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Kashmir : Peace process to continue |
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In a clear signal that the UPA government was serious about continuing the J-K peace process, National Security Adviser J.N. Dixit and the Prime Minister’s Special Adviser M.K. Narayanan had discussion on the prevailing situation in the state with the Centre’s interlocutor N.N. Vohra. Vohra met Dixit and Narayanan for over two hours and gave them a detailed overview of the political and militancy situation in the state. The meeting was believed to be a precursor to talks between the Centre and the Hurriyat Conference, and also with various other groups of the state. According to sources, Vohra briefed Dixit and Narayanan about the progress made in the first two rounds of dialogue between the NDA government and Hurriyat leaders.
Meanwhile, the Hurriyat Conference has declined to take additional security accusing the Centre and the state government of trying to bog them down on the pretext of security. Hurriyat chairman Maulana Abbas Ansari said the plan of providing additional security was aimed at restricting their movement ‘’so that we are not able to function normally and meet people’’. Ansari was reacting to a report of J-K Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, who had called for security upgradation of Hurriyat leaders. Hurriyat executive member Abdul Gani Bhat also declined to take additional security saying ‘’he does not want his office to be turned into a police station or police camp.’’
A Hurriyat spokesman, in fact, went to extent of saying that the leaders have never ‘’begged’’ for security nor are they going to do the same in future. ‘’We have voluntarily jumped into the freedom struggle. Whatever be the consequences, we are ready to face them in absence of security. The offer from the Chief Minister is astonishing,’’ he said. But top official sources said the Government was in favour of enhancing the security of the four Hurriyat executive members. Sources said a meeting of top police and intelligence office discussed the issue and it was felt that the perception of threat to leaders had increased and they were likely to get more security.
‘’Security is upgraded on the basis of the threat perception and everyone can guess whether the threat has increased or not,’’ said a top police officer. Though Mirwaiz and Bilal Gani Lone enjoy Z-grade security, Ansari has a Y-plus security while Prof Abdul Gani Bhat has Y-type security. The security review became imperative after a militant outfit Save Kashmir Movement, had accused the leadership of ‘’sellout and entering into a deal with New Delhi.’’ The Hurriyat has welcomed the Centre’s move to repeal POTA as it was being misused to harass innocent civilians on grounds of being in league with the terrorists. Ansari also wanted special acts on public safety withdrawn as the present laws were adequate to deal with any crime.
Mehbooba’s mission
The PDP president and newly-elected MP from South Kashmir, Mehbooba Mufti, will have a single-point agenda in the Lok Sabha; Make the Kashmir issue heard in Parliament. Expressing unhappiness over ‘’isolation of Kashmiris’’ from benefits of the improvement in ties between India and Pakistan, Mehbooba made a case for Kashmir-specific CBMs. She said these would augur well for peace in the region, adding that opening of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road will be the first step in building bridges between the people.
The first step would bring relief to the people here and give them a sense of participation with the peace process, Mehbooba told mediapersons in Srinagar. According to her, cricket matches and cross-border showbiz events wouldn’t help unless backed by free movement of people from PoK to the Valley.
Though welcoming the CMP, she said the Kashmir issue should be given priority. Mehbooba will also press for lifting the ban on recruitment in government jobs.
The grenade attack on Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Omar Farooq and his uncle, whose condition is still very serious, has unnerved the Kashmir separatists who are now openly speaking of “a determined effort to make us pull out of talks with the Centre.” The Mirwaiz, whose father was assassinated, is spending his days in hospital by his uncle’s side and told The Asian Age that he has had no time to think about the proposed dialogue, or otherwise, with the new government.
All Parties Hurriyat Conference chairman Ansari said the attack was by those who did not want the talks to continue. He said it was extremely worrying, but the Centre should also realise that the dangers would increase unless the next round of talks took up substantive issues in a serious fashion. He said that two rounds of talks with the earlier government had broken the ice “and the effort now should be to take these forward and not try and cover ground that we have already crossed.”
Reports reaching the Centre suggest deep demoralisation and concern about the growing apprehension “that the other side is bent on eliminating those who support the talks with the Centre,” according to official sources. Hardline leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani is taking advantage of this and is now moving ahead to float his own organisation. The sources said he had earlier been dissuaded from doing so by Pakistan, which had wanted the Kashmiri separatists to unite under one banner. This has not happened, and there is an effort on now to activate the hardliners by putting pressure on moderates to pull out of talks with New Delhi.
Separatist leaders like Yasin Malik and Shabir Shah are still sitting on the fence, and refusing to participate in the Hurriyat-Delhi talks. The sources said that they have been in touch with Geelani recently, who has now managed to rope in some Jamaat-e-Islami members into his plans for starting a new organisation. The previous government at the Centre did not invite these leaders for the talks, urging the Hurriyat to approach and accommodate them instead. Maulvi Ansari recently offered to step down from the chairmanship if other leaders wanted this to be a precondition for joining the APHC. He said there had been no response to his offer. Malik and Shah are also looking at the progress of the India-Pakistan dialogue later this month.
Chief Minister Mufti Sayeed is reportedly of the view that the separatist leaders are not in a mood to talk. Mirwaiz Omar Farooq’s uncle took five bullets in the neck while he was praying at a local mosque. This was intended to spread panic and make it clear to others participating in the talks that not just they but their relatives too were not safe, even inside a mosque. The Mirwaiz is shellshocked and for the moment not even thinking about the feasibility, or otherwise, of the dialogue. If the others fall in line, the Centre is prepared to hold the talks by the end of June or at the latest by early July.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s decision to allow N.N. Vohra to continue in the post of interlocutor for Kashmir was welcomed by Maulvi Abbas, who described it as a “gesture of continuity.” Dr Singh has shown particular interest in the Kashmir talks, with the subject now being handled by him, as well as Home Minister Shivraj Patil, Vohra, National Security Adviser J.N. Dixit and special adviser M.K. Narayanan. Several meetings have been held on this at different levels, with the government clearly committed to continuing the dialogue with the separatist leaders.
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