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| Anti-accession rhetoric gets shriller | | | Daya Sagar
Many a times the information not based on the ground realities have otherwise become a written but tailored History > The generations ahead receive it believing the same as a treasure of facts, where as it may not have been. The same has been the case with the History of modern India that earlier remained under the influence of those from alien lands for about 1000 years. And similarly J&K State too has been a victim of wrong presentations over last sixty years. The way J&K State is today known to the outside world , does not reflect the real soul of the people of J&K. It will not be an overstatement in case it is said that J&K has been the victim of the malafide of the selfish leadership that has so unfortunately ( for the people of J&K ) carried very cunningly with success.
The pro accession / pro India political parties like National Conference and Congress did very less to correct the wrong information being lodged in valley about India and her intentions. Parties like Jan Sangh / BJP did not have much base in Kashmir valley since majority population was of Muslims and Jan Sangh had been introduced to common innocent Muslim of valley as representative of fanatic Hindu elements. More over the Kashmiri leaders found that New Delhi looked more at valley and hence they played political gimmick with common man of Kashmir and clever games with governments at New Delhi. Kashmir Valley that formed very small area of J&K ( excluding POJK Jammu region had over 26000 sq km, Kashmir region had only 15000 sq Km and Ladakh region had around 100000 sq Km ) was rather treated as if it was whole of J&K. J&K was often referred as Kashmir and POJK is so commonly said as POK. To whole of world hence Kashmir Valley was J&K. The Jammu region and Ladakh region were not even made that much known to people of even India . It appeared that Delhi took it for granted that Jammu region and Ladakh region have no alternative or desire other than India and the Kashmir Valley people need be worked with for retention with India. So Pakistan also came at the back of anti India / anti Accession elements. The rise of Sheikh over the heads of Congress in 1952 too raised alarms for Congress. Therefore Congress and new Delhi too kept on looking for over 30 years on those who opposed National Conference leaders in valley. Hence the Anti India and Anti National conference elements could survive in Kashmir Valley.
Still there have been some people in J&K who had been honest to their words and were frank in disclosing their reservations on the issues like totality of the relationship that J&K should have with India. No doubt such like people have surely taken full advantage of the failures of the frontline leadership ( pretending trueness to India but not working on the ground for delivering true picture of India to the common man of J&K, particularly of Kashmir Valley ). People like Mr. Muzzaffar Hussain Baig deserved appreciations to be atleast honest in accepting that his decision to vote for J&K Permanent Resident ( Disqualification) Bill 2004 passed by the J&K Legislative assembly on March 5th 04 was out of his well considered and conscious act. Where as the Congress leaders like Mangat Ram Sharma and JKNPP chief Bhim Singh had then said that their MLAs had rushed to vote for the Bill in Legislative Assembly out of their innocence.
It is no use in beating the torn drums of the pre 1947 history and the half done sacrifices of leaders like Nehru with regard to J&K. Let us see where have we landed to day and what has been the reasons.
Right from the mid 1940s started the mishandling of J&K affairs. Jawahar Lal Nehru had given air to the personal ambitions of Sheikh Abdullah through the extra ordinary faithfulness Nehru showed towards Abdullah. Jawahar Lal Nehru treated Maharaja Hari Singh of Jammu & Kashmir not that fairly.
Sheikh Abdullah unduly raised questions about the Dogra rule in J&K and rights of Hari Singh over J&K . This made some innocent people in Kashmir Valley to think otherwise of India. The (i) delay in accession of J&K with India ( ii) the conditional acceptance of the Accession of J&K with India by the Mountbatten/ Nehru combine ( iii ) compulsions under which Hari Singh was made to quit J&K in June 1949 (iv) the arrest and dismissal of J&K Prime Minister Sheikh Mohd Abdullah on 9 August1953 for an act of sedition , ( v) release of Abdullah from jail and Indira Gandhi installing Sheikh Abdullah as Chief Minister of J&K in 1975 with the support of Sayeed Mir Qasim and ( vi ) the like are the vital issues that have confused and misguided the common man of J&K.
The so called main stream leadership has not worked on the ground and remained not among the common people. Rather they have stayed away from common man and even at occasions raised questions on the intentions of the Government of India as regards the treatments given to people of J&K , particularly that of Kashmir Valley. There were some leaders in Kashmir Valley and some parts of Jammu province who did not go with Sheikh Abdullah in 1939 when he transformed Muslim Conference into National Conference. They were also not happy with the favours GOI was extending to National Conference during 1940s. Some of them even asked Maharaja Hari Singh too vouch for Independent J&K and they would support him ( though they had earlier some inclination towards two nation theory as well ). After the October 1947 Pakistan sponsored tribal attack on J&K and accession of J&K with India, some of such muslim leaders (many from Poonch, Rajouri, Muzafarrabad ) were left in POK and those who remained in Kashmir Valley had no option than to work against Sheikh Abdullah.)
Most of the Punjabi speaking area of J&K that had the cadres of Muslim Conference was left in POK after the ceasefire in 1949.With the hand of Nehru Sheikh Abdullah grew in size and hence his National Conference. He could impress upon Nehru and obtain commitment for a separate constitution for J&K under article 370 of Constitution of India ( although no other Princely State was given such honour and the Maharaja in instrument of accession too had not laid any such Condition nor did the Reagent Dr. Karan Singh had raised such demand. ) . Congress fell very low before Sheikh. The affairs of J&K remained in confusion for over 22 years. India fought two wars with Pakistan. After 1947 Parties like Jamat e Islami that had lost any significance too gained some weight. KLF / JKLF too were born during this period. Every other day questions about trueness of 1947 Accession of J&K with India , UN Security Council Resolutions, dispute raised by Pakistan over J&K lands, center state relations and like provided enough seeds for sowing distrust against India to the anti India / anti accession / pro Pakistan elements in J&K. Since Kashmir valley had remained more active politically during 1940s, political and anti India elements remained more confined to Valley.
More fuel was added to non pro India feelings after 2005 when the Congress PDP combine stayed in chair inspite of Mufti Mohd Sayeed calling Kashmir issue a Kashmir Dispute with Pakistan / Kashmiries and went to the extent of demanding joint control of India and Pakistan over Kashmir Valley ( J&K ). All these years more and more doubts and confusions in the minds of people of J&K have been created. Particularly after 1990 very less positive about the intentions of India has been conveyed to common man of Kashmir valley through direct on ground efforts by the political leaders ( may it be of Congress or National Conference ) . Rather National Conference has been lost in countering parties like PDP / CPM etc in addition to the anti India / anti accession groups like Jamat e Islami / JKLF etc. The competitors in Valley for political support have increased in number over the years in the persons of Sayeed Ali Shah Geelani, Omar Farooq, Shabir Shah , Yasin Malik, Muzaffar Hussain Baig, Tariq Hamid Karra, Mohd Yusaf Tarigami, Bilal Lone, Sajjad Lone , Prof Abdul Gani Bhat . and Ofcourse Farooq Abdullah, Mufti Sayeed. Now it is the game of numbers. But World has also now started knowing that J&K is not only Kashmir. The growing BJP cadres in India have made the people know that Jammu Region and Ladakh Region have a different voice that Kashmir Valley. In the past even National Conference has never made any significant attempt to divide the people of J&K on Hindu Muslim lines and woo the people of the muslim majority areas falling in the Districts of Rajouri, Poonch, Doda , upper Udhampur and Kathua towards the demands of muslim majority Kashmir valley people like that of special status. But now since the numbers are getting divided in Kashmir Valley, even parties like PDP have started raising religious feelings in the Muslims of Jammu region simply to add numbers and are in a way painting the muslims of Jammu region too as anti India simply their being muslims. Although they have not succeeded so far but the people of J&K as well as India have to remain careful for keeping Jammu region away from any communal divide. *(Daya Sagar is social activist and leading scribe on Kashmir affairs [email protected]) |
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