Former Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah in a Press interview recently said that he was in favor of automy for Kashmir and he wanted to know from the Indian government the extent to which it was prepared to go, “There is something round the comer,” he claimed. Farooq Abdullah  is a persona nongrata in Kashmir and he cannot even enter the valley, India is trying to  project him as the loader of Kashmir in the same way as it had catapulted Harchand Singh i Longowal as the leader of Sikhs in 1985, Farooq these days is being used by India to help the country in facing the international onslaught at the forum of the U.N. Human Rights Commission at Geneva Farooq Abdullah is trying to extract a price from India for his presence at Geneva to help India Tishna to believe that India will offer any political reforms of substantial nature in Kashmir.

 The country’s present political structure is just not in any such position. ‘Me country’s political establishment is still dominated by a fascist Hindu psyche which knows only the language of the gun to silence dissidence at home, Despite the fact that wo major Indian parties the Congress(I) and the BIP are at daggers drawn on several political issues, they are substantially one on the core matters affecting the nights of freedom loving Kashmiris and Sikhs and other minority groups, That is precisely why the ruling Congress(I) and the BJP had unabashedly joined hands to ensure that the Babri Masjid was demolished to pave the way for the consignation of a Ram Mandirat Ayodhya, ‘There is, of course, no question of the restoration of the Masjid at its original site despite all the promises made by Narasimha Rao. The secret coalition of the Two parties on the core issues is intact Consequently, the Indian Parliament passed a unanimous resolution on Kashmir Early last week Virwally reaffirming India’s resolve to crush the human nights of the people of Kashmir, BJP leader Atal Behan Vajpayee’s presence at Geneva as part of the Indian delegation speaks volumes of the fact that India wants no compromise on Kashmir even to the satisfaction of men like Farooq Abdullah, BJP’s official position on Kashmiris that even the present constitutional arrangement in respect of Kashmir should be ended so that its current identity and powers are further eroded. ‘This position is almost identical to the one held and practiced by the Indian army and other security forces who think that there is no political problem in Kashmir, the problem, if any, could be taken care of in the same day basil was done in Punjab, Refer to a statement recently issued by K.P.S.Gill. ‘That has also been the refrain of the Indian home minister S.B.Chavan who almost always speaks the language of the gun. Abdullah makes a distinction between What Chowan says and what the Prime Minister stands for. He says Rao is in favor of political reforms. This distinction is making believe, Indian ruling class is much too clever for Farooq Abdullah and Longowal’s. The reality is that Rao and Chavan may speak different languages but they act in union. Assuming that Rao has a different outlook than Chavan’s, what about the BJP? That question was put to Farooq. His reply ‘was that the prime minister would have to talk to that party. “He will have to explain to them what the international position is and what the Indian position  sure the BJP, does not want the dismemberment of India.”

Issues in India are clear. That country is not ready for any meaningful resolution of the Kashmir problem or the problem of Sikh rights. It is committed only to the gun inevitably the human rights ‘of Kashmiris and Sikhs will continue to be in jeopardy. International lineup should be determined on the yardstick whether any Country wants a statuesque on the Kashmir issue or a resolution of the problem those who favor the Shimla agreement are sure in favour of the status quo. Only an international initiative on Kashmir and Punjab can jolt India into falling in line with the civilized world on human nights and moving towards resolving these issues.

Article extracted from this publication >> March 4, 1994