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India Gazette
8 hours ago
- Politics
- India Gazette
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar pays tribute to Syama Prasad Mookerjee on 91st birth anniversary
New Delhi [India], June 23 (ANI): Vice-President of India, Jagdeep Dhankhar on Monday paid homage to Syama Prasad Mukherjee, saying, 'It's a great day in the history of our nation. One of the finest sons of our soil, today, his Balidan Diwas is Shyama Prasad Mukherjee. Dhankhar further added, 'We suffered from Article 370 for too long. It bled us and the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Article 370 and the draconian Article 35A deprived people of their basic human rights and fundamental rights. We had a visionary Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, and a Home Minister in the shoes of Sardar Patel, Amit Shah. Article 370 does not exist now in our Constitution. It was abrogated on 5th August 2019, and the legal challenge to the Supreme Court failed on 11 December 2023. I, therefore, cannot be at a more befitting place than this to pay tribute to one of the finest sons of our soil. My tributes to him.' Addressing the inaugural session of the 99th Annual Meet and National Conference of Vice Chancellors (2024-2025), organised by the Association of Indian Universities (AIU), at Gautam Buddha Nagar, Uttar Pradesh, Dhankhar said, highlighting the National Education Policy, 'I must share with you something which happened after more than 3 decades, that has really changed the landscape of our education. I am referring to the 'National Education Policy' 2020. As governor of the State of West Bengal, I was associated with it. Some major inputs -- in the hands of thousands -- were taken into consideration for the evolution of this policy.' 'The policy resonates with our civilizational spirit, essence, and ethos. It is a bold reaffirmation of India's timeless belief that education is the awakening of the self, not just for the education of skills,' he added. 'I have firmly believed that education is a great equaliser. Education brings about equality as no other mechanism does. Education decimates inequities. As a matter of fact, education gives life to democracy,' he further stated. Congratulating the Government of Uttar Pradesh, he stated, 'My congratulations to the Government of Uttar Pradesh. The Chief Minister has done a great initiative. IT was given 'Industry Status'. That has a huge consequence for positive development. Another aspect for which UP is getting increasingly recognised is at the school education level. The transparency and accountability in administration is becoming a hallmark.' Applauding India's national progress, the Vice-President said, 'India has emerged as a land of opportunity, of entrepreneurship, of startups, of innovation, of unicorns. In every parameter where growth and development can be gauged, we are rising.' On the role of universities, the Vice-President emphasised, 'Our universities are not meant to just hand out degrees. The degrees must carry great weightage. Universities must be sanctuaries of ideas and ideation, crucibles of innovation. These places have to catalyse big change.' 'That responsibility lies on the Vice-Chancellors in particular and the academia in general. I appeal to you, there must be space for disagreement, debate, dialogue and discussion. That is how the mind cells are activated. Abhivyakti, Vaad Vivaad, Anant Vaad -- these are inalienable facets of our civilisation, of our democracy.' Highlighting India's potential to lead in knowledge domains, he said, 'When you look around the world, you'll understand its significance. The state of education defines not only the state of academics, but the state of the nation. We cannot remain perpetual students of Western innovation when our demographic dividend position says, as the world's knowledge epicenter.' 'And when we look back in our ancient history, we are reminded of our rich past. It is time Bharat must build world-class institutions, not just to teach, but to pioneer. These are not mere disciplines. These are levers of assurance of our sovereignty in all times to come.' Calling for equitable expansion of higher education, the Vice-President observed, 'A lot of our institutions have remained brown-field. Let us fall in line with the global groove -- let's go green. Greenfield institutions alone bring about equitable distribution. There is clusterization in metros and Tier 1 cities. Many regions remain untouched.' 'Let's go in for greenfield institutions in such areas. Vice Chancellors are not only the watchdogs, but also impregnable bulwarks against the commodification and commercialisation of education. One of our fundamental objectives is to ensure affordability, reach, and accessibility of quality education for ordinary people.' Concluding his address with a call to establish leadership in emerging domains, the Vice-President asserted, 'Establish institutions of uncompromising excellence in emerging domains -- artificial intelligence, climate change, climate technology, quantum science, digital ethics -- then Bharat will lead, others will follow. That's a challenge.' 'Education is not just for the public good. It is our most strategic national asset. It is integrally connected not only with our development journey in infrastructure or otherwise, it assures national security also.' 'Friends, I am before academicians and therefore I will reveal my thought process a little more critically for your analysis. Impossible choices define our character and strength. We must not take the easy route. Impossible choices define that we really have a great inheritance. Taking the easy path is getting into mediocrity, and then into irrelevance and insignificance.' 'Universities are crucibles to generate such choices. They prepare minds. They prepare people to be intrepid -- to go in for impossible choices.' Sunil Kumar Sharma, Minister for IT and Electronics, Government of Uttar Pradesh; Ashok K. Chauhan, Founder President, Amity Education and Research Group; Vinay Kumar Pathak, President, AIU; and Pankaj Mittal, Secretary General, AIU, and other dignitaries were also present. (ANI)
India Gazette
30-05-2025
- Politics
- India Gazette
Delegation came here to expose Pakistani propaganda: BJP's Aparajita Sarangi in Indonesia
Jakarta [Indonesia], May 30 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Aparajita Sarangi on Friday interacted with the Indian diaspora and said that the multi-party delegation led by Janata Dal (United) MP Sanjay Kumar Jha had come here to explain India's stand on cross-border terrorism to the international community and to tell expose Pakistani propaganda of lies. 'We have come here with only two purposes: to explain India's stand on cross-border terrorism to the international community... and to tell everyone that Pakistan has been indulging in creating false propaganda and peddling lies... We had a very fruitful interaction with everyone who matters in Indonesia,' Sarangi said while addressing the gathering here. Apprising about the brutality of the Pahalgam terrorist attack, the BJP leader said that India advocates for peace. Still, in the April 22 attack, women and children saw their husbands and fathers get murdered. 'War has never been India's choice. We have always been advocates of peace, and we will continue to be can never go to war, but this time, women and their children saw the murder of their husbands and a sign of a married woman, was removed from their foreheads by the murderers from Pakistan,' Sarangi said. 'There is no doubt that Pakistan is nourishing and promoting terrorism... There are recurring events of terrorism that Pakistan perpetrated... There is a need for peace within our territory, not a national, but a global need,' she added. The delegation member pointed out that the DGMO of Pakistan contacted the DGMO of India on May 10 to request a halt to the conflict between the two neighbouring countries. Further apprising about the abrogation of Article 370, which gave autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir, Sarangi said that Kashmir has become an integral part of India, which irritated Pakistan, which doesn't want peace in India. 'On August 5, 2019, Article 370 and Article 35A were given goodbye. The constitution was amended, and Kashmir became an integral part of India. The rest is history as far as the progress of Kashmir is concerned. This irritated the neighbour. They don't want peace and stability in the country. They don't want India to move on the path of progress. And that is why all these things have been happening... This time, there is nothing but zero tolerance against terrorism,' she said. Comparing India and Pakistan over foreign exchange reserves, Sarangi said India was on the cusp of progress with foreign exchange reserves of 690 billion dollars. In comparison, the neighbouring country has reserves of just 15 billion dollars. 'India is on the cusp of progress... We are the fourth-largest economy and will be the third, surpassing Germany in the next 2.5 to 3 years. Our GDP growth rate is 6.4 per cent. We have Foreign exchange results to the tune of 690 billion dollars. Pakistan has foreign exchange reserves of just 15 billion dollars. We have a powerful population of 1.4 billion. Most of this population is young. The median age is just 29,' the BJP leader said. 'Under the Bharat Mala project, 65,000 km of highway was done... As per the World Bank report on ease of business, we were at 163rd in 2014, and now we are in the 63rd position... We are improving on all fronts... We have won as far as the development of India is concerned... I am saying all this to bring you to the point that development is the core agenda of the Indian government, and we do not want any disruption,' she added. The multi-party delegation led by JD-U MP Sanjay Kumar Jha includes Aparajita Sarangi (BJP), Brij Lal (BJP), John Brittas (CPI-M), Pradan Baruah (BJP), Hemang Joshi (BJP), Salman Khurshid and Mohan Kumar. (ANI)
Hans India
18-05-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
Omar vs Mehbooba - How Kashmir's dynasts flip on India and Pakistan
An amusing side effect of Operation Sindoor is being felt in Kashmir, where two prominent political parties are trying to expose each other's allegiance to the country. The Abdullahs and the Muftis are two major dynastic families in the valley that have held political sway for most of the time in the erstwhile state, with the former being in power for a longer period. The two families are known rivals and have been vehemently fighting against each other politically for decades - between Mufti Mohammad Sayeed (from NC to Congress to founding the People's Democratic Party) and Sheikh Abdullah (National Conference); Mufti Sayeed and Farooq Abdullah; and later Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah. All five leaders have served as Chief Ministers of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir, and now NC's Omar Abdullah is the Chief Minister of the Union Territory. He won the first Assembly elections held after the abrogation of Article 370 and the revocation of statehood in August 2019. Together, the two families have ruled the state for over three decades, clearly exhibiting their political influence in the UT, especially in Kashmir. The leaders have consistently been at loggerheads, except during very brief periods - such as during the Assembly elections in 1996, the Lok Sabha polls in 1998, and the formation of the People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) in 2019 (a coalition of political parties seeking the restoration of Article 370 and Article 35A). Except for these moments, the families have remained political rivals. From political rhetoric to accusations of having links with terrorists and separatists, the fight has now shifted to a contest over who is more loyal to India or harbours softer sentiments for Pakistan. The latest spat, which unfolded on social media, is not merely amusing - it reflects the nature of politics that has played out in J&K, particularly in Kashmir, since 1947. Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti inadvertently revealed uncomfortable truths about each other's dynastic politics, which have alternated between pro-and anti-India and pro-and anti-Pakistan stances depending on political convenience. The public exchange broke out on May 16 between Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and his predecessor, Mehbooba Mufti, on their respective X handles, after the former called for the revival of the Tulbul Navigation project following the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty. Mufti accused Abdullah of adopting "provocative" measures amid ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan. What CM Abdullah replied was not shocking in content, but rare in its bluntness for someone holding high office in Kashmir. He said: "Actually, what is unfortunate is that with your blind lust to try to score cheap publicity points and please some people sitting across the border, you refuse to acknowledge that the IWT has been one of the biggest historic betrayals of the interests of the people of J&K. I have always opposed this treaty & I will continue to do so." The phrase "please some people sitting across the border" was clearly a reference to Pakistan. Not one to remain silent, Mufti shot back with a stinging post that brought up historical controversies about the NC's political leanings. She wrote: "Time will reveal who seeks to appease whom. However, it's worth recalling that your esteemed grandfather Sheikh Sahab once advocated for accession to Pakistan for over two decades after losing power. But post being reinstated as Chief Minister, he suddenly reversed his stance by aligning with India." Although she accused the NC of shifting loyalties for political gain, her own and her party's stances have also changed dramatically over time. She has openly supported separatists, visited the families of terrorists, and repeatedly urged the Indian government to initiate dialogue with Pakistan. Her father, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, had once accused Omar Abdullah's father, Dr. Farooq Abdullah, of having links with the terrorist group Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) in the 1980s. Sayeed himself was accused of orchestrating attacks in his home district, Anantnag, against minority Kashmiri Pandits in 1986, soon after the purported desecration of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem on February 3, 1986, and the subsequent reopening of the Ram Janmabhoomi temple in Ayodhya. Mufti Sayeed went on to become Union Home Minister in 1989, during which time Kashmir witnessed some of the worst terrorist violence targeting Hindus, and also the kidnapping of his daughter. At the time, Farooq Abdullah was the Chief Minister. Several terrorists were released from jail, an act widely seen as a sign of weakness on the part of the Indian government. The contrasting reactions of the Muftis and Abdullahs were again visible after the abrogation of Article 370, when both warned Delhi of serious consequences from Pakistan and China. Their apparent soft stance toward Pakistan continues. Even after the April 22 Pahalgam attack, both NC and PDP reiterated the need for dialogue with the neighbouring country. Mehbooba Mufti went a step further by criticising the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty and saying it should not have happened. Operation Sindoor has altered the India-Pakistan dynamic, and CM Omar Abdullah now supports suspending the IWT, advocating for new power projects in the Union Territory. However, Mehbooba Mufti, whose party won only three seats in the 2024 Assembly elections, has expressed concern over Delhi's hardline position. While the two families continue their public feud, long-hidden facts are beginning to surface. It has taken over three decades and Operation Sindoor for the Abdullahs and Muftis to reveal some uncomfortable truths. A lot remains buried in the dark corners of Kashmir's politics and violence. If only the ethnic cleansing of Kashmiri Pandits had been thoroughly investigated, the fight against Pakistan's terror networks in and outside Kashmir might have been far easier.
The Wire
09-05-2025
- Politics
- The Wire
Consider Kashmir
Illustration: Pariplab Chakraborty Real journalism holds power accountable Since 2015, The Wire has done just that. But we can continue only with your support. Donate now In the picturesque Baisaran meadow of Pahalgam, the reality of Kashmir caught up brutally with the illusion woven by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government since it came to power in 2014. Converting posturing into policy, the Modi government's prism on the then state of Jammu and Kashmir reflected only two problems. One, Article 370, which had prevented complete integration of the state into India by encouraging separatist tendencies; and two, the pending matter of the territory across the line of control, which needed to be liberated from Pakistan's occupation, thereby making the erstwhile Dogra kingdom whole again. This policy criminalised all other perspectives on Kashmir. Hence, once Article 370, along with Article 35A was revoked on August 5, 2019, the government asserted that the first part of the Kashmir problem was solved. The erstwhile state, now bifurcated and demoted as two Union territories of Jammu-Kashmir and Ladakh, had been truly integrated into India. The separatist sentiment was dead. Normalcy had returned. Evidence? The year on year growing numbers of tourists flocking to the Kashmir Valley. To milk the tourism windfall, newer regions were opened for the holidaymakers, who just couldn't have enough of this slice of paradise. These regions included the volatile Gurez Valley, close to the Line of Control (LoC), northeast of Kupwara. Once the hub of infiltration and counter-infiltration operations, which repeatedly put the civilian population in the crosshairs of the security forces, particularly the Indian Army, Gurez was opened for tourism in 2021, after the renewal of the LoC ceasefire with Pakistan. Trained in taking dictations from the government, most of the media accepted government's declaration of normalcy without question. Thereafter tossed around between the government, the media and the people invested in promoting tourism, the idea of Kashmir being normal was internalised by all three to the extent that even the government forgot that it was originally a propaganda tool employed to reinforce its political project in Kashmir. In these circumstances, it was too much to expect that the media would scrutinise the government claims and ask how invested the local Kashmiris are in the official normalcy project. A few simple questions are enough to paint a picture. How many Kashmiris are employed in the governance of the UT, at the higher, mid and lower levels of the bureaucracy? How many of the Kashmir cadre police officers – both at the Indian Police Service and Jammu and Kashmir Police Service levels – are retained in the UT and how many have been parcelled out of the Valley to other states? Why do several civil society activists, such as Khurram Parvez and journalists (Aasif Sultan and others) continue to be incarcerated? Why does the Union government continue to run Jammu and Kashmir through a Lieutenant Governor instead of restoring statehood? What political and administrative powers does the elected UT government, with 46.6% strength in the assembly, have? Why is the Armed Forces Special Power Act still in force in the UT? Why is even partial revocation, something that was proposed by home minister P. Chidambaram and state chief minister Omar Abdullah in 2011-2012, not on the table? Why, instead of thinning out the troops, did the Indian Army induct additional 15,000 in J&K for internal stability operations? Why have there been repeated and consistent targeted attacks against the security personnel, non-Kashmiri residents and non-Muslims in the last few years? Why are pilgrims being targeted once again, from Amarnath to Vaishno Devi, after almost a decade? In this image posted by @CM_JnK via X on Friday, May 9, 2025, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah meets displaced border residents sheltered at Sahib Bandgi Ashram Mishriwala, amid the ongoing military conflict between India and Pakistan, in Jammu. (@CM_JnK on X via PTI Photo) Is it possible that there are interconnected answers to all the above questions, pointing towards the volatility of Kashmir? A region where official peace is being imposed by pushing the local population out of the mainstream, instead of co-opting them in the process of their collective well-being? Is it possible that the government is reclaiming the territory of Kashmir without the people of Kashmir throwing a shroud of fearful silence upon them? An intelligence failure? Since nobody asks these questions even the most critical analysts while holding the government accountable for the Pahalgam terror attack have termed it as intelligence failure. This is not only the laziest of all assessments, but also grossly incorrect. Intelligence, its absence or presence, has nothing to do with the massacre in the meadow. In fact, the term intelligence itself is a bit misleading. In a place like Kashmir where multiple agencies operate, sometimes tapping the same sources, who could be giving motivated information to different handlers to earn their keep, information is mostly in the realm of chatter. Combined with technological intelligence, there is a surge of information on most days, which needs processing and sifting for it to become accurate, action-oriented intelligence. There is another problem here. With the sustained marginalisation of the Kashmiri people, even the erstwhile fence-sitters have been pushed towards silent resentment. The disempowerment of the local leaders, including in the police service, has snapped the line of trust between the potential informers and the receivers. The May 4 incident in Kulgam, where a man apparently picked up by the army for investigation and was found dead floating in the Vishaw Nullah two days later, further reinforce the growing divide. The J&K police allege that the dead man, Imtiaz Ahmad Magray, was an overground worker (a euphemism for non-violent supporter of militants) who was leading the police party to one of the hideouts the Pahalgam terrorists probably used, when he suddenly decided to jump in the canal to escape the police and died. The police produced drone footage to support its contention. But locals insist there was foul play, especially when Magray has been the third to die after the Pahalgam massacre investigations began. And as far as killing after determining victim's religion is concerned, people with even a passing acquaintance with contemporary history and some honesty would know that the Indian sub-continent is not alien to this kind of horrifying violence. From the early decades of the 20th century till the present time, men of all religions, have been killed after their killers determined their faith. So, the targeting of Hindu men in Baisaran by Muslim terrorists, though abhorrent, is not isolated. In Kashmir itself, Hindu men were targeted in the early 1990s, forcing their and their families' exodus from the Valley. And way back in 1947, Muslims of Jammu and Poonch divisions of the kingdom of Jammu and Kashmir were massacred by Hindu and Sikh troopers of Maharaja Hari Singh in cahoots with the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh's cadre, to effect a demographic change. Hence, selective outrage betrays ignorance, or apathy, not empathy. A man stands near a damaged house after shelling from Pakistan side in Poonch on Wednesday, May 7, 2025. Photo: PTI Alternate facts The Baisaran massacre was waiting to happen. If it hadn't happened in Pahalgam, it would have happened in some other remote region of Kashmir which the somnolent and projectionist government had opened for tourism to prove its claims of normalcy. Among these recently opened sites were Kaman, ahead of Uri, from which the first Manmohan Singh government had flagged off cross-LoC trade and people-to-people meetings. There is Teetwal, which overlooks Muzaffarabad in POK and was made famous by Sadaat Hasan Manto's short story Teetwal ka Kutta. There are Keran, Gurez, which was mentioned earlier, and Machil of the infamous Machil encounter of 2010 which finally buried the comatose trilateral peace process between India, Kashmir and Pakistan. Three Kashmiri labourers were killed in a fake encounter in Machil by a few Indian Army personnel leading to their eventual court martial and sentencing. The news of the fake encounter brought Kashmiris out on the streets and they pelted stones on all symbols of Indian authority, including security personnel. At the end of that summer of protests, 110 young Kashmiris had died in retaliatory action and thousands were booked under the Public Safety Act. This compromised Omar Abdullah's credibility during his first term as chief minister. And all his efforts at ushering in normalcy without engaging with Pakistan by selectively revoking AFSPA, bringing in investments in the state and opening new tourism options, including adventure tourism, remained stillborn. Even his rafting down the Lidder river in Pahalgam and skiing in Gulmarg didn't help his cause much. In 2012, all his calisthenics on revoking AFSPA from two towns of Jammu and Kashmir each came to a nought despite being supported by home minister Chidambaram. At the Unified Headquarters meeting in November 2011, 15 Corps Commander Ata Hasnain built a doomsday scenario in case the Act was removed from the state. Unmindful of the fact that the meeting was being chaired by a democratically elected chief minister, he said that only four categories of people were asking for the lifting of AFSPA –Pakistan, the ISI, terrorists and the secessionists. Abdullah belatedly realised that Kashmir was run not by the chief minister, but by the government of India, who defers to the advice of the intelligence agencies and the Indian Army. And so, in March 2025, at India Today Conclave, chief of army staff General Upendra Dwivedi, in response to a question of lifting AFSPA, hedged his bets. After all, if normalcy has indeed returned, why doesn't the army advice the government to lift it? Falling back on the old playbook he said, 'It is highly possible, but it is the timeframe that we need to look into.' Meanwhile, emphasising that the situation was normal in the Valley, he told his interlocutor that 'bed and breakfast kinds of accommodation would be set up in those (Doda, Rajouri and Kishtwar) areas to attract tourists. The Mughal Road, which we were also looking at, will be used in a big way.' It's a no-brainer that when the army sets up tourist spots, the situation is not normal. Anyhow, before these homestays could be set up, terrorists found an opportunity in the remote and unsecured Baisaran meadow to convey the message that they still hold the initiative to strike at the time and place of their choosing. The government has now closed 48 sites across the UT, more than it had opened in 2021. These include Gurez, Doodhpathri, Verinag, Bangus valley, Yusmarg, Sinthan Top, Margan Top, Tosamaidan, Kokernag, Duksum and Acchabal. Gurez Valley in Jammu and Kashmir. Photo: X/@NasirKhuehami Many linked this attack, especially the religious identification of the victims, to Pakistan Army chief General Asim Munir's speech where he voiced his limited understanding of the two-nation theory. This is silly, for three reasons. One, Kashmir is an unresolved political and territorial conflict between India and Pakistan, to which China is now a party too. So, unless the conflict to resolved either way, to Pakistan-India-Kashmir's satisfaction (as was being attempted through India-Pakistan back channel in 2005-2007) or with total military defeat of Pakistan leading to the liberation of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, it will continue to slow-cook the issue. Two, since 2019, the government through its pronouncements and actions have made it clear that end of the special status was not just a political exercise, but a social project. That the Muslim characteristics of the UT will gradually be effaced to make way for the 'national' characteristics. Hence, while there is a restriction on beef in deference to the minority Hindus population, there is no restriction on alcohol, despite protests by conservative Muslims. These may be small irritants, but they reinforce the fear that the government eventually aims to change the demographics of the state, or at least its social spaces. The April 2020 Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Adaptation of State Laws) Order changed the 1927 domicile act of the erstwhile state, paving the way for giving domicile status to even non-Kashmiris. In a reply to the question raised by People's Democratic Party's Wahid Parra in the state assembly last month, chief minister Omar Abdullah said that in the last two years (2023-2025), the government issued more than 35.12 lakh domicile certificates, of which 83,742 were granted to non-state subjects. These include non-Kashmiri residents of Kashmir, children of security personnel who have cumulatively served for 10 years in J&K and registered migrants. According to a local journalist, Parra was not allowed to ask about the data from 2020 to 2025. 'The five-year statistics would probably reflect the figure of at least two lakh instead of 83,000,' he says. For Kashmiris, even the smallest change in the population profile would have huge economic ramifications, in terms of both land and government employment. Rich and better educated business people from mainland India could buy land off Kashmiri Muslims, many of whom may not be able to resist the temptation of money to move out of Kashmir seeking a better and secure future for their children. From Pakistan's perspective, this will dilute the separatist sentiment, hence stability must be prevented. When fear already exists, amplifying it doesn't require much effort. Three, even before the violent uprising of 1989, an undercurrent of separatism existed in the Valley. Most Muslims, and some Hindus, of the Kashmir valley saw themselves as separate from mainland India. Human rights lawyer and author Nandita Haksar has captured this sentiment of separateness, starting from 1953, in her book The Many Faces of Kashmiri Nationalism from the perspective of Sampat Prakash, a Kashmiri Pandit and Mohammad Afzal Guru, a Kashmiri Muslim. With or without violence, even today, most Kashmiris are in a limbo. In their minds they await a resolution, even if they do not articulate what the sentiment of azadi means today. They believe that justice has been denied to them since the Partition of the country. Because of this sentiment of separateness, Kashmiri Muslims do not distinguish between 'Indian' Muslims and Hindus. To them only one identity is enough –Indian, the source of their sustenance and oppression. This leads to a strange kind of duplicitous existence, causing anxiety and grief. The otherness of being Adding to the economic anxiety caused by the domicile law, is the new reservation policy unveiled in February 2024. Under this, the parliament increased the reservation cap in government employment (including as government teachers) for the tribal population of J&K including in it, in addition to the existing Gujjar-Bakherwal category, the Pahadis, Padari, Kolis and Gadda Brahmins. With this addition, the reservation pool has increased to 60%. However, as the UT government also provides for six per cent reservation for ex-servicemen and four percent for the handicap, this leaves only 30% vacancies in the general category. The worst affected by this shrinking pool of employment are the Muslims of the Valley. Given the overall sentiment towards Muslims in mainland India, and especially the Kashmiri Muslims, there is a justifiable fear among the poor about sending their children for employment to other parts of India. Even those who study in other Indian cities, prefer to either go back to Kashmir for employment or out of India. Hence, government employment is a major source of security for them, just as it is in the rest of the country. Kashmiris cannot be blamed for thinking that the increasing reservation pool is another way of humiliating and marginalising them. Just as it happens after any incident of violence in J&K, the aftermath of Baisaran has been traumatising for the Kashmiris. There have been attacks on Kashmiri traders in different Indian cities, forcing them to return home. Students have been harassed and subjected to 'nationalism' test. Within Kashmir, taking a leaf from 'bulldozer justice' of Uttar Pradesh, houses of the suspects have been demolished. Ninety people have been booked under PSA. And 2,800 have been detained for questioning, three of whom have died in quasi mysterious circumstances. Unmindful of the fact that a large number of Muslims marry within their families, the government has cracked down on Pakistani women in the Valley, married to their cousins. Families are being ripped apart. Wives and mothers being forced out of India, by a seemingly vengeful State. There is a palpable fear in Kashmir, evident from the unanimous condemnation of the attack by everyone, the mainstream politicians, the erstwhile separatist politicians, the traders and those engaged in the tourism industry. They are fearful for their lives, their employment and the future of their children. If their children are picked up for even random questioning they will be marked forever. And thereafter, whenever an incident occurs, they will be readymade fodder to show progress in investigations. From there to becoming a statistic is a short distance in Kashmir. Expressing the collective sentiment, one journalist told me, 'The current mood in Kashmir is for war. Let India finish Pakistan once for all. At least then this sword will lift from our head.' Fear is a great unifier. But it doesn't unify the fearful with the perceived oppressor. It unifies the fearful. And people united by fear become fearless. Ghazala Wahab is editor, FORCE. Her forthcoming book, The Hindi Heartland, is expected in July.
