Kashmir, a historical perspective and current issues
Jammu and Kashmir was one of the 29 states of India. When India got independence from British rule in 1947,the erstwhile British India was partitioned into two countries, the Muslim majority areas of north west(areas of Punjab, Sindh, north west frontier province) and east(Bengal) into Pakistan and the rest of the country into India, with over 550 princely states given a choice of either going with Pakistan or with India, or become independent. Many of the princely states decided to merge with India while others decided to go with Pakistan. The transition was not a smooth one with many princely states within India deciding to become independent or going towards Pakistan. Here comes in picture Sardar Vallabh bhai Patel. He was the vice prime minister and home minister of India at the time and was given the rigorous task of merging the princely states into India. He faced his toughest challenges in three states namely Junagarh, Hyderabad and Kashmir.
Junagarh and Hyderabad were tilting to go with Pakistan or remain independent, Kashmir on the other hand decided to remain independent. Its ruler Maharaja Hari Singh was a Hindu ruler while the state was a Muslim majority state. Pakistan starting claiming Kashmir on the basis of its Muslim majority. Problems started when Pakistan decided to use power to annex Kashmir. Seeing the first signs of trouble Hari Singh decided to sign a treaty of accession with India and asked Indian help. Indian leaders at that time were divided on whether Kashmir should become Indian state or not. But all this changed when Pakistan attacked Kashmir in the name of tribes and annexed a significant part of it. Reacting to this aggression India decided to help Kashmir and Maharaja Hari Singh signed a treaty to become a part of India. The treaty of accession which was signed for Kashmir was signed with other princely states also. These treaties gave princely states like Kashmir the power to form their own constitution along with sending their representatives to constituent assembly of India. As the constitution of India came to its final shape most of the princely states adopted this constitution. Kashmir on the other hand decided to go with its own constitution, with all its internal matters being decided by its own legislative assembly, while external matters like defense, currency, external affairs etc, under central rule. The article in the constitution which gave Kashmir its special powers came to be known as article 370.
Now as Kashmir’s special status has been revoked, there have been fears that it will invoke strong response from the people of Kashmir. Kashmir has always been the core issue of tensions between India and Pakistan. There have been wars between the two countries, with both countries claiming the part of Kashmir’s territory under other rule. The state of Jammu and Kashmir has been in turmoil since 1990 when Pakistan backed militant movement gained momentum in the Kashmir valley. The movement was also triggered when there were allegations of rigging of the legislative assembly elections, which invoked anger among the people. All this started tensions in the state and a separatist movement gained momentum. During the tenure of Atal Bihari Vajpayee there were significant developments between India and Pakistan, when Vajpayee decided to go to Lahore by bus in 1998 to meet his counterpart with Nawaz Sharif. Lahore declaration was signed there which further gave hope that the issue will soon be solved. Then in 1999 when Kargil happened, the situation again deteriorated between the two countries. In 2004 again, during the Agra talks with General Parvej Mushharaf, the issue was almost solved but again the final climax never reached its destination. During the UPA tenure from 2004 to 2014 the region started regaining its normalcy.
All this changed when in 2014, BJP led by Narendra Modi came into power with overwhelming majority in the center and removal of article 370 was one of their promises in the election manifesto. In 2015 when elections were held in Jammu and Kashmir, BJP made a post poll alliance with PDP, a regional party and formed the government in the state. For the first time in the history of independent India the party came to power in Kashmir. As the party had a zero tolerance towards terrorism it started acting forcefully in the state. The situation further deteriorated when Burhan Waani died in an encounter. There was widespread protest after the death of Burhan Waani. The state government was criticized for not handling the situation properly. Pressure started building on BJP to come out of the alliance with PDP, which was seen as having a soft corner for separatists. Seeing the coming of 2019 elections, BJP withdrew its support from the government and came out of the alliance. President rule has been there in the state since then. There had been demands for new elections in the state but the government has cited unfavorable conditions in the state, thus delaying the elections.
Now as the government has decided to revoke article 370, there has been criticism of the government for not taking the people of Kashmir into confidence. There are also some technical faults in the decision regarding its legality as the article 370 suggests that any changes in the article can be done only when that change has been passed in the legislative assembly. The government has said that since there is no assembly in the state at the moment, therefore the president has consulted the governor( which is the appointed by the central government). The issue has already gone to the Supreme Court of India which would eventually decide . There are also concerns whether this move would bring the people of Kashmir closer to India or alienate them further. We need to keep in mind the fact that article 370 was already very much diluted and was there in name only. Its official revocation can bring an end to this unnecessary agitating point of separatists in the valley, and would encourage more and more people from rest of India to come closer to the valley and would encourage interaction between the two. This can, in the long run bring people of Kashmir closer to the rest of India.
History has shown time and again that, might only, can never bring people closer, it happens gradually over a period when different regions or communities start trusting and respecting each other. The classic case is that of Soviet Union which held many countries together with might and force for several decades, but was never integrated in the real sense. When the Soviet Union came down in 1990s it disintegrated into several countries. Nowadays, China, which is considered one of the most powerful countries of the world, is facing many problems in Hong Kong, which despite being part of China has its separate rules and legislation. All these examples clearly suggest that when a government decides to act on behalf of people, it need to creates a sense of belonging among the people and carry forward its policies to that end. All we hope is that there is restoration of peace in the Kashmir valley and what the government is claiming comes out to be the actual case in Kashmir.