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| Pakistan, PDP & APHC must be happy with Ex-VC Puri | | | EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, Apr 29: Pakistan, which has been trying to grab Jammu and Kashmir since 1947, must be very happy today. The People's Democratic Party, which has been trying to achieve self-rule for Jammu and Kashmir since 2005 and working round-the-clock to persuade New Delhi to come out with a Kashmir solution that not only satisfies the people of Kashmir but also treats New Delhi and Islamabad equally as far as their control over the Indian Jammu and Kashmir is concerned, must be feeling jubilant today. The All-Party Hurriyat Conference of Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, which has been giving unqualified support to the former Pakistan President 4-point Kashmir solution since 2007, must be in a festive mood today. There must be many more in Kashmir who would be hugging and congratulating each other today. On the other hand, the nationalist people of Jammu and Ladakh and Kashmiri Hindu refugees must be cursing those who are wittingly or unwittingly playing into the hands of fanatics and separatists.
Pakistani think-tanks and back channels and their touts and agents in Kashmir must be feeling happy today because they have found in the person of former Vice-Chancellor of Jammu University, over 90-year-old Prof M R Puri, a votary of what they have been struggling to achieve since years. In fact, they should feel obliged to the former Vice-Chancellor because the latter had put forth a Kashmir solution as early as on 12th February 2004, which, according to him, was similar to the one the former Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri, who served as Foreign Minister under President Pervez Musharraf between 2002 and 2007, revealed on April 24 (and not on April 25) in an interview to correspondent of The Times of India, Ranjan Roy (See Times of India, national edition, April 24). The former Vice-Chancellor was so pleased with the revelation made by the former Pakistan Foreign Minister that he penned down a small essay, which appeared only today in a local English language daily under the caption "Kashmir Pact".
Kasuri had told The Times of India that the "Kashmir Pact" was ready during the time of President Musharraf and it was "just a signature away" in the sense that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had to sign it during his visit to Pakistan. According to Kasuri, India and Pakistan had reached an agreement and which, among other things, provided for (1) "full demilitarization of both Jammu and Kashmir as well as Pakistan-administered-Kashmir and (2) maximum possible autonomy for both parts of Jammu and Kashmir.
The former Vice-Chancellor of Jammu University stands vindicated, he claims. And, he wrote: "I feel very happy that his pact is very close to what I projected as 'possible solution of Kashmir issue' in an article published on 12th February 2004". He also reproduced in the said article the relevant portion and it read like this: "The question on every body's mind is what can be the possible solution of the complex Kashmir problem which has been with us since 1947, a solution which may be accepted by Pakistan and also satisfy the aspirations of the people of Kashmir and thus lead to permanent peace in the sub-continent. I think at this point of history the most sensible solution will be (the) one which takes cognizance of the realities on the ground and causes minimum dislocation (of) the people on both sides of the border.
Status quo around the LOC implies surrendering to Pakistan the portions of the state which it illegally occupied in 1947 and now comprise POK. This militants (read militates) against the unanimous resolution of the India(n) Parliament to take back this territory. On the other hand, the former Foreign Minister of Pakistan said once that status quo is the problem and not a solution.
The hope in reconciling these positions lies in both countries agreeing to leave aside their stated positions on Kashmir and show flexibility and boldness in seeking a mutually acceptable solution. Taking all factors into consideration a possible solution can be that - Loc becomes the international border between India and Pakistan; India gives maximum autonomy to this part of Kashmir and* Pakistan does the same in respect of POK. (This should be) followed by certain other steps like easy travel between the two parts should by and large satisfy the aspirations of the people of Kashmir on both sides. If this idea works, it will be a victory of sanity and defeat of none…I would like to see the Kashmir issue settled during my life-time."
Should not Pakistan and its agents in Kashmir feel happy? They should. It is a matter of grave concern that there are persons in Jammu who have been making common cause with separatists and religious fanatics and working not only against the Indian interests but also against the interests of the patriotic forces of the state. That the former Vice-Chancellor takes Kashmir to mean the whole of the state further indicates the extent to which he is biased against his own province.
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