Back-channel diplomacy is at work Needs to be made serious business

 

After last week's political theatrics that preceded and followed the Governor's order of the dissolution of the J&K Assembly, the atmosphere in the state turned depressing. Now that a couple of developments have taken place at the national level and in the Valley, pray, our mood may get a lift. Suddenly, we breathe air-blended with a fragrant positivity. Wish, it holds on and the ever-loating political dirt doesn't pollute it, again.

The back-channel diplomacy is at work. While we were busy in discussing the Assembly dissolution, a scene unfolded in Srinagar Former Norwegian Prime Minister Kjell Mane Bondevik met Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Syed Ali Shah Geelani. The meeting was organised by the Art of Living Foundation May not be with its blessings. However, The Government of India can't be ignorant of it. Bondevik, then, travelled across the LoC and met local leaders there. We have no access to the outcome of those meetings. Nonetheless, meeting of former Norwegian PM, with the prominent leaders of the Hurriyat in itself, shows that people in Kashmir have not given up hope for the revival of peace initiatives.

Then, we witnessed opening of the Kartarpur comidor across India and Pakistan Punjab which, hopefully, could be a sign of other peace initiatives to come, particularly in Kashmir. The Kartarpur agreement has been widely welcomed by India- Pakistan experts. We hope that the peace initiative on Kashmir will follow Observers say that the Modi government's acceptance of the Kartarpur proposal might have been prompted by the desire to gamer credit, especially for the alliance partner Alkalis Dal Be that so Often good things come out more by default than by design

India's participation in Moscow Format to settle the Afghanistan problem, where the Taliban also was present, is another welcome development. More, for the reason that stereotypes are getting shattered. 

In Kashmir, the security forces are doing a good job. According to South Asia Terrorism Portal some 400 persons have been killed in J&K this year, more than half of whom were militants. This is the highest toll since 2009, when the figure was 375 in the whole year.

It is a good military strategy to go after the s and neutralise them, but gun-wielding persons a killing the terrorist alone won't mean much when there is a long queue waiting to join the ranks, with the result that instead of any decline in the terrorist activities we see a rise in them. It is quite disturbing that while as in earlier years Pakistani jihadis kept terrorism afloat, there has been a sharp increase in the local recruitment. Security forces have had successes earlier also, due to which there were long periods of relative peace in the state. However, in the past Governments, both at the Centre and in the state, failed to build upon those successes and remove the underlying cause of the unrest. New Delhi will have to offer something more than the military advance. A political plan must be in place to consolidate the gains yielded by the security plan. To borrow the words of Governor Satya Pal Malik Terrorism has to be fought in the minds.``

It is to state the obvious, that at present the Valley's emotional relations with the Union stand impaired. It will not be in the national interest if there is further erosion in these relations. Why should there be different priorities in Punjab and J&K 7 Minister of State for External affairs General VK Singh, former Army chief, recently, spoke of delinking the Kartarpur comidor from 26/11 Mumbai attack case. Why not consider Kashmir CBMs in the same spirit? We can adopt the same approach to address the situation in Kashmir and don't get trapped in the conditionality.

Kartarpur comidor can be replicated across LoC in J&K It could start with Sharda Peeth being opened for Kashmiri Pandit pilgrims. Here, it may be worthwhile to note that efforts for reopening the shrine have been on from other side of the LoC as well. Notable persons like Doctor Mohsin Shakeel -a urologist of Muzaffarabad - is doing a remarkable job, in this regard. He has resurrected the Sharda script and his work is in progress. So are some  academics in Islamabad putting in their best capabilities to restore the spiritual glory of the Peeth. People in the state and Delhi have been agitating for long in this connection Services of the people-across the LoC-can be utilise to build a condor to Sharda Peeth on the lines of the Kartarpur corridor.

It is hearting to note that former C.M. Mehbooba Mufti has called upon both New Delhi and Islamabad to "follow Kartarpur initiative by facilitating the Sharda Peeth pilgrimage between the two divided parts of Kashmir"

The Jammu business community has welcomed the opening of Kartarpur corridor. It is their long- pending demand that more routes be opened between the two parts of the state to facilitate trade and commerce and add to the people-to-people-contact process. The community rightly feels that opening of more routes between the two parts will be a big economic boost, not only to the Jammu region but also to the whole state. The opening of the Kartarpur condor has given strength to this demand.

It may be of some help to recall what the Vice- President said on the occasion of laying the foundation stone of the Dera Baba Nanak-Kartarpur Sahib comidor He termed it as "passage of humanity, humility, faith and universal brotherhood" These words may constitute an underlying principle that should be held dear while India and Pakistan enter into mutual engagement to solve all pending issues. For the Center's engagement with all the stakeholders in J&K, to sort out the problem, adherence to this principle is sine qua non

It is desirable to keep the back-channel diplomacy alive and kicking The front door of the possibilities has to remain open always Now that the Assembly has been dissolved, it is better to have elections soon We trust the new dispensation that occupies chair in J&K, is, ideologically, compatible and representative of all sections of society The electorate has a huge responsibility to discharge. It is time to rise above petty considerations in the larger interests of the state and the nation.

(The writer is the former Principal District & Sessions Judge)

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Courtesy:-  B.L. Saraf  and Koshur Samachar 2018, December