martyr.
The abuse of social media by Wani had created a larger than life image for himself. Upon his death, security forces have been stoned indiscriminately by young miscreants. The use of pellet guns to contain the violent protests had resulted in some of them losing their eyesight partially. A number of security men too had likewise suffered severe eye injuries due to stone-throwing by the Pakistan-inspired youths. More than fifty people had been killed in the month-long violence.
On the eve of the Independence Day there are fears that the pro-Pakistan elements would try and incite violence. The authorities cannot be careful enough. Further escalation of violence must be avoided through a mixture of tact and toughness. Modi’s lament that instead of computers and books, Kashmiri youths seemed to have embraced stones and bricks is unlikely to find resonance with those who are driven by the Pak-funded jihadi agenda.
It is just as well that on Wednesday the Government decided to send a stern message to Islamabad following the capture of a Pakistani national who had intruded across the Line of Control for fomenting terror. Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar summoned Pakistan envoy Abdul Basit to lodge protest over the export of Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist, one Bahadur Ali, who was caught with a huge cache of deadly arsenal, including AK 47, live ammunition, grenade launcher, etc. He also had a sophisticated communication equipment with which he received directions from his superiors in LeT in Pakistan.
The latest round of public recriminations between the two neighboring countries reflects the sensitive situation in the Valley. How and when the spell of violence will be broken is hard to say but both Mufti and Modi ought to reach out to the relevant actors in the Valley who are not openly allied with Pakistan.
Despite growing cynicism all around, it is not true that there are not quite a few men and women of goodwill in Kashmir who want a peaceful solution to the decades-long discord. So long as that solution is within the ambit of the Constitution, Modi and Mufti should have no hesitation in accepting it. But anything that undermines the sovereignty and integrity of India over Kashmir will remain non-negotiable.
