|
Time
to go that extra mile in Kashmir
Romeet
K Watt
Prime
Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has, undoubtedly, made history. He
has the distinction of being the first Indian premier in the past 17
years to address a "well-attended" public gathering in the
heart of Srinagar in Kashmir. Let us, please, forget how successful,
well-attended political rallies are managed. The mechanism is the
same - whether organized in Srinagar or Patna, or for that matter,
Lahore or Karachi.
Symbolism apart, Vajpayee has indeed earned, if not anything, a few
brownie points. A blend of poet-politician at his very best. On the
first leg - Day 1 of his much publicized visit, when he interfaced
with the people of Kashmir, he chose, conveniently, to put aside all
the contentious issues, displaying his charisma, and poetic acumen.
Striking a conciliatory note, Vajpayee talked and talked about
peace; the need for peace. And of course he surprised many when he
extended his hand of friendship to Pakistan. He only chose to raise
thorny issues on Day 2 of his historic visit to the state.
Talk of reactions and you had Islamabad in a spot of bother, at
least to begin with. Taken altogether by surprise at Vajpayee's
peace offer, Islamabad recovered, in time, to welcome the
initiative. And, once again, remarked about the statesman-like
qualities of Vajpayee.
However, if his Day 1 musings were for the peace constituency in
Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), his parting shot just before he flew
back to Delhi was aimed at his own domestic constituency in the rest
of the country.
And, of course, section(s) of his own government. At the end of Day
1, the hawkish elements must have been in such a frenzy at the turn
of events that External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha must have
found it difficult to find a hiding place. Or he must have thought,
perhaps, he should try and prevent Vajpayee's flight from landing in
Delhi as a mark of protest for making him look like a fool.
The prime minister of India, at the end of his two-day visit,
reminded us that, no, he did not forget to mention, say, the
Nadimarg massacre - where 24 Hindu civilians were killed by the
militants - but simply chose not to. Because, he said, he wanted to
make a new beginning. At the end of his journey he was again his
usual self, making known India's known position - the prerequisites
that are to be met by Pakistan for any meaningful dialogue on
Kashmir.
Talk of making new beginnings and Vajpayee will be attempting it for
the third time. That is if we live to see the day. At least our dear
premier is giving it yet another sincere try - so the least we the
loyal countrymen can do is look the other way - and hope that there
is not another war debacle, or for that matter another terror attack
on our parliament. Third time lucky for talks with Pakistan. We hope
so. At least there is a positive start, with the premier announcing
the restoration of full diplomatic ties and restoring air links.
But on the first leg of his journey he had perhaps given enough
leeway to Islamabad to make the best of his earlier conciliatory
gestures.
Pakistan, it seems, was so moved by Vajpayee's
statesman-like-qualities that President General Pervez Musharraf's
poster boy, Prime Minister Zafar Ullah Khan Jamali, coolly picked up
the phone and spoke to Vajpayee for about 10 minutes. Apart from
exchanging pleasantries, well, it seems they did get down to
discussing, among other things, "relevant issues".
Washington. London. Paris. Beijing. Everyone was thrilled, happy.
Peace has been given a chance in South Asia. Nuclear holocaust has
been averted. So far, so good.
What next? First, let us not go on a warmongering spree and be a
spoilsport by not giving peace a chance.
Fast forward. It would seem really odd that while Jamali is playing
perfect host to our Vajpayee, treating him to tasty desserts, our
poor Havaldar Shide continues to fight a grim battle for survival.
Havaldar Shide, let me enlighten you, is with the Ratriya Rifles,
posted in the Doda-Rajouri sector, engaged in counter-insurgency
operations. He is dutifully, against all odds, smoking out bigwigs
of the militant groups, smashing their hideouts in the deep, thick
jungle of Doda.
He also deserves peace, if not a good meal, at a time when his prime
minister is talking peace. And he could make use of this peace to
muster the courage to write a postcard, if not an e-mail, to his
commanding officer about his experiences in counter insurgency
operations. What are his impressions? What does he think he needs in
terms of logistics, equipment, and so on, to make his operations all
the more successful?
Indian and Pakistan should talk. No one in his right mind would cast
aspersions on such a need. But it is also imperative that peace be
given a chance in Kashmir - in the true sense; in a way that
bloodshed stops, albeit temporarily, but that has to be done, the
sooner the better.
The least Pakistan can do at this crucial juncture is to impress on
the United Jihad Council - the conglomerate of all the terrorist
outfits operating in J&K - to call for, say, a two-month
moratorium on its violent activities. Pakistan can bring this about,
with discretion, of course.
It is not a tough request: a very reasonable, sensible way to create
an atmosphere of the utmost good faith - one of the essential
ingredients for a healthy meaningful discussion.
Home |
