It is sad that caught unawares, the nation is finding new ways to explain away the current puzzle that Jammu and Kashmir once again has become. Issues such as ‘trust deficit’ and ‘governance deficit’, as outlined by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, does not fully explain the sudden flare-up, nor are all-party delegations of the type that visited the troubled areas of the troubled border-State be able to offer solutions.
Relative political stability has been a trigger for trouble in the past in the State, not that it had not occurred otherwise. It is thus unfortunate that the Governments at the Centre and the State, particularly their respective intelligence agencies did not foresee what was in store and alert the politico-administrative leaderships. At least we are not privy to any such alert if made, and actions, if any, initiated on that score.
If issues such as ‘trust deficit’ and ‘governance deficit’ are to be the causes for flare-ups of the kind, no State in the country can escape the responsibility. Nor can successive Governments at the Centre be able to escape it, either. Incidentally, this was also the easy reason that came to the mind of politicians and media persons alike whenever the Valley had burnt in the past, as well. It is sad that the real issues that need to be addressed in this regard had never been addressed in the past – nor can it be expected to be addressed in a full and wholesome measure in the foreseeable future, either.
Interestingly this time, no one has thus far mentioned incitement from across the border as among the causes for the flare-up. It is however anybody’s guess if the Government of India was keeping its diplomatic options open, or if Pakistan had learnt its lessons on cross-border terrorism from the Taliban-Al Qaeda duo operating on its own territory, almost with immunity, since. If the latter is the cause, it should be welcome. If it is the former, the Centre has still things to explain to the nation.
There are no clear reasons as to what kicked off the current series of incidents three months ago. However, there definitely is conclusive proof that the latest incident in mid-September involved an Iranian television report on the alleged burning of the Holy Koran in the US. While questions may be asked about the rationale for such a flare-up, particularly when there was no confirmation of the alleged incident other than the prevailing mood of the times in the US, this one at least did not have anything to do with issues of trust and governance. There was much more than that, and could have been much more than religion, too. If that is the case, the Governments are duty-bound to find out as to who were behind this particular flare-up, at the very least, coming as it did ahead of the already indicated visit of the all-party delegation to the Valley.
The current series of violence in Jammu and Kashmir commenced at a time when much of northern India was in the news over Maoist insurgency. Whether the current violence in the Valley and the new-generation youth there drew their inspiration from the Maoist insurgency elsewhere in the country, is not yet known. This is however not to suggest linkages, considering that in ideological terms Maoists are generally above religion. In contrast, the ‘Kashmir issue’ is becoming increasingly religious in nature, with sections of those seeking a solution wanting no role with either India or Pakistan, yet citing ‘religious identity’ as a unifying factor within and ‘sustaining power’ from outside.
Going beyond the immediate need for containing the spread and depth of Maoist violence, particularly targeting the security forces, including the police, civil society organisations were making out a case on ‘trust deficit’ and ‘governance deficit’. No one can complain against civil society organisations to use the media attention falling on Maoist insurgency to highlight the problems of the victimised people. The issues that they highlight on trust and governance fronts are for real and even more than is being brought out. The Governments at all levels, down to that of the panchayat, cannot escape responsibility. But there cannot be any confusion between the immediate need for containing violence and the medium and long-term plans for reaching out development to those areas.
Past charges of mis-governance and mis-trust had related to faked elections that revived separatist violence in the Eighties. Without offering any justification, it needs to be under-scored that whether in the State or elsewhere in the country, these are again live issues that need to be addressed but cannot be – and has not been – used to bolster arguments for a separate State. It is this danger that Government leaders, political parties and civil society organisations need to acknowledge while talking about issues that may have set the mood for the people of the Valley thinking in a particular way. It may have been an enabling factor for intermittent periods of violence that the Valley has witnessed over the decades. It does not explain anything in full or can be held out as a stand-alone justification.
Nothing explains the current predicament than the unexplained demand for the immediate withdrawal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has reacted irresponsibly in the matter, not realising that sustaining the law and order machinery in Jammu and Kashmir along side the police and the CRPF is not the only duty of the armed force in the troubled border State. Withdrawal of the Act, as pointed out by war veterans and other analysts, could infuse an air of permissibility and laxity in the system that enemies of the nation, from both within and outside the country, and also in formals or otherwise, would seek to exploit. If nothing else, Jammu and Kashmir has not reached a stage in which the State police and the civil laws alone could be expected to do the job and deliver results. It definitely was moving towards that but the current flare-up has put the clock back by a couple of more years, as had happened on past occasions.
If a permanent cure has to be found, it is in the Governments in the State and at the Centre addressing specific issues of trust and governance during peace time but give accountable freedom for the security forces to act on the ground at present, which is also the need of the hour. Otherwise, talks about further autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir, without giving any thought as to what more could be on offer beyond that conferred by Article 370 can only be misleading – contributing to further mistrust, in turn.
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