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| July 10, 2000 | ||
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 Kashmir
has been a hotbed of news since 1947. Understandably, it has occupied a
pre-eminent position in our coverage. Since 1975 when we started we have
done 20 cover stories on the state. This week's is No. 21 and again the
subject is not peace but controversy. Quite simply, Jammu and Kashmir
Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah's demand for autonomy has left Prime
Minister A.B. Vajpayee and his Government shifting uneasily. Farooq's
demand is not merely a matter of one disgruntled state. No, it is
significant for it strikes at the absolute heart of India's being, indeed
questioning the very existence of India the way it has been. Devolution of
power to the states is inevitable, but autonomy is a far more fundamental
issue, for its implications are enormous. It means Vajpayee, whose ally
Farooq is but who is facing protests from hawks within his party, must
walk the tightrope. Should he accede to Farooq's demand he will have other
states clamouring at his doorstep with similar ultimatums; India as we
know it will be irrevocably altered.
What Farooq wants, among other things, is that all the symbols of power his state had prior to 1953 be restored. Like the chief minister being called prime minister and the Supreme Court having no jurisdiction there. His critics, however, insist that his own father, in tandem with Indira Gandhi, agreed to the dilution of these symbols. They are also suspicious of his timing, wondering why Farooq, in power for over a decade, hadn't raised the issue earlier. To understand Farooq's compulsions and Vajpayee's predicament more clearly, Associate Editor Harinder Baweja travelled to Srinagar, while Associate Editor Farzand Ahmed and Special Correspondent Lakshmi Iyer spoke to political leaders in Delhi. As Baweja says, Farooq may insist that he wants consensus not confrontation, but "he has put his finger on the trigger; it's just a question of when he pulls it". Undoubtedly, after 53 years, the Kashmir problem needs a solution. But not at the cost of the nation.
(Aroon Purie) |
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