The Hindu : Opinion / Letters to the Editor : J&K crisis

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Friday, Aug 22, 2008
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Opinion - Letters to the Editor

J&K crisis

That the Centre could think of sending only the National Security Adviser and the Intelligence Bureau chief for talks with the Governor in Jammu and Kashmir, which is in turmoil, is surprising. The government is looking at the problem in the State as a law and order issue.

In such an explosive situation, a Track-II dialogue with separatists is a half-hearted political response. It is strange that senior Union Cabinet Ministers are not being involved in the deliberations in Srinagar.

K. Vijayakumar,

Ashburn, Virginia

* * *

The crisis in J&K is being seen differently by different political groups; the ruling combine at the Centre sees it as a law and order issue whereas the BJP and its allies see it as a Hindus-versus-Muslims issue. It is imperative that we as citizens of India see the crisis in the right perspective and not get swayed by emotions. Kashmir’s accession to the Indian Union was a matter of dispute between Pakistan and India. The U.N. resolutions on the issue are still valid technically.

Nehru assured the people of Kashmir that their will would be determined by a plebiscite. But it required the Pakistani nationals and tribesmen who had come to fight in Kashmir to be withdrawn, which never happened.

The Kashmir issue today is about a crisis of identity among the people of Jammu and the Kashmir Valley. This requires an open mind and a political solution, not through emissaries of an inefficient Central government but through transparently democratic means with genuine representatives and well-meaning persons of proven integrity.

P. Narasimhan,

Bangalore

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