Shiban Khaibri
A famous quote fits into the mechanisations of the ”Gupkar Club” that “Inconsistency is the only thing in which people are consistent.” Did we hear it from the person whose three generations have ruled Jammu Kashmir and Ladakh State, openly soliciting the help of a sworn enemy of this country in restoring that contagious Article 370 back to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir? A three time Chief Minister, a former Union Cabinet Minister and presently a member of the Parliament knowing fully the constitutional powers of the supreme democratic and law making seat of the country where abrogation of this Article was duly passed, asking China to get that back is tantamount to asking and enticing that country to attack India so that under ”subjugation”, this country and its supreme authority Parliament was pressurised into restoring that Article again . Whatever the cause, reason or demand and of whatever urgency, to have the same fulfilled by asking a country which has usurped our thousands of kilometres of territory and with whom this country , despite strains of COVID-19 pandemic, continues to be presently engaged in a standoff at the eastern Ladakh borders, cannot be called any damn democratic dissent or freedom of speech or the justified purgation of any political , social or religious feelings . Had it been done in any other country, Dr.Farooq Abdullah would have tasted the pudding . It is India with traditional tolerance nurtured for thousands of years that he continues to be not booked under the laws of the land.
After all, what was so important , so overriding , so much cardinal to the extent of being something related to divinity about this Article that such a hullabaloo is raised only by those whose monopoly to rule this part of the country seems to be in doldrums . Not a voice was raised , not a bullet was fired, not a single protest in tokenism was held anywhere from the erstwhile state or the country to mourn the demise of this purely temporary, short term and provisional Article. No “Barood Ka Deir ” it proved in annulling – nor anyone’s hands got burnt – nor were any shoulders found less in number to hold and support the National Flag. The cat came out of the bag to unravel how under its garb, rampant corruption, nepotism, secessionism and milking New Delhi flourished. It surfaced and dawned that under its garb, the biggest land scam of this century coupled with extraneous ambitions – the Roshni Land Loot took place causing hundreds of crores of Rupees loss to the public exchequer in Jammu and Kashmir. Under its garb, even the most important laws like the Right to Information Act, Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act 2018 were not made applicable to the erstwhile state besides all the 840 central laws, why? Why should we not believe that this Act was being treated as an immunity to do all wrongs without any accountability?
An interview by an anchor of a news channel of Dr.Farooq a few months back greatly enraged him when the anchor asked him whether he was an Indian . He shot him back by asking whether he himself was an Indian and that he (Dr. Farooq) needed to produce no certificate to that end. Today, the particular anchor’s question holds more legitimacy and blasts his feigning of Indian patriotism as no Indian worth the salt, irrespective of how much aggrieved and having been subjected to unfair treatment, can requisition the aggression of a belligerent neighbour to redeem him or her. Unless one was Congress person like Mani Shanker Aiyer who in Pakistan, beseeched that country “Remove Modi to have Indo Pak talks ” , the exact words used “Inn ko hatao aur hammey lao”. He saw in Pakistan a superior International Authority to be wielding as much (legitimate) power as to dislodge a constitutionally and democratically elected Indian Prime Minister and instead install Congress rule in India to let the talks between the two countries be ”meaningful”. He found himself so much deluged with the love and preference for that country that he declared that “I get more love in Pakistan and (more) hatred in India .” For that matter , even Salman Khursheed who wished and desired to live in Beijing forever and who, on incursions by Chinese PLA during UPA 1 and 2, and perhaps on the advice of the then Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh that “Hammey Cheen key 34 km Bharti Elaqey ko hathianey ke baat ko toole nahin dena chahia” or we should not overplay China’s incursions deep 34 Kilometres into our territory, had said on April 26, 2013 in that connection that “one little spot of acne cannot force you to say that it is not a beautiful face”. Chinese incursions looked to the then External Affairs Minister as just a small acne in a ”beautiful face”. What skin disease can he call in respect of Chinese ”beautiful face” in usurping 48000 sq.Kms of Indian Territory right from 1962 to 2013?
We can have another example that of Shashi Tharoor , the unique find of Congress, who recently in Lahore Literature Festival praised Pakistan and denigrated India and Modi government in Particular and belittled his own country keeping that smiling face projected as if showering praises on his own motherland in the land of our sworn enemy which was trying to incessantly harm this country with its state sponsored terrorism and hate . Not only that, Tharoor chastised Indian Government for organising the Howdy Modi event. Some say that an intellectual Tharoor praising the terrorist country so much must be for reasons of seeing some “bright prospects” in that country to better his “personal life”. May be for these reasons, Congress is supporting the stand of the 6 parties’ joining hands calling it “People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration”. P. Chidambaram of Congress currently on bail, has openly supported the Gupkar Club instead of out rightly condemning the NC move in seeking support of the Dragon for “restoring J&K ‘s status”. In all such ”support” under circumstantial compulsions to the moves of the Gupkar Alliance (read) Club from Congress , Modi hate is conspicuous and palpable even if it leads to committing Hate India.
What is the composition of these six political parties ”pledging to work” for the restoration of the UT’s pre- August 2019 constitutional status? Was it a reaffirmation of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference in attempting to unite people by exploiting religious feelings the way it was done in 1932? Was this so called alliance an attempt to fill the vacuum created by the virtual exit of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference from the scene after its patriarch Syed Ali Shah Geelani hung his boots, perhaps, realising where the movement had driven Kashmir to ? What political base, as on date, these six parties enjoy in Jammu and Kashmir, was fairly known when Dr. Farooq Abdullah contested Srinagar Parliamentary seat . About the PDP , less said the better , let that party prove its credentials even in its base Anantnag district let alone anywhere else in the valley. About rest of the ”political parties”, less said the better. That the alliance’s battle was a constitutional one is again attempt to hoodwinking the people as seeking open intervention from China in restoration of Article 370 cannot be called constitutional by any yardstick. However, the most important thing about what the Gupkar club is up to is, whether these two parties have asked their cadre in Jammu and Ladakh whether they supported the move of the leader of this ”Alliance” in reaching out to China in getting the Article 370 back . If not , how can the Alliance claim any legitimacy in what it was aiming at. Last but not the least , how many Hindu, Sikh , Buddhist and Christian leaders from Kashmir, Jammu and Ladakh were in the Alliance and supporting what this conglomeration was striving for ? In other words, more or less the agenda is the same as was set for the Muslim Conference in 1932. Ab-initio, this Alliance cannot merit any legitimacy, the fact being fairly well known to it.
When the fate of Jammu and Kashmir State was decided in 1947 after its rightful Ruler Maharaja Hari Singh acceded to India , accepted in totality by Sheikh Abdullah , ratified by the National Conference in 1949 , how come inconsistency started creeping in as in 1952 he broached the idea of an independent State hobnobbing with Owen Dixon , the UN representative . Should the jurisdiction of even the Comptroller and Auditor General to the then state have been taken as an affront to virtually rise in revolt against New Delhi and then the same Sheikh Abdullah on July 13, 1953 at the “Mazar-er-Shouda” saying ” It is not necessary that our state should become an appendage of India or Pakistan “. Plebiscite Front was formed , the intervening period of 1953 to 1975 is fairly known which culminated into the same Sheikh Abdullah accepting Chief Minister-ship (not Prime Minister-ship)in 1975 of Jammu and Kashmir holding it till his demise in 1984. Plebiscite Front was wound up . 1987 elections paved the way for secessionist movement . Who was responsible for that , everybody knows.
When Special Status , Articles 370 and 35 A were there, why autonomy and self rule were demanded and why still earlier plebiscite was demanded ? Why so much inconsistency ? Jammu and Kashmir is no football to be exclusively played by Abdullah dynasty and now by Mufti dynasty as well . Neither Article 370 shall be restored nor any special status , at best statehood can be restored as promised by the Union Home Minister . Let Jammu and Kashmir witness peace, tranquillity, development and no spilling of any blood , the Gupkar Alliance need to offer its “services” to that end.
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