A Permanent Solution Must Include Driving Out Islamism From Kashmir Valley

The dastardly attack on Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) convoy taking the lives of 44 Indian soldiers has shook the very conscience of the nation. It would not be an exaggeration to say that it woke us up from our slumber and made us witness the reality of a war that we are in.

You can also read this article in Hindi- कश्मीर घाटी से इस्लामी कट्टरवाद का सफाया ही स्थाई हल है

Living a cocooned existence cajoles us into believing that everything else is hunky-dory as well. But it is the moments like the Pulwama terror attack that makes one realise the passionate zeal with which the enemy across the border has set his eyes on us.

However, the enemy strikes, not only with tankers and bombs. He attacks us with ideology that he uses as a poison to turn our own against us. Strategically and systemically, for decades now, some of Kashmir’s gullible youth have been sedated with the poison of hatred against India.

The propaganda against India and Hindus, which once led to the creation of the soulless state of Pakistan, continues to flow from across the border, to the valley.

The valley has become a ghettoised zone, where anything mainstream reaches only with filtered reality. What is consumed, for the most part, is often produced outside the Indian border, is then plated with ‘Kashmiri ethos’ and served in full to the young masses not only by the band of separatists but also the jihadis, the liberals and the human rights activists who act more like terror apologists and army-baiters.

In a carefully orchestrated operation, the propaganda machines work to demoralise the army and disrupt any action against the terrorists. The stone-pelters are shown as misguided youth. The army is shown as the aggressor, unleashing atrocities against the civilians. The skewed narrative provides the potent field to raise more fidayeens, jihadis, terrorists to continue to bleed India with a thousand cuts.

As the news of CRPF jawans mercilessly killed by a young Kashmiri terrorist trickled in, anguished citizens demanded revenge. There is palpable anger among all the citizens. War seems like an immediate solution that almost all will agree on. Without discounting these sentiments, this writer believes that even waging a full-scale war is a temporary solution.

The antidote of ideological poisoning cannot be military action only. It has to be a more long-term, strategic, out-of-the box solution that disallows the jihadist ideology to exist as an uncontested narrative in the Valley. There is a greater need, now, to prepare a solid ground for counter-narrative to not only take shape, but become an equally acceptable reality within the region.

The unique demographic situation of Kashmir, which is an anomaly in a country like India, where the Constitution promises the fundamental right to move and reside anywhere in the country, has led to ideological ghettoisation of the Kashmir valley. Article 370 has been the reason for its isolation from the rest of India. It must be done away with.
The state of Jammu and Kashmir needs to be opened up with revocation of Section 35A. It would allow entry of people as well as new industries, thus ending the monopoly of a separatist ideology that makes a fundamental distinction between “us” versus “the other”.

The Bharatiya Janata Party has been one party that has a clear stand on the revocation of Article 370 as a permanent solution to the Kashmir issue. As concerned citizens who feel numbed by the killing of our soldiers, it is time to force every political party in India to tell us where they stand on this.

It is as much a battle of military power as it is of conflicting ideologies that has distinguished India from Pakistan. The remnants of the theory of Partition still exist, and are most apparent in parts of Kashmir. The attempts by the security forces and the government, of establishing peace in the valley, have been seen as India’s weak spot.

However, this time around, the dispensation seems determined for a solution, unhindered by international pressure or even electoral viability. It is a government that is committed to putting the ‘nation first’.

In the last few years, the security forces have been emboldened to go after terrorists in the Valley. Going by the figures, 218 terrorists in 2017 and 276 in 2018 (an eight-year high) were neutralised, displaying the conviction of the establishment to flush out terror elements. If the surgical strikes post terror attack in Uri is any indication, expect a more broad-based onslaught on the sources of terror inside or outside the country. However, it could only be a temporary solution. For a more permanent solution, the status quo in Jammu and Kashmir needs to be altered.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s strong response to the attack has come as a solace to people seething in anger. He has assured a free hand to the forces to do whatever it takes to avenge the death of the martyrs, indicating that the government is ready for any measure the security forces see fit, at a time of their choosing.

The era of sending dossiers has surely ended, as seen before. Prime Minister Modi has asserted that the sacrifice of our jawans would not go in vain. An appropriate response along with a strategic plan to take on the perpetrators as well as their sympathisers is the need of the hour. This writer, like many Indians, trusts the Prime Minister to not only give a fitting response but also find a lasting solution to the Kashmir problem.