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| A needless controversy | | | Lt Gen (retd) SK Sinha
There was nothing unique about the transfer of 100 acres of waste forestland in Baltal to the Amarnath Shrine Board to set up temporary shelters for pilgrims. But fundamentalists in the Valley seized upon it to force a communal divide in Jammu & Kashmir
The unfortunate controversy over the 100 acre plot of waste forestland at Baltal, which does not have a single tree and which due to snow is unapproachable and uninhabitable for seven months a year, has polarised the population of the two regions of Jammu & Kashmir, causing dozens of death and loss of thousands of crores of business and property, apart from bringing down the State Government. The facts connected with this controversy need to be recorded.
This plot has been the camping site for pilgrims to the shrine of Sri Amarnath. In October/November 1948, it was the base from which we launched our offensive with tanks across Zoji La, liberating Kargil and linking up with Leh. I had stayed at this site for some time during that operation. Little could I in my wildest dreams then visualise that one day it would be the subject of a national controversy, with which I would get associated.
I took over as Governor of Jammu & Kashmir on June 4, 2003. I realised that the root cause of militancy in the State was religious fundamentalism. This could best be countered by Kashmiriyat, which stood for amity and brotherhood across religious divide. During my five-year tenure as Governor, I went all out to promote Kashmiriyat.
The fundamentalists criticised me saying that they did not have to learn Kashmiriyat from a non-Kashmiri. The more I succeeded, the more critical they were of me. They criticised me for being a 'Hindu communalist'. As Governor, I was ex-officio chairman of both Mata Vaishno Devi and Shri Amarnath Shrine Boards as per the Act passed by the State Legislature.
I did my best to promote pilgrimage to both shrines and improve facilities for pilgrims. The number of pilgrims to Vaishno Devi went up from 50 lakh to nearly 80 lakh a year and those to Amarnath increased from one lakh to five lakh. With improved facilities, pilgrims with better paying capacity started visiting the shrines. A large number of them combined their pilgrimage with visits to various tourist spots. This helped in promoting tourism, which is the main industry of the Kashmir Valley.
The communal forces, which were behind the ethnic cleansing of over three lakh Kashmiri Pandits, had a pathological aversion to Amarnath Yatra. Although they would say that they had nothing against the yatra, they would raise every possible hurdle and hassle in the conduct of the pilgrimage. Not a single tree was cut, no permanent structure was put up by the Board, and all steps were taken to control pollution.
On the other hand, over 10,000 trees had been cut and a 25 km long wild life sanctuary shifted for the construction of the Mughal Road. Permanent structures were being constructed and carbon emissions from vehicles would cause much environmental degradation. Yet, no mention was made of the ecological balance getting disturbed by the Mughal Road, but the Amarnath Yatra was being constantly criticised on this account.
After I used to inaugurate the Amarnath Yatra by offering prayers at the holy cave, I would fly to Caharar-e-Shareef that very day and place a chadar at the grave of Sheikh Noorudin, the patron saint of Kashmir, equally revered by Hindus, who call him Nund Rishi. I got the Army to build a large shelter with jute carpet for pilgrims at this shrine. The Army renovated numerous ziarats at the request of the local people. After the renovation of the ziarat at Badgam in 2007, the people expressed their gratitude to the Army. But the chief cleric issued a fatwa against the Army for interfering in religious matters.
On October 2, 2007, Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad organised an essay competition on Mahatma Gandhi for school children. Despite the boycott call given by the fundamentalists, 50,000 school children participated. A fatwa was issued against the Chief Minister.
To mark the inauguration of the Amarnath Yatra, we used to organise a three-day Sufi music festival. In 2004, for the first time, Sufi musicians from Pakistan participated in the festival. In June 2008, we had Sufi musicians from Egypt, Syria, Uzbekistan and Pakistan. I also set up a Centre for Kashmir Studies in Kashmir University. This Centre held a successful seminar on Kashmiriyat, attended by scholars from Pakistan and Central Asian Republics.
In 2008, we expanded the activities of this Centre, now redesignated Institute for Kashmir Studies, in cooperation with South Asian Foundation. We held a well- attended event on May 25, 2008, which was inaugurated by the President of India. Delegates from all the eight South Asian countries attended this function. The following day we had the Pakistani band Junoon. The fundamentalists called for a boycott but thousands turned up near Dal Lake and were enthralled by the music.
The transfer or diversion of forestland to Government or private agencies has been a routine affair in Jammu & Kashmir. Thousands of acres of forestland have been allocated to PWD or BRO for construction of roads, Power Corporation for hydel projects, railways for laying tracks, and even to private telecom companies for setting up communication towers. In Jammu region, land has been allotted to Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board.
Author is former Governor, Jammu and Kashmir |
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