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| Kashmiris & government they elect not happy, says Nayar | | What About Jammu & Ladakh? | | Rustam
jammu, Apr 13: The so-called Kashmir expert and peacenik, Kuldip Nayar, who migrated to India from Sialkot (Pakistan) in 1947 in the wake of the country's communal partition, is very happy with Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. In fact, he has written a political essay on him and Jammu and Kashmir suggesting that it is for New Delhi to go by what Gilani says and solve the so-called Kashmir problem. His latest essay on Pakistan and Jammu and Kashmir is titled "The Kashmir Question".
Nayar in his essay eulogized Gilani for his statement that "his country (Pakistan) would seek a solution on Kashmir through a dialogue, not hostilities" and questioned India and Pakistani opposition leader and the press for not taking notice of the Gilani's "great" suggestion. "I have not seen any comment in India nor have I found any Pakistani opposition leader or the Press taking notice of it. More significant has been the silence of pro-terrorist groups which talk in terms of Jihad against India all the time," he wrote. At the same time, Nayar maintained that "the usual Pakistani reiteration that Kashmir would not be allowed to stay on the backburner is there" and to make his point he quoted what Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari has said in this regard. President Asif Ali Zardari has said that "Pakistan has not forgotten Kashmir". Nayar, however, asserted that "this (Pakistani reiteration and Zardari's suggestion) does not change the ground realities which have recognised that the Line of Control is the border between India and Pakistan".
Nayar further praised Gilani saying he "has reiterated what the late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto had enunciated in the Shimla Agreement four decades ago", which says: "In Jammu and Kashmir, the Line of Control resulting from the ceasefire of 17th December, 1971, shall be respected by both sides without prejudice to the recognised position of either side. Neither side shall seek to alter it unilaterally, irrespective of mutual differences and legal interpretations. Both sides further undertake to refrain from the threat of the use of force in violation of this line". Nayar opined that the "agreement has stood the test of time for more than three decades and except for the Kargil misadventure there has been peace".
Appreciating Gilani, Nayar further wrote: "Perhaps leaders of the Pakistan government, including the hawks, have come to realise that there is no alternative to amity. Perhaps the peace lobby on both sides has got expanded for even the governments to notice and they refrain from giving ultimatums as it used to happen not until long ago. Perhaps the warning by Jawaharlal Nehru that any attack on Kashmir would be regarded as an attack on India has gone home. Three wars plus the misadventure at Kargil have proved that New Delhi will resist with all its force any push by Islamabad. Therefore, Prime Minister Gilani's observation not only makes sense but also throws up another opportunity. Both countries have to resolve the Kashmir issue or, for that matter, any other problem peacefully. It is a sort of no-war pact without the formality of signing one".
Nayar also appreciated New Delhi but this appreciation was not unconditional. He wrote: "True, New Delhi has tackled the international opinion effectively. There is hardly any adverse notice abroad. But this does not solve the problem. At best it remains suppressed. Still there is civil society in India which has certain obligations that a democratic polity (Government of India) has to carry out. If the Kashmiris remain unhappy and the government they elect too feels that the problem has to be sorted out with Pakistan, New Delhi has to face the fact. This does not necessarily mean that Islamabad's demands have to be met. The latter (Pakistan) too has to take certain realities into consideration and one of them is that India can never have another division on the basis of religion. The Valley, predominantly Muslim, has gone its own way and has kept at a distance both the Hindu-majority Jammu and the Budhist-majority Ladakh". (To be continued) |
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