Col J P Singh
Nation hadn’t yet fully retired after happily celebrating New Year 2022 when a stampede occurred in Holy Shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi resulting in 12 Mata Devotees dead and 16 injured. All T V channels aired this tragedy and nation saw it with great concern. Mob frenzy and such incidents at revered religious shrines doesn’t augur well for the nation which is religious by temperaments. It indicates bad times ahead. Managing religious congregations, Yatras and pilgrims which have the potential to flare up is a challenge.
Preceding 2022, minority community, migrants, innocent people and police personnel were killed by the militants. Since the advent of 2022, security forces have gained initiative and reversed the killing spree. Now militants are being sought and killed on daily basis. It goes to show that militancy is thriving in the UT which carries a special or a secret warning, the nuances of which perhaps have not been understood by everyone. Covid 19 and its new variants dangers continue to loom large. Roadside accidents and agitations against one or the other issue are also persistent. Hence what are the challenges in the UT this year is beyond my comprehension. Yet stepping into this unknown arena of mystery of errors is a challenge but some wild guesses is my safeguard.
Ever since the existence of Kashmir on this earth, its original aborigines, the Kashmiri Pandits, faced various aggressions, atrocities, conversions and religious persecution from time to time but survived as ethnic race. Where are the Kashmiri Pandits in 2022 as ethnic Kashmiri Pandits? Answer is very clear. They have evaporated in the global thin air and lost their identity. Lot of water has flown in Jhelum since they became persecuted refugees in own country. No efforts were made to settle them back in the Vale of their abode instead flats were made for them in Jammu and elsewhere with a clear message that the govt is helpless. But that does not foreclose their urge to return to the valley. They are still staring at Delhi’s face to protect their abode and race but nobody is blinking. Their return to the valley and giving them safe and secure environments is a challenge.
Militancy took its birth in J&K in late eighties. It surfaced and thrived during popular Govts. JKP, Army and other security forces were very much there when minority Pandits were persecuted and hounded out at the gun point but none blinked. Pandits exodus happened under dire circumstances. They were thrown out at the gun point. “Leave the valley, leave your women behind or else face massacre”; notices & posters were put in public places. All this happened when there was a Govt in the state, there were ministers, former CMs and Chief-ministership claimants, political leaders of all hue and vibrant civil society. You and me were also there. But none blinked. Tell-tale marks of their inheritance and heritage have been obliterated. All the tall claims emanating from the valley thriving on its Kashmiriyat, Insaniyat and Jhamuriyat were way laid. Surprisingly we learn off late that 186 serving Police Officials and many civil servants are the direct/indirect promoters/ supporters of militants in J&K. Some already known politicians and some not known yet are alleged supporters of insurgency. Even Delhi govt put on blinkers during the tragic period. Surprisingly it happened when the Home Minister of India was from J&K. More than three decades have gone past. A generation has changed. If the past reflects on the future and history teaches any lesson in any way, the writing on the wall is clear! Pakistan, China & Afghanistan are big players in this mysterious arena of J&K unending comedy of errors. Dangers are from within and across the borders. What is seen as deliberate security breach of Prime Minister Modi in Punjab, Jammu’s neighborhood, on the 5th day of the new year, vindicates my assertion of internal dangers. Two inimical and aggressive neighbours pose a serious security challenge.
People of Jammu have made sacrifices for Kashmir. Jammu blood flowed to extend Indian frontiers upto Afghanistan, Central Asia, Russia, Tibet and China. Formidable fortresses of Gilgit, Skardu, Hunza and Chitral were annexed by Dogra Warriors. In 1947 people of Jammu fought to defend Kashmir from deadly Qabalis, the likes of which keep infiltrating as militants. They threaten Jammu also. Defending J&K from militancy is a challenge.
Jammu and Kashmir, which co-existed peacefully for a century under the Dogra rule, is simmering in communal anger. It was the foreign rulers who sowed the seed of hatred, pitting Kashmir against Jammu. After Pandits exodus, ‘Sword of Damocles’ was pointed towards Jammu. Effort were made to change Jammu’s communal harmony but Jammu displayed resilience, which is taken for granted. Many unauthorized and unplanned settlements have come up all round Jammu township. The border belt has been encroached upon by nomadic majority community. Like Kashmiri Heritage, Dogra Heritage too has been allowed to decay despite Jammu’s cry for its preservation. Repeated militants attacks in Jammu, particularly in military cantonments of Samba, Kaluchak, twice at Sunjwan and Nagrota, all very deadly, created fear psychosis in Jammu giving a flip to migration. But these incidents were brushed aside. With the abrogation of special status of J&K and opening up doors to outsiders, Jammu is worst sufferer demographically. It threatens Dogra identity. It threatens jobs, land holdings and culture. Dogras, as an ethnic race are heading towards extinction like fellow Pandits. Protecting Jammu heritage is a challenge.
There is a flux of immigrants from neighboring countries in Jammu. Rohingyas from Myanmar and Bengalis from Bangladesh are thriving in all nooks and corners of Jammu region at the cost of locals. They are unwanted guests and security risk. They have entered into matrimonial relationships with locals and are here to stay. Deporting them is a challenge.
Relationship between Delhi and Kashmir was settled on the basis of Article 370 by granting it a special status. It did not go down well with Jammu people. Trust deficit between Delhi and Kashmir increased after the abrogation of Article 370. Delhi’s appease Kashmir continues but the trust deficit remains. Various efforts made by Delhi to win over Kashmiris have not made much headway. To end militancy from J&K, cooperation of the public is crucial. Winning trust of the people in Kashmir is a challenge.
Ever since independence, state was mismanaged by its rulers. It got liberal financial aid, even at the cost of other states. But it was pocketed by the rulers. Common man remained neglected. It gave rise to corruption which is a watchword even now. Unearthing corruption and ensuring corruption free governance is a challenge.
Drug trafficking is serious issue in J&K. Despite police and societal drive against the drug menace, there is no control in sight. Checking it is a challenge.
Retrieval of govt land from the clutches of land sharks and ill conceived Roshni Act beneficiaries is a challenge. Land records have been manipulated in the past and continue to be done. In many areas, revenue records were either destroyed or misplaced. Process of digitisation in said to have started long ago but nothing concrete has come out. Digitisation of land records and retrieval of missing records is also a challenge. Illegal mining and associated cost & corruption is a challenge.
Unemployment is just not a bread and butter issue but it has given rise to many social evils such as drug abuses, crime and family relationships; another challenge.
Type and magnitude of issues mentioned above; challenges in the UT are plenty. Some of them are very serious which need to be prioritized and addressed at war footing if the UT has to be steered to peace and prosperity.
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