Author: Piali Banerjee
Publication: The Times of India
Date: July 15, 2001
Anupam Kher, actor
"It's easy to be cynical about the
actual effect of any political talk, but this time, I prefer to be optimistic
about the Indo-Pak summit. The Kashmir problem has been going on for so
long that any effort taken towards solving it must be lauded. My theory
has always been that if you try to do something, you risk failure - but
if you don't try, you ensure it.
However I believe that along with
the issue of Kashmir, that of the plight of Kashmiri pandits also needs
serious thought and discussion. Somehow, in the greater issue, the pandits
who are living as refugees in various parts of their own country, are forgotten.
No one stops to think just how let down and helpless they feel. Just because
they are peace-loving people and don't register their protest through violence,
the government doesn't take serious note of them. People who are thrown
out of their own homes may be treated with compassion, but are never treated
with respect anywhere else. They're only considered a liability in other
states. They need protection. And yes, they need to start thinking about
going back home too.
My grandparents had property in
Kashmir, which is all gone now. My uncles sold it all off for peanuts and
cleared out. And we still didn't have it so bad. There are others worse
off. They loaded a few essentials in their car and driven out of the state.
And at the end of the day what really hurts is that no one seems to care.
The attitude in the rest of the country is, if it is not happening to me,
it is not happening. As for how the solution, the government has to work
it out. And I absolutely sure that if they really want to, they can do
it. They have tried ceasefire, now they should try something else. My suggestion
- although I don't know what the political implications of it will be -
is that they begin by abolishing the special status of Kashmir. Categorising
of any sort, is never healthy. People from all states should be allowed
to move in freely and live in this state too.
Anyway, this is really the last
chance that Pakistan gets to prove that it is serious and it really wants
peace. And we all hope this chance doesn't get blown. Nothing is impossible,
and if North Korea and South Korea could walk together in the opening ceremony
of the Olympics, surely India and Pakistan can sort out their problems
too.
