Himanshu Shekhar
It is the season of change and hope across the globe. Amidst gaping troubles and serious concerns on politico economic front there is a feeling that change might come and come soon.
Probably the oldest promise in politics is change.
No, we are not talking about the Obama revolution. It is the story of a land which has seen an unfair share of history- from painful invasions of cruel barbarians to the pangs of partition, from secessionist movement to cross border infiltration, from terrorism to military atrocities and from oppressive autocracy to sweet democracy. Jammu and Kashmir has seen it all.
As a team member of a private news channel program I have had the opportunity of travelling in the valley during elections in 2002. The state is back in the election mode and like on all previous occasions the world will be watching it keenly. Separatist leaders have once again decided to boycott the polls. But like always India would hope that people of the state come out in huge numbers and speak clearly.
The actual problem
Jammu and Kashmir with its natural resources and enchanting beauty has caught every poet’s imagination and is truly called the Paradise on Earth. But, the paradise has often been in the centre of controversy and has seen countless blood baths and ravages in the pages of history.
Though many believe that the problem originated in 1947 when British left India and
Raja Hari Singh who was afraid of Pakistan sponsored invasion in Kashmir, signed the accession treaty with India, much against the wishes of Kashmiri Muslims.
The accession to India was not acceptable to Pakistan, which felt India denied it its natural piece of land. Pakistan garnered enough support in the valley by initiating communal feelings and has largely been successful in keeping Kashmir issue at the fore front of any political discussion. But it would be naïve to think that the Hindu King’s accession is the root cause of all the problems that J & K has faced in the following decades.
In fact way back in the 16th century the Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Sikhs lived in great harmony. Abu Fazl’s Ain-i-Akbari speaks volumes of it. The root of communalism hence does not lie in history.
Coming back, months before Hari Singh’s accession to the Indian Union, it was the partition on basis of demographic consideration that had left the state reeling. Despite Muslim League’s much publicized assertion that Muslims across the Valley including the Gujjars were happy with the division on religious basis, reality suggested otherwise.
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, writes in his biography ‘India wins Freedom’, “When we looked at the country immediately before and after partition, we found the claim that the whole country had accepted partition was hollow. The real position was however completely different. People like Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan and many local leaders especially in the valley came to Gandhi Ji and begged to stop the freedom that would lead to partition. Majority of Muslims rebelled against the very idea of Pakistan.”
“Why was Kashmir left lurching for answers? Why did people who drank same water from Jhelum and Chenab, breathed same air, shared same Himalayas were made to fight much against their own wishes?” Azad asked.
Sadly these questions still remains unanswered.
But things have moved on. The state has seen three wars since then and countless terror strikes. As the state prepares to go to polls again with a shimmering hope that long standing issues will be addressed and bloom will return to the valley again, all we can do is to hope the best and join in their prayer for peace and harmony. Who knows, this may bring the much awaited change.
