There are talks by Indian politicians to cloak Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK) using military. This is after the abrogation of article 370 that withdrew Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and made it into two union territories. According to scroll.in such topic belongs to diplomatic platforms.
First, Home minister Amit Shah said that India will sacrifice anything to acquire Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Then Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that the further talk with Pakistan will be about these territories of the former princely state.
On top of that, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar when asked about the statement by Singh, said “Our position has, is and will always be very clear on PoK, that it is part of India and we expect one day we will have physical jurisdiction over it.” This according to Scroll.in has added some war talk.
It is clear on the paper that the entire erstwhile princely state of Jammu and Kashmir is of India, including section held by Pakistan. That is why Jaishankar’s statement is just a restatement of the position India has had since 1949.
According to Scroll.in this is the very reason that Jammu and Kashmir is a disputed area and the line dividing India and Pakistan is a line of control, not an international border. Moreover, both the countries over the years are conformable in turning the Line of Control into a border. Because, both the countries came close to this twice- first during talks over the 1972 Simla Agreement and then in the 1999-2009 decade when Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf was on the brink of signing a deal.
On the other hand, it can’t be possible unless people of both sides of Jammu and Kashmir want this. That is why according to Scroll.in policymakers know that it is dangerous to sell that idea that Indian military will pour into Jammu and Kashmir one day and return it to India.
Jammu and Kashmir governor made this point crystal and clear. He said on Wednesday that ministers are speaking about Jammu and Kashmir and about taking back the PoK because they don’t get chance to speak about international issues. “This is their thinking. I say if PoK is our next target, instead of war, we can take it back on the basis of development of Jammu and Kashmir,” added the Governor Satyapal Malik.
Scroll.in on development statement about Jammu and Kashmir by Malik says that it is problematic to talk about development in Jammu and Kashmir without the support of its people, but said the governor’s strategic point is accurate. The report also says that, the PoK issue is the talk of diplomatic platforms and it is irresponsible to hurt public sentiment by making statements about military intervention. Especially when the tension with India and Pakistan is intense.
