Three-year report card of abrogation of Article 370 –perceptions are changing in J&K

Prameyanews English

Published By : Prameya News Bureau | August 04, 2022 IST

Arun  Joshi The third anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5  calls for a  realistic assessment of all  what has happened during this period, and also what prospects it holds for the future of Jammu and Kashmir ,  once the special status state , now   reduced to a Union  Territory . This assessment needs to be  made from the people’s perspective because the two sides across the fence – the government and the Kashmir-centric opposition parties – have their extreme positions, one claiming that all the wrongs have  been corrected , the other alleging that darkness abounds all around . In realistic terms , the report card is not as clear as it should have been – Covid-19 waves and the restrictions that came with the  epidemic to control the public health  menace  consumed  time and slowed down the pace of the development , envisaged  at the time of the crucial decisions, ne nevertheless  things have started moving in the  direction in which J&K is perceived differently than what it was prior to August 5, 2019 . The change is in the perceptions , and that is what is crucial or the country at large, and the people of J&K,  in particular. This fact can be appreciated  only  against the backdrop of how Kashmir was seen  by the world as nuclear flashpoint , a ticking bomb in South Asia, explosion of which  had the potential to rock the world . It is not a battleground , neither physically nor psychologically . Now it is firmly in the Indian union like all other  states and union territories in the country . It is but natural for the government  to praise its achievement of having  done away with the  special status of J&K  and dividing it into the two union territories – J&K , and Ladakh -  as part of its political commitment to integrate J&K completely into the national mainstream .In a way  the August 5, 2019 , rewrote the history of J&K  when placed in the context of 1947  and the international attention spotlighted on it for decades  as  an issue which needed to be resolved . Its claim is validated by the fact that though Jammu and Kashmir had acceded to India in October 1947 more than two months after India gained Independence from the British rule  on August 15 that  year,  the  seeds of conflict sown by  Pakistan sponsored tribesmen’ s invasion of the state  continued to haunt the Indian nation.  Pakistan  took full advantage of the two things : one , the territory it occupied  after the invasion , second, the narration of Kashmir dispute came to it as a God send  opportunity due to the cardinal mistake of India’s  first Prime Minister Jawaharlal  Nehru who took the matter to the United Nations without realising the long-term consequences of his most undiplomatic and unthoughtful action .  Pakistani narration , combined with the disaffected sections in Kashmir , made the things worse for the country . The inclusion of Article 370 into the Indian constitution further complicated the matters . J&K had acceded to India , but not merged . This became a major issue, Delhi had no convincing answers . On August 5 2019 , when the Narendra Modi government  effected the changes, several objectives were achieved . First, , it  took away the narration of the dispute from the dictionary  of J&K in relation   to Pakistan’s outbursts against India  vis-à-vis Kashmir – not only the international dimension was rejected  once and for all, it also changed the  nature of the issue- it  centered now on vacation of the territories of the  erstwhile princely state  under illegal occupation of Pakistan . India, with one stroke, had put Pakistan on backfoot on Kashmir . The context changed – Pakistan  was made to cry over the loss of the special status of J&K within the Indian union  status , instead  of raking up the issue about Kashmir on the Indian side of the Line of Control  where it had launched proxy war since 1989. Secondly, it  changed the course of the struggle in Kashmir ; Delhi no longer  had to  contend with the political dimensions of the Kashmir issue . There was daily firefighting on the issue, both internally and externally . Within the nation , there was a paradox – how to justify the concessions being made to  J&K- liberal economic aid and at the same time bearing the brunt of terrorism  which had a strong component of local presence  and support , as politically there was a constitutional section to one state -two systems under Article 370 . There were attempts to do so by bringing the anti-India elements , having full support of Pakistan,  to the table for talks  as that was thought  as best antidote to the international pressure , especially from the West , including the United States of America, to resolve the issue as per aspirations of the people  of Kashmir and that , tool, through  dialogue with Pakistan . There also were suggestions to hold trilateral talks . Interlocutors were appointed , and all that resulted in voluminous reports or  essays with all sound and fury signifying nothing. Third, and the most important part of these decisions was to  use the funds for the territory for raising  infrastructure ,  people- friendly development not only in terms of raising structures  of brick and mortars  but  also by advancing the themes and optics of the  human development . More than 10 million  tourists visited J&K  in era of assured certainty and  peace in the Valley where no harm could come to them is  not just a  success story  in economic statistics  and  profits accrued because of the tourism , but  also  in uplifting the morale of the people and confidence in themselves , “ we can do it.” They wanted peace ,  and that’s what was brought about . Shutdowns and stone pelting incidents  became , as proclaimed by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, a history of the past . That is there, but  now the people need  their democracy back in full throttle . The Assembly elections are still awaited , and that’s where the Kashmir-centric political parties  are  using the narrative that the democracy has been undermined . And the prolonged bureaucratic rule   does more harm than  good to the psyche of the people. This is where Delhi needs to do more  in  opening doors for more voices to speak and make democratic noises . That is a national imperative if the success of the August 5 decisions has to be counted in the real terms . People have  more than economic aspirations. About the Author: Arun Joshi is a senior journalist based in J&K. He has worked with Hindustan Times, Times of India, Indian Express, and The Tribune. He has authored “ Eyewitness Kashmir: Teetering on Nuclear War” and three other books. DISCLAIMER This is the personal opinion of the author. The views expressed in this write-up have nothing to do with those of prameyanews.com.

News7 Is Now On WhatsApp Join And Get Latest News Updates Delivered To You Via WhatsApp

You Might Also Like

More From Related News

Copyright © 2024 - Summa Real Media Private Limited. All Rights Reserved.