The Dirty War in Kashmir by Shujaat Bukhari

Author:Shujaat Bukhari [Bukhari, Shujaat]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Left Word
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

CHIEF MINISTER’S WARNING

Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti was the first to warn against tampering with Article 35A. At a seminar in Delhi, she said if Article 35A was tinkered with, there would be nobody to shoulder the Indian flag in Kashmir. The entire opposition in the State, comprising the National Conference (NC), the Congress, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and other regional parties, has come out in defence of the law. Former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah chaired a meeting of the opposition on August 7 and warned of the consequences of abrogating Article 35A. ‘If the S.C. [Supreme Court] decides to scrap Article 35A, New Delhi will have to face the consequences and be ready for the battleground. We will go to jail, do everything we can. They should be ready for it,’ he said in an interview with this writer. With Mehbooba driving to Farooq Abdullah’s residence to discuss Article 35A, the political equations in the State seem to be changing. The Chief Minister also met the Prime Minister and the Home Minister on the issue.

It remains to be seen whether the Government of India changes its stand on August 29, when the case is again listed for hearing. Former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has taken the battle a step forward by saying that in case Article 35A was tinkered with, the larger discussion on the accession would be reopened.

The Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL), comprising Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Yasin Malik, has also warned of the consequences of a possible abrogation of Article 35A. For the first time, entities on either side of the ideological divide are on the same page. The concern is that the removal of Article 35A will help the BJP fulfil its long-standing dream of complete integration, which eventually will make it possible for people from other states to settle in Jammu and Kashmir. Whether the pro-India and anti-India forces will stage protests together is not known, but the case has set the ball rolling not only for a greater confrontation between New Delhi and Srinagar but also for a possible revolt. If that happens, it is going to be BJP versus the rest. Not only will it put Kashmir back on the boil, but the fate of the State government will become uncertain.

Zaffar Shah, a leading lawyer, says that such issues warrant political decisions. ‘Such approach doesn’t have people’s support. Issues that can only be decided in a democratic manner can’t be dealt with by the courts. It appears that this is being done with a design to take away the core sovereignty of the State of Jammu and Kashmir,’ he said. Hurriyat Conference leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said that the aim was simply to change the State’s demography: ‘As this Article bars non-State subjects from settling and buying property in J&K, it is being challenged in a court with a view to alter the demography of the State by settling people from outside the State with the right to acquire land and property, and vote in the Assembly elections.

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