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September 2019 Edition of Power Politics is updated.          September 2019 Edition of Power Politics is updated.
Issue:June' 2019

INDIA’S KASHMIR POLICY

Why is Pakistan so unnerved ?

Syed Nooruzzaman

Pakistan is the only country which has been speaking openly against India’s policy initiative primarily aimed at handling effectively the separatist forces in the Kashmir valley and making it almost impossible for Islamabad to continue to use terrorism to achieve its unholy objectives in Jammu and Kashmir. India also thought that there was need to spur economic activity in the border state so that people there got enough opportunities to increase their earnings which could prevent them from being used by separatist forces for their own narrow political objectives.

Soon after India revoked Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan expressed baseless apprehensions that Pulwamalike attacks could follow New Delhi’s decision, triggering a conventional war between the two nuclear-powered nations. He speculated that the feared war might come about when Kashmiris would protest and India would launch a crackdown on them.

"This will be a war that no one will win and the implications will be global," he warned, while addressing a rare joint sitting of Pakistan’s parliament that was convened to discuss the Kashmir situation, a day after India revoked Article 370, which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

This provocative statement was made to fool the Kashmiris and the world community to make them believe as if the Kashmiris were Pakistan’s own people. However, India, which maintained restraint, went ahead with its course of action as, after all, it was India’s internal matter.

Soon after India revoked Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan expressed baseless apprehensions that Pulwama-like attacks could follow New Delhi’s decision, triggering a conventional war between the two nuclear-powered nations. He speculated that the feared war might come about when Kashmiris would protest and India would launch a crackdown on them.

There is no reason for Pakistan to shed crocodile tears if J and K has lost its special status provided under the Constitution’s Articles 370 and 35A. It has now been bifurcated into two union territories with J&K (minus Ladakh) having an elected assembly like Delhi, but the police, land and finances will be under the control of the Central government. Ladakh will be a separate union territory like Chandigarh and will be administered by centrally appointed bureaucrats. The NDA government at the Centre thought that this was the need of the hour and it had every right to do what it intended to do in accordance with the Constitution.

Critics have pointed out that the way Jammu and Kashmir has been converted into a union territory was not convincing for everybody. The debate can go on --- which is bound to happen in a robust democracy as India is --- when such a major decision has been taken. But Pakistan has no locus standi to object to a change introduced by India in accordance with its own scheme of things.

Pakistan’s worries are understandable if one looks at the changed scenario from Islamabad’s angle. Under the new arrangement, Pakistan will find it difficult to foment trouble in the Kashmir Valley through the extremist and separatist forces operating there as Islamabad’s stooges and also the Kashmir-bound terrorists functioning from across the border. This makes it clear why Islamabad has knocked at all the doors it could to challenge India’s decision.

Claiming that India's move to revoke Article 370 was "illegal" and would "destroy regional peace and security", the Pakistan Prime Minister first took the matter to the UN Security Council with the help of its allweather friend China, but without success. After a closeddoor discussion on the matter, no statement was issued by the 15-member powerful Council as it was treated as an internal matter of India. Pakistan wanted to internationalise the issue by raking up the UN resolution, though dead as dodo. This was a big snub to both China and Pakistan, yet Islamabad has now decided to take it to the International Court of Justice.

Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told ARY News TV that “the decision was taken after considering all legal aspects." Pakistan is bound to get a bloody nose there too.

The truth is that Imran Khan is no real wellwisher of the Kashmiris. He will never allow those living in the areas of Kashmir under Pakistan’s control to function without bothering about the wishes of Islamabad. But his Kashmir swansong will help strengthen his party’s political prospects.

Pakistan can go anywhere it likes to do so, but no international body is going to listen to Islamabad’s baseless arguments, as giving a serious thought to Islamabad’s complaint will amount to supporting its policy of using terrorism and extremism as an instrument of state policy. The world cannot afford to provide any kind of encouragement to extremists.

India’s case is so strong that it can thwart any move to cause harm to its national interests. As India’s Permanent Representative at the UN, Syed Akbaruddin, told a TV channel the other day, “What happened (at the Security Council) was an informal consultation, which actually made it quite clear to everyone that India's approach enjoys broad support globally.... We do hope that they will recalibrate, taking into account the outcome of that consultation."

The truth is that Imran Khan is no real well-wisher of the Kashmiris. He will never allow those living in the areas of Kashmir under Pakistan’s control to function without bothering about the wishes of Islamabad. But his Kashmir swansong will help strengthen his party’s political prospects. The K word must have made the position of his party, Tehreek-e-Insaaf, unassailable. Imran Khan will win hands down in case an election is held there under the prevailing circumstances.

But it is immoral to use the Kashmir question blatantly for political advantages as the Pakistan Prime Minister is doing.

As he admitted, while speaking at a function in Washington in July, about "30,000 to 40,000" armed people (terrorists) who have been trained and fought in some part of Afghanistan or Kashmir" were operating from his country. He claimed that his government was taking action against these militants. But the claim remains doubtful. If he is really serious about immobilising the terrorists, he should, instead of wasting his time on India’s Kashmir initiative, concentrate on accomplishing this task as terrorism continues to pose a serious threat to peace and stability.

India knows how to take care of the interests of its people. The Governor’s administration in Jammu and Kashmir will organise a three-day global investors’ summit in Srinagar from October 12.

Industrialists are bound to feel attracted to take advantage of the change (which will come into effect on October 31) in the state, where anyone can now own land to launch a business establishment without any kind of fear.