Daily Times

People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mufti Sayeed was sworn in as the Chief Minister (CM) of Indian Held Kashmir (IHK) on Sunday. On his first day as CM, Mufti stated that he gave “credit [to] the Hurriyet, Pakistan and militant outfits for the conduct of assembly elections in the state.” This declaration prompted former CM Omar Abdullah of the National Conference to ask the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to clarify the comment. Mufti’s statement also led to an outcry from opposition parties in the Indian parliament, forcing Home Minister Rajnath Singh to comment that his “government and the BJP fully dissociate from the statement.” Since the formation of the coalition government, PDP has lost some popularity amongst the Muslim majority in Kashmir. Thus, the PDP leaders have had to reassert their values and justify the unlikely alliance that they formed with the BJP as a result of a split mandate in the elections. As part of their conditions for the coalition, PDP included talks between Pakistan and India, the repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) and the retention of Article 370, which gives IHK a special autonomous status. The BJP has been campaigning to strike Article 370 from the Constitution and treat IHK like any other state in the Union. AFSPA, which allows Indian security forces to enter homes, make arrests and shoot suspects without due process, warrants or repercussions, has been one of the major cause of unrest in IHK. After the BJP agreed to leave Article 370 intact, the PDP had to soften its stance on AFSPA. PDP’s need to compromise with BJP after the unclear result of the elections, in which BJP was able to garner the support of predominantly Hindu Jammu, has left them in a precarious position and they have had to restate that they want to normalise ties with Pakistan and defend the interests of the Kashmiri people.

PDP must be given credit for attempting to bring peace and political stability to IHK. PDP’s coalition with BJP has managed to soften the latter’s position on Article 370. The impending talks between the neighbouring countries are the first in years to bring up the Kashmir dispute. Mufti’s comments about Pakistan and the Hurriyet Conference should be taken in the same spirit. The new CM realises that war between the two nuclear-armed states is not an option. Abdullah’s provocative statement and BJP’s subsequent disowning of Mufti’s formulation reflect how tense India-Pakistan relations still are. The two countries have stepped back from the brink of war many times in the past few decades. A major bone of contention for India in recent years has been attacks on Indian soil by insurgent organisations operating from Pakistan and Islamabad’s failure to halt these. Not only has the case of Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi of Lashkar-e-Tayyaba hung in legal purgatory for more than seven years, there has recently been a report that the man considered the mastermind of the Mumbai attacks has been free to continue operating from prison. “They have the jailer’s permission to have a television, mobile phones and access to Internet, as well as dozens of visitors a day,” the report states. Defence Minister Khwaja Asif’s comments regarding India’s “war hysteria” appear ill timed on the eve of the secretary-level talks. Elections in IHK have been held under the shadow of the gun for decades now and separatists like the Hurriyet conference have long boycotted such elections. Thus it was appreciable of Mufti to thank the battling parties involved in allowing these elections to take place without fear of coercion and security threats, ensuring an unprecedentedly high voter turnout. The leaders of India and Pakistan must take Mufti’s cue by avoiding inflammatory remarks and approaching the talks with consideration for each other’s concerns to avoid a ratcheting up of tensions just when both sides are groping their way back to the negotiating table. *