Indian Home Minister Amit Shah’s speech in Parliament was not striking in itself, but his cogent and effective pitch on abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) served to prevent the opposition from taking a steadfast stand against nullification, leading to smooth passage of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2019.
 
Whether scrapping the much-talked-about Article 370 has been just and proper, only time will tell. Also, whether revoking J&K's special status will really impact people's lives and, if it does, to what extent– again, time will tell. But the move by Shah again proves he has an unerring instinct for his opponents’ weaknesses. It left the opposition incoherent and the Congress, in particular, directionless.
 
A BBC article ‘Why Modi's Kashmir move is widely supported in India,’ read: “Slowly, sedulously the hardened sentiment on Kashmir had acquired a pan-Indian footprint. An obvious upshot was and is a frustration with the status quo in Kashmir and a fatigue with what is seen as the familiar cycle of victimhood and violence, blackmail and bluster. Politically the ground was fertile for a break from the past and for a new initiative, however audacious it may be.”
 
However, Professor Amitabh Mattoo, former Vice-Chancellor, University of Jammu, said, “the battle for doing away with 370 was the easy battle. The battle for the hearts and minds is the larger war which has to be won. The war for peace. And that can only be done by demonstrating to the people of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh that they are better off without 370….that economically, there will be better opportunities, that there will be investment, that they will get employment opportunities.”
 
It is true that ongoing uncertainty and confusion in J&K has affected the peak tourist season and its impact will be felt in the coming months. Though imposition of internet blackouts is not something new in J&K, cutting off all forms of communication rightly troubles people and disturbs economic activity.
 
Kashmir has been a vexed issue, with multiple dimensions internally and externally. Internally, it is a trouble-prone state, with resentment, alienation, hostility, alleged human rights abuses that need addressing in all earnestness.
 
Externally, Kashmir is disputed between India and Pakistan. Recently, a meeting to discuss ‘Kashmir’ at the United Nations Security Council, for the first time in 48 years, ended without any outcome statement, much to India’s relief.
 
However, there is no denying that Kashmir policy greatly revolves around domestic politics, charting a political discourse aimed towards vote banks.
 
Ethiopia is Africa’s second-most populous country and one of its fastest-growing economies. Referring to Ethiopia, ‘The Economist’ in a recent article ‘The global gag on free speech is tightening’ writes that free speech is hard won and easily lost. Only a year ago it flowered in Ethiopia, under a supposedly liberal new prime minister, Abiy Ahmed. All the journalists in jail were released and hundreds of websites, blogs and satellite TV channels were unblocked. But now the regime is having second thoughts. Without a dictatorship to suppress it, ethnic violence has flared. Bigots have incited ethnic cleansing on newly free social media. Ethiopia faces a genuine emergency, and many Ethiopians think it reasonable for the government to silence those who advocate violence. But in reality it did far more than that—in effect it has silenced everyone. And, it’s here the Ethiopian government committed a gross mistake.
 
Is the Narendra Modi government too committing the same mistake? It’s too soon to give a definite answer because a yes-or-no answer contains within itself some assumptions and conditions.
 
In the developing scenario, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led NDA government has to tread very cautiously. Showing political will at the highest level is of little help unless it works at the ground level. The government must take Kashmiri people, particularly the youth, into confidence to instill buoyancy into every faith-filled Kashmiri's heart. The government machinery must consider the youth as agents of change; young people’s inclusion in the peace agenda is a key to building and sustaining peace. Also, the administration must assist and make room for the needs of those who wish to navigate their path to better life.
 
However, the dilemma lies elsewhere. If the government deals sternly with militants and those who display their anti-India stance, it should also deal firmly with those BJP functionaries known for their arrogance and ideological obstinance in their comments; comments centering on the notion that anyone who doesn’t share their views is against the country – as opposed to, perhaps, simply disagreeing. Agreeing to disagree is central to democratic principles, but disagreeing about disagreement smacks of overt and hidden dimensions of a political plan.
 
Since the Union Territory (UT) of J&K will now be under the Centre’s direct rule, there should be an atmosphere of trust and accountability toward a common goal. To replace the over two-decades-old insurgency with a new paradigm of waging peace, all the stakeholders must be committed, compassionate and passionate to seize the opportunity to demonstrate real intention and show sincerity and sensitivity.
 
Finally, given the bounty of nature, scope and talent in J&K, the UT can be transformed from the land of stagnation to the land of prosperity. From the land of sub-optimal utilisation of resources to the land of optimal utilisation of resources. And, to make that happen, crafting peace is fundamental. Crafting peace is a greater dimension of restoring the Valley’s lost glory.
 
(The writer is an observer and analyst of international affairs. He can be contacted at db.bhattacharyya@gmail.com)