Author: K.R. Phanda
Publication: BJP Today
Date: August 1-15, 2000
The atmosphere is filled
with the stormy debate over autonomy for Jammu and Kashmir. Whether to
give autonomy or not to give it? If the give it, how much to give? The
eyes, ears and the minds of all the debaters are fixed on J&K. The
shortsighted are discussing only today whereas the longer sighted quote
from history generally beginning with 1947.
One or two debaters have
gone far back into the reign of Akbar and the conquest of the Kashmir Valley
in 1587 A.D. No one has had the leisure to tarry, stand and stare enough
to realise how much is being snuffed out by the sound and fury caused by
the Hurriyat on the one and, Farooq Abdullah on the other and the self-styled
secularists on yet another.
I would suggest that
we take off a few minutes and consider the country as a parent and Kashmir
as a child. That we are closely related, and by blood, is beyond question.
The only problem is whether the child is happy with the parents. If unhappy,
how unhappy? Evidently, the parent has loved the child. Often love is blind
and may be comes in the way of bringing up an offspring correctly. Nevertheless,
the fact of love between the country and Kashmir is undeniable. The measure
of love, it has been said, is what one is willing to give up for it. What
have we given up for Kashmir?
Since 1947, the Defence
Ministry would have spent something like two and a half lac crore rupees,
whether in war, proxy war or in truce. The Home Ministry would have spent
on its paramilitary operations, say, another half a lac crore rupees. And
the Finance Ministry a similar amount so that the lamp of economy does
not go out in Kashmir. And how much blood has the country spilled? It is
difficult to total the number of lives that have been lost since October
1947. But they could not be less than one lac people dead, whether soldiers,
policemen, border guards, mujahideen and other invaders, above all the
innocent citizens of Jammu, Ladakh and Kashmir. What greater sacrifice
could a child expect of the parent? And has the offspring no duty of reciprocation?
It is one thing for the
J&K Assembly to pass a resolution demanding autonomy but did it consult
how the people of Jammu and Ladakh feel about autonomy. Merely because
the Valley is over represented in the assembly, should it ride roughshod
over the rest? Has the J&K assembly ever thought as to what would be
the repercussions on the Hindu-Muslim equation in the rest of the country?
As a Christian friend
put it, do not encourage the separatism of the Kashmiris. If for no other
reason, then the fact that it is a Muslim majority area which has chased
out almost all its Hindus from their homes. In his words, "the reaction
on the rest of the country would be best summed up by adapting the words
of a popular paint advertisement. Duly adapted, people might feel, "whenever
you see a Muslim think of Partition". How unfortunate that would be for
the Muslim citizens of India, who, incidentally, are not even being consulted?
I would appeal to them to speak up their opinion.
The effect of autonomy,
for Jammu and Kashmir in Pakistan would be the most important to bear in
mind. The army, there prefers a situation with a warlike potential in order
to justify itself. Autonomy would be publicised as a feather in the Musharraf
cap. Nearly all the Punjabi-speaking Pakistanis want the Kashmir issue
to keep burning in order to divert attention and avert secession by either
Sind, NWFP or Baluchistan, most of whose people have no interest in Kashmir.
They comprise about 40% of the population.
A Muslim NRI had yet
another point which, in my knowledge, has not been put across in the context
of Kashmir. He felt that mullas will never permit Muslims to think straight.
Can't they see, he asked, that the mohajirs are so unhappy in Karachi?
That the Sindhis, the Baluchis and possibly the Pathans want to get out
of the clutches of Pakistani Punjab. The Bengalis ran away with Sheikh
Mujibur Rahman 29 years ago. Why should the Kashmiris want to get anywhere
near the shaitan?
Read what the shaitan
did in 1947 (from the Indian Express dated 12 July, 2000).
"Baramulla fell into
the hands of the raiders on October 2426. Overtaken by their wild habits,
they indulged in large scale looting, burning, raping and killing. As noted
by Father Shanks, "The tribesmen-great, wild, black beasts they were-came
shooting their way down from the hills on both sides of the town. A 20-year
old Indian nurse, Philomena, tried to protect a Muslim patient whose baby
had just been born. She was shot dead first. The patient was next". Even
the St. Joseph Convent was destroyed, and the Assistant Mother Superior
and three nuns were brutally murdered. After visiting Baramulla, the correspondent
of the New York Times wrote, "Surviving resident estimate that 3,000 of
their fellow townsmen, including four Europeans and a retired British officer
and his pregnant wife, were slain," The raiders hardly realised that the
time spent by them in committing their abominable crimes would turn out
to be their punishment, as it enabled the Indian forces to land at Srinagar
airport on October 27 and ultimately push back the raiders inflicting heavy
casualties on them.
On October 27, a few
planes of the Indian Air Force hovered over Srinagar airport carrying the
first batch of Indian troops under the command of Lt. Colone Ranjit Rai.
It was not certain whether the airport was still held by the State Forces.
After landing, Lt. Colonel Rai led the small contingent of the troops towards
Baramulla. He dug his defences at Pattan and engaged the raiders near Baramulla.
He lost his life in this bold venture. But this unnerved the raiders. They
though that the Indian Army had arrived in strength."
