Bedfellows of Kashmir Politics

Bedfellows of Kashmir Politics
Kamal Hak

The joint efforts of ruling PDP government and opposition National Conference to get Jammu and Kashmir Permanent Residents (Disqualification) Bill passed in the state’s legislative assembly amply proves all shades of Kashmir polity can become bed fellows on the question of undermining the basic tenants of Indian democracy. It also reveals true colours of both National Conference and the PDP who, despite their differing political ideology, share a sinister agenda of further consolidating the muslimization of Kashmiri thought process in order to drive a deeper wedge between Muslim dominated Kashmir and rest of India.

A lot has been written and said about alienation of Muslim majority of Kashmir since the country became independent in 1947. The writers, most of whom happen to be simply arm chair critics with no understanding of the intricacies of Kashmiri psyche or political under current have made a virtue of seeing all evil in the so called Indian imperialistic misadventures in Kashmir. These writers have been so overwhelmed by the weight of their own arguments that they have often lost sight of the basic issues. Their mental fixation of smelling a rat where there is none has also helped in establishing a large number of distortions with respect to the reasons of discord in Kashmir. Unfortunately, the tendency of the Indian secularist intelligentsia to label all pro- nationalist assertions as a threat to the Muslims have helped the Kashmiri separatists to carve out a sympathetic space in the public opinion. It has also helped the mainstream polity in Kashmir to pursue a diabolical agenda of covertly creating a playground for separatist to play on and that too without attracting any media attention.

It is really amazing to find the Kashmir watchers maintaining a deafening silence on the periodic moves initiated by the local governments, irrespective of their political agenda, which threaten to erode the basic pillars on which the Indian republic stands. The Indian polity, media, commentators and the intelligentsia have miserably failed to see the role of National Conference, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and other mainstream political parties of Kashmir in creating situations form where the separatists exploit those as more attempts by fascist Indian government to deprive the Kashmiri people of their rights and inflict more injustice on them. It is, therefore, important for the dispassionate observers to understand and propagate the possibilities of mammoth damages to the integrity of India if Kashmir polity is allowed a free run in utilizing the legislature to adopt and implement such resolutions which go against the national interests.

Although, the Kashmiri people have no valid reasons, other than fanatical, to rise against the country, which has always accorded them a position of privilege, yet it can not be denied some sections of the people did maintain an under current of a simmering dissent against India. This was more due to the longing for association with Islamic state of Pakistan than any thing else. Since, this discontent was not very widespread and did not often find a public expression the Kashmiri people went about with their lives as unconcerned with the political intricacies as any other people in rest of the country. However, the advent of Sheikh Abdullah as the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir changed the way Kashmiri’s think. It is ironic the grave of the very person, who was instrumental in sowing the seeds of fundamentalism in Kashmir, now needs to be protected against vandalism. That, however, is a different story altogether and not relevant to the present argument.

Among the many steps initiated by the Sheikh, during his chief minister ship, at least three of those can be termed to have had far reaching consequences in terms of being instrumental in creating a mind set that sees nothing beyond Islamic fundamentalism. Sheikh Abdullah planted the first seeds of religious fundamentalism in Kashmir by issuing an administrative diktat for making Friday prayers compulsory for all. This first instance of religion and the state coming together to force offices, educational institutions, recreation centers and businesses etc to close for a purely religious activity was used by Sheikh to gain a political advantage. True, the Sheikh benefited politically by using religion as tool but the Indian masses failed to grasp the real import of the move. The whipping up of a mass frenzy during these prayers has now become a hallmark of separatist politics in Kashmir.

Sheikh Abdullah also succeeded in creating a feeling of Islamic nationhood among the masses by a systematic administrative muslimization of the centuries old Kashmiri legacy. By changing the names of hundreds of villages to Muslim names, the Sheikh not only tried to erase the historical facts about the valley but also gave ample signals to dormant fundamentalist to see the direction of the wind. The Indian intelligentsia was so carried away by the carefully maintained liberal face of the Sheikh that they didn’t even notice the damage being done to the socio-political fabric of Kashmir.

The third and the most significant act of the Sheikh that changed the face of Kashmir was the official patronage accorded to a massive Islamic conference organized by a rabid fundamentalist group known as “Allah Walley”. The extravagant state support to the weeklong congregation saw the hordes of bearded Islamic preachers descending into the valley for spreading what they called a message of God. Many of these Allah Walley’s latter spanned into the villages and hamlets of Kashmir to sow the seeds of fundamentalism in the gullible masses. It is interesting to note the beards and the special “pathan suits” made their appearance in Kashmir only after the “Allah Walley” convention.

Sheikh’s son Farooq Abdullah has always been projected has a liberal, secular and nationalist face of Kashmiri Muslims. That JKLF lists him, as the founder member of that organization has been completely lost upon his admirers out side Kashmir. Farooq Abdullah’s masterful craft of providing secret support to the propagators of Muslim fundamentalism in Kashmir is a well-known fact and his autonomy plank has often been seen as route through which the road to independence of Kashmir passes. Having faced no significant opposition to his autonomy thesis he was emboldened to contemplate an act, which would allow all Pakistanis of Kashmiri origin to not only return and settle in Kashmir but also to reclaim their properties, which they left behind in the aftermath of the partition. If successful, this move would have created a piquant situation wherein the Pakistani citizens would have had unrestricted access to India and its territory. It would have been ironic to provide Pakistani citizens opportunities for acquiring land and property in India where as the same is denied to Indians in Kashmir. It is also interesting to note that such a move would have only benefited the Muslims while as hundreds and thousands of genuine displaced Hindus from Mirpur and elsewhere in Pakistan, are still denied the basic rights available to the state subjects of Jammu and Kashmir.

The ruling PDP and National Conference maintain a strict image of being sworn enemies and leave no opportunity to run down each other. Yet, they find it convenient to rub shoulders together on the issue of depriving Hindu women of their fundamental rights. It is important to note the vertical divide in the Jammu and Kashmir polity on the issue of Permanent Residents (Disqualification) Bill. The failed bill blatantly sought to create a further chasm between the already divided communities in Kashmir. The sinister designs behind the proposed bill, with major implications on the displaced Kashmiri Pandits and the Hindu majority of Jammu, has again failed to stir the Kashmir watchers. It will not be before long when the separatists in Kashmir rake up the failure of this bills as yet another example of Indian arbitrariness on people.

Today, Kashmir is a burning cauldron fueled by the religious passions of fundamentalist out to create an autocratic society. Their ideological companions both within and outside Kashmir ably support these forces. The so-called mainstream polity in Kashmir loses no opportunity to provide life support and ammunition to them. The displaced Kashmiri Pandits may not be surprised at this but are definitely shocked at the naivety of intelligentsia who fail to see through this game.