Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Jammu and Kashmir on Friday- June 6, 2025, to inaugurate a rail link between Kashmir and the rest of the country from Katra, the base camp of the revered Hindu shrine of Vaishno Devi , reinforcing his commitment to the development , connectivity and prosperity of the Himalayan territory. This visit also coincides with eve of the holy Muslim festival of Eid-ul-Azha. This makes it doubly special occasion for celebration for the country, and J&K, in particular.
There is a clear understanding that Prime Minister will be superimposing development, connectivity and future prospects in his address tomorrow. In all likelihood , Pahalgam terror attack of April 22nd and Operation Sindoor , launched on May 7th to inflict unimaginable punishment at the terror power houses in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir, will figure in his speech ..
It’s PM’s first visit to Jammu and Kashmir and the address from its soil ever since Pahalgam massacre, and Operation Sindoor. It, in many senses, will be a first of firsts visit to the UT, where his speech will be heard and interpreted worldwide.
He has already made it clear how Pakistan and its terror factories would be viewed henceforth. India would be responding to the terror like it does to an act of war. The dialogue will be only on vacation of Pakistan occupied Kashmir held illegally by Pakistan, and no nuclear blackmail come what may.
But J&K being J&K, and the occasion being the century-old dream having come true for J&K, under Modi’s rule, there is something more that the world would be looking forward to hear from him.
A new context has been added ever since he visited in January to inaugurate Sonmarg tunnel in Kashmir. The background is Pahalgam and Operation Sindoor and the theatrics that Pakistan has been playing since.
Pakistan, since hostilities broke out in early May, has been trying to paint India as an “aggressor”, and at the same time pleading for dialogue on all issues, including “Jammu and Kashmir.” It is busy in building two narratives “urging the international community to intervene in Kashmir issue,” which it propagates is at the core of the whole range of political, regional instability, and that the suspension of the Indus waters Treaty is “illegal and violation of the international law.”
China has backed Pakistan on this, something that should be taken serious note of. Both China and Pakistan are ironclad friends, and their multi-billion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a flagship project of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative or BRI passes through the illegally occupied territories of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. They are also strategic partners, and both were together in responding to the Indian military action against terrorists in Pakistan and PoK.
The erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, which includes Ladakh – now a separate Union Territory- cannot remain immune to the changing geopolitical dynamics in the region. This state has its own geostrategic importance, very critical to geostrategic standing of the country. Delhi has the responsibility to ensure safety and security of the region – not only from the pronounced aggression from across the borders , but also from within The shape of the attacks and aggression is not just In the action on borders or terror attacks ,it lies in the narratives broadcast at the international level. The international community, despite its own flaws, has its own itch for intervention- Pakistan is exploiting that.
Beijing-Islamabad aggression is not to be seen in the overt military action or positioning from across the borderlines, but also the way the two countries are busy in converging their narrative on Kashmir (they include Ladakh in it, too). While Pakistan asks for international intervention and keeps on citing the now obsolete UN resolutions of 1948 and 1949, China apparently bilateral Indo-Pak dialogue, but with a clear hint that it could facilitate the process. America has already bared its intentions.
Pakistan is playing a card of the “unresolved Kashmir issue”, and peddling lies of “the suppression of Muslim-majority region because it is asking for its right to self-determination.” The Muslim- dominant character of the UT is becoming an issue, and it cannot be denied that it resonates with some sections within and abroad…
India will be celebrating Eid-ul-Azha on June 7.
Prime Minister can silent all the critics and propagandists in Pakistan and elsewhere with his message of compassion and statesmanship from Katra tomorrow , and a clarion call for tourists to return to the Valley, would be a big confidence building measure . It is needed, as Pahalgam attack has shaken the confidence and Kashmir is waiting for tourists not just for its economy, but its image and its passion for restoration of the bonds that existed between them and tourists in pre-April 22nd era. Katra too is waiting for PM to give a confidence building call for Vaishno Devi pilgrims- the pilgrimage saw unprecedented dip since Pahalgam incident.
Prime Minister had brought peace to Kashmir, resulting in windfall of tourists and investment, and the eve of Eid is perfect occasion to give a clarion call to the countrymen to visit J&K – and for that he is gifting them a dream come true in Kashmir to Kanyakumari train on June 6th.
