Centre’s peace initiative evokes little hope in Kashmir

The appointment of former Intelligence Bureau (IB) Director Dineshwar Sharma as Centre’s representative for initiating dialogue with all stakeholders in Jammu and Kashmir—after ‘Operation All Out’ against militants and National Investigating Agency’s (NIA’s) raids on separatists—has evoked little hope in the Kashmir Valley.

Sharma, who has served in Kashmir when militancy was at its peak and is currently the Centre's point person for dialogue with Assam-based militant groups, has already said that he would like to talk to everyone. However, questions are being asked if the government considers those who challenge “Indian occupation” in Kashmir as stakeholders. The same people are facing NIA probes as well.

Independent observers maintain that interlocutors are not new to Kashmir. Referring to the fate of earlier reports filed by the interlocutors from time to time, they have dubbed the current initiative as another “farce” to buy time.

Pertinently, National Conference (NC) government's autonomy report as well as the Greater Autonomy Resolution passed unanimously by both Houses of the state legislature were shelved by BJP-led NDA government in 1999-2000.

KC Pant, then deputy chairman, Planning Commission, was appointed as interlocutor on J&K on April 5, 2001 and continued till 2002. Subsequently, NN Vohra, the present Governor, was appointed as the Centre’s point person for engaging all the stake holders, on February 19, 2003. He continued till 2008.

The reports prepared by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's five working groups on Kashmir which were set up in 2016 haven’t seen the light of the day. Similarly, after the 2010 Kashmir unrest, three interlocutors, namely Dilip Padgaonkar, Dr MM Ansari and Radha Kumar were appointed.

“This announcement of dialogue is another ploy on Kashmir and a waste of time,” former Chief Minister and NC president Dr Farooq Abdullah said, adding that “the Centre should present the reports of all interlocutors, NN Vohra and late Dileep Padgoankar on Kashmir in Parliament. All these reports are lying with the Home Minister which should be debated in the parliament.”

Farooq Abdullah said that National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval’s doctrine of suppressing Kashmiris has failed. His son, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, said that the acceptance of the political nature of the issue was a defeat for those who saw force as a solution.

Former Chief Minister of the state and Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad, wondered as to why this step was taken after three and a half years. “For three-and-a-half years, the Modi government followed hot pursuit. Now, towards the fag end of its term, the government is talking of dialogue to garner some publicity. We seriously doubt the government's intent and sincerity,” he commented.

Maintaining that for the past three years, Opposition parties, including the Congress, had been stressing on the need for confidence building measures in Kashmir but that it fell on deaf years, Azad said, “Kashmir is a political issue and no political issue across the world has ever been resolved by hot pursuit or muscle power. If this government had listened to us earlier, so many precious lives of soldiers and civilians would not have been lost and hundreds of children as young as three and four years would not have lost their eyesight to pellets fired from guns.”

“I sincerely hope all the stakeholders take this opportunity and help bring the state out of the quagmire of uncertainties,” Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti wrote on twitter yesterday. Senior BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister, Nirmal Singh has also hailed the decision.

Former Sadar-e-Resayat and senior Congress leader, Karan Singh, on Monday welcomed the initiative to initiate dialogue in Kashmir to deal with the situation.

“As has been misconstrued, the process was not started to appease anyone, but the overall circumstances and political developments in J&K state had made it mandatory to address the most important issue before unrest could snowball into a mass revolt,” read an editorial in Rising Kashmir, expecting that “meaningful dialogue that is sustained in its composition and consistency would shrink the space for sporadic violent outbreaks.”