J K News Today Commentary
The end of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir –now a step sway from becoming two union territories – has demonstrated clearly that when the leadership is bold, anything can happen, and especially when the national interest is involved.
On Monday when the Modi Government took a historical step to end the special status of the state where terrorism had stalked the lives of the masses, new hopes have surfaced among the peace-loving people of the the state.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah who piloted these historic moves in Rajya Sabha was right on the spot when he said that the government did not want Kashmir to become another Kosovo. It was not an exaggerated comparison because things had started drifting in the Valley and the situation in some parts of Jammu region offered glimpses of the disturbance on the scale witnessed during 1990s . There were other dangers hovering over the state that could have imperiled the national interest. The growth of radicalization in Kashmir and the veering around of the youth toward violent secessionism could have led to the situation where social, community and regional disintegration were becoming a worrisome reality .
The Article 370 was serving as a shield to the growth of Islamic Radicalism because there were many things that the Centre wanted to do, but could not because the successive state governments put hurdles in that. There were spree of amnesty schemes for the militants , and they were allowed to go scot free. Pakistan was sending terrorists and weapons but certain laws of the state were applied in their favour.
Now such loopholes cannot be exploited . The Centre can take a stern action against the elements of terrorism and those promoting them . Quite often the Muslim majority character of the state was used to scare away the minorities . So much so that even the return of Kashmiri Pandits to their homeland was stalled , and the genuine issues of the industrial policies and setting up of colonies for the soldiers who were born and brought up in the state were stonewalled by the politicians. On each such occasion the Muslim majority character was played up as if the settling of the genuine people of the state’s original sons and daughters was a crime . Now that fear is lifted, legally and constitutionally .
