JK News Today’s special report
Binoo Joshi
At the moment when Kashmir is passing through a critically balanced stage where peace and its reversal have equal chances of success as shades of uncertainties continue to appear like floating patches of clouds in otherwise clear sky, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has advanced a three-point formula for permanent peace. This formula is a mix of optimism and stern warning to the people against getting trapped into the narratives of the vested interests .
Kashmir , in the recent months , has shown a great deal of courtship to normalcy in a bid to achieve permanent peace to re-establish itself as a peaceful territory for its people as also an ultimate destination for tourists from across the world . Peace is not only a necessity for Kashmir, it has to be ingrained in the physical landscape and psyche of the masses . This also is a must for the image of the Valley and the rest of the nation . A peaceful Kashmir is intertwined with the nation’s sense of security , for in the past Kashmir situation and it still continues to impact the national security , which is very, very, critical to the geo-politics of the times.
It might have come as a surprise to many that when everything is moving toward permanent peace , why should there be apprehension on this count ? Certain trepidations continue to move along , as the psyche of few sections of people is yet to tilt toward the necessity of peace . For them , peace is something of an antidote to what they believe is cause. In normalcy, they see imminent threat to their cause .
This is not something new to Kashmir. Since 1947, there has been a consistent clash between the peace-loving sections and those who believe perpetuation of conflict is the right way to go. The conflict-lovers have a thesis that stoking unrest and causing street disturbances and physical violence could lead them to their goal . They have an illusory world of theirs , where in the process of conflict they see the end , because they are unclear about their goal. The thesis of “ Azadi” or freedom and “ making Kashmir as part of Pakistan” has led them nowhere. But they revel in this syndrome of nowhere as that helps them to live with their illusions.
These illusions are casing troubles . They have all sorts of tools to convince the vulnerable teenagers that the status of nowhere needs to end and for that struggle has to be mounted to land at some solid place . In short, the idea of conflict is to weave the anti-India theories , and put them into practice . Even a single killing is enough for them to sustain their narrative and deceptions. It throws a challenge to the peace-pushing men and forces to demolish these false impressions and make them aware of the realities and peace dividends .
Till date, especially since the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, the government embarked on two strategies ( a ) intensified anti-terrorism operations across J&K- it was a no-holds barred strikes against terrorists, ( b) infrastructural development , in which the people came face to face with smooth roads , expanding business activities and windfall of tourists . These approaches delivered dividends – regular school work, fear-free walk to work and safe return to homes , night life. These might seem ordinary things for any other place in the country, but for the people in the Valley it was realization of their dreams that were kept hostage by terror-promoting forces . It is no mean achievement . In fact, it’s an accomplishment that has enhanced the quality of life of Kashmiris and reinforced their image as peace-loving people .
While the LG administration , with Manoj Sinha leading from the front , having brought this change , the people were veering around to the idea of having an impenetrable peace . This was not to the liking of those whom conflict delivered monetary and other benefits . They started the narrative that the administration was injecting this peace only because of the element of fear owing to the overuse of the security forces and laws that allowed it to put the youth in jails . This created apprehensions . Pakistan , with the assistance of the lovers of conflict , guided by their ideology of radicalism and violence , furthered the narration that the peace without solution to Kashmir issue is meaningless. They wanted to keep the troubling issues alive .
LG Sinha has sought cooperation of the masses in overturning designs of the inimical forces . His mantra is simple,” the people will have to come forward and become active leaders to pursue peace. This task, cannot be established through administrative and police actions alone.”
This formula gels with two other mantras- anti-terrorism operations , development . The people’s cooperation and rise against the enemies of peace will deliver permanent peace , which Kashmir is in dire need of . He also warned that all the dividends accrued so far will not sustain if peace gets disrupted . It was a presentation of black and white picture. Now it is for the people to make a choice.
