CHANDIGARH: Dr. Karan Singh, former Union Minister and president ‘of Indian International Center, recently, said that he felt greatly relieved with the Election Commission’s decision to put off elections in the sensitive border state.
Answering questions here, Dr. Singh, who is also former Sadar e Riyasat of Jammu and Kashmir, said that “the Election Commission deserves gratitude of the nation for saving the people from an extremely disastrous situation,” Though, elections were important in a democracy, the necessary political ground work was not done for the purpose in the state, he added.
The Center had to initiate a process of negotiations and reconciliation I Jammu and Kashmir state and the elections there should be the culmination of these efforts, he said. Apparently, the situation in Kashmir valley ‘was parallel to that in Punjab in 1991, but it was also extremely different in many ways, he added.
He, however, refused to comment on the demand for restoration of pre 1953 condition to Jammu and Kashmir State, “The negotiations should be initiated without any precondition,” he said, and added that talks should be held with various political parties, including Hurriyat leaders and also the people from Jammu and Ladakh regions of the state.
“Twill give my views on the issue of autonomy to the state only after their is comprehensive and sustained process of dialogue by the Center on the matter,” he stated. To a question whether violence in Kashmir was the result of the Center’s failure to deal with the situation steely, Dr. Singh asked, “How many more people you want to be killed in Kashmir.” Pointing out that thousands of people had already been killed in the state, he said that problems could not be solved with use of force in a democracy. “You have to talk to the people,” he opined. Earlier, delivering a lecture on “Interfaith movement in the global context” at the Center for Research in Rural and Industrial Development, Dr. Singh said that religion still rad tremendous hold on the minds of people. The upsurge of religious activity after the collapse of former Soviet Union had also disproved the Leftists propagation of religion being, a govt of “law giver.”
Stressing the need to recognize the importance of religion in the life of people, he said that it becomes a s0cial phenomenon and the state gets involved when one crore people gather at Sangam. “Human civilization would have been much poorer and more people would have been killed, if there had been no religion today, he stressed.
“We find a great deal of turmoil in the name of religion even after 50 years of Independence, as intellectuals look down the religion as anti-secular and have left it to fundamentalists,” he said. Stressing the need for reintegration of science and spirituality, he called for greater interaction between different religions of the world to ensure peace in society.
Dr. Singh has also delivered a lecture on “The message of the Gita” at the Ramakrishna Mission Ashram in Sector 15.
Article extracted from this publication >> November 24, 1995
