Divisive yet democratic: Political crisis
Elections are over, results have been declared but the
outcome is yet to emanate. The new year has come with the new challenges but
lets be optimistic, hope and pray that this year will bring peace to the region
and the world. Almost a decade ago I heard Prime Minister Vajpayee speaking
about free and fair elections in his Independence day speech. Ever since then
it has almost been the routine exercise to tag every elections in Jammu and
Kashmir as free and fair. But one may ask “Is this an indirect acknowledgement
of the fact that Jammu and Kashmir has never witnessed free and fair elections
before 2002”. However, New Delhi has never accpeted that the elections have
been manipulated in the past. The think tank in Delhi even compared the heavy
participation of the people in the state, to an end of conflict in the region.
We wish it was true but we can’t close our eyes and say in tune with the
advisors sitting within the four walls of air condtioned room in New Delhi.
There can be no denying of the fact that the people of
Jammu and Kashmir have partcipated in huge numbers. However, it has resulted in
puzzled, deeply fragmented and fractured mandate resulting in political crisis.
This puzzle has brought many new faces to lime light and exposed true colours
of almost all political parties. Politics has no religion but uses religion as
a tool. The pseudo religious and pseudo regional parties have been exposed by
this verdict. The confusion in itself is acknowledgement of the fact that their
ideology is not only fractured but deeply devisive. The state of Jammu
and Kashmir is sensitive and a different affair alltogether. Here
coalitions can not be framed on the agnda of development only. We ask “can a father who lost his son,
a wife who lost her husband, and a mother who lost her son” during the course
of conflict be consoled on the agenda of good governance and development.
New Delhi is playing with the fire and though it has
to some extent been successful in divinding the people of state on the regional
lines but again it has proved to be counter productive. In this election the
only difference has been, while BJP has been dividing the state on the regional
lines based on the greater ideology of “hindutva” the pseudo regional parties
have failed miserably to convince people on the idea of greater and united
Jammu and Kashmir. The identity of Kashmir is inevitably linked with all the three regions
of the state. If Article 370 has benifitted the people of valley, it
has equally guaranteed similar rights for rest of the two divisions. However
euphoria among the common masses is being created that it is this article which
has proved as deterrent in the progress of the state. One may ask then “What
has stopped India to register progress in other some of the most backword
states. There no such article is stopping them. On the other hand for their
political gains they share the same ideology which asked for the mass emigratiom
of labourer’s from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh from Maharshtra. However, the same
demonized Article-370 has never stopped labourers from any part of India, from
working in this state. They don’t need visa to come and work here. This
ideology is not only threat to the integrity of our state but to the union of
India as well.
Unfortunately Kashmir has a unique history and it is
not new to the people of Jammu and Kashmir for being traded. However, we have
yet not learnt the lessons and we keep on repeating similar mistakes. During
the elections the regional divide was politicized and people were seperated on
these lines. After the elections these politicians are now looking for unholy allainces
for the sake of power though based on a separate idea of development, good
governance and above all relief for the flood affected people. An argument for
the sake of allaince is being created that in the absense of any alliance with
the centre the state will be deprived of funds. This represents the savage
mentality and New Delhi should stop thinking about Jammu and Kashmir as a finacial
liability and should honur the democratic credentials by handing over its
financial and strategic interests in the region. History is testimony of the
fact that every unholy allaiance have proved counter productive, and have
resulted in institutionalization of seperatist ideology.
Divisive yet democratic: Political crisis
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