Page 19 - Tehelka Issue 13 - July 15, 2018

kashmir politics

tionalistic sentiments not only in Jammu and Kash-
mir but across the country. Governor’s
“Now is the time for an all-out war against mili-
tants and their supporters and give them no place to
hide and run,” Sethi said. rule in J&K:
As if to reinforce this idea, the day after the coa-
lition government fell, a video clip showing a two A Timeline
storey house in South Kashmir being blown up to
smithereens mysteriously surfaced online and went
viral. It was read as a message of what was to come.
The general opinion is that the alliance was bro- Governor’s rule was imposed in J&K for the first

ken because the BJP thought that continuing with it time on March 26, 1977 during the tenure of Gover-
was not politically helpful for it in the run-up to the nor L K Jha after the state Congress, then headed
general elections next year. More so, with the situ- by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, withdrew support
ation getting worse by the day and the PDP appar- to the minority government of Sheikh Mohammad
ently putting hurdles in an all-out assault against Abdullah of National Conference. Sheikh who was
militants — albeit few in the Valley would believe fighting for right to self determination for Kashmiris
that the PDP was a problem. In the more than three had returned to the power following an accord with
years that this coalition was in power, the response then prime minister Indira Gandhi in 1975. The rule
to militancy has been irredeemably hardline. lasted for 105 days.
According to the Union Home Minister Rajnath
March 1986 Governor Jagmohan took over
Singh, a total of 619 militants in Jammu and Kashmir In
have been killed in past four years of the Narendra J&K after state Congress — again headed by
Modi-led government killed. “The number of mili- Sayeed — withdrew support to the minority
tants killed in the previous UPA-II government was Government of Ghulam Mohammad Shah. The
471,” the home minister said in May during an inter- rule lasted 246 days.
action with the reporters.
Last year alone, 2018 militants were killed in gun- The third time Governor’s rule was imposed in

fights with security forces, highest in the preceding January 1990 when Farooq Abdullah resigned as
seven years. But despite these record killings, the the chief minister over the appointment of Jagmo-
militancy in the Valley has only grown from strength han as the Governor following outbreak of militancy
to strength. Between January 1 and May 31, around in the state. The rule lasted six years, 246 days.
90 new recruits have joined the ranks of militants in
South Kashmir. The total number of militants in the J&K was under Governor rule from October 17 to

Valley is estimated to be around 280. November 2 in 2002 after the Assembly election
So a fresh all-out assault is hardly expected to threw up a fractured mandate and the PDP and
make any redeeming difference, unless the effort is Congress took time to stitch an alliance.
backed by a credible political outreach to the Valley
geared to the address the factors underpinning the Ag
ain Governor rule was imposed on June 28,
violence. 2008 for 174 days after the PDP withdrew support
But that is unlikely to happen during an election to Ghulam Nabi Azad-led Congress-PDP coalition
year. More so, when Modi government has made it government. This Governor’s rule was imposed dur-
impossible for itself to establish such an outreach ing the tenure of the current Governor N N Vohra.
by its rigid and maximalist ideological position on
the state. So, the gambit seems to be like this: Blame Governor rule was again imposed on December

the PDP for the abject failure of the four years in 23, 2014 following a hung verdict in 2014 election.
Kashmir. It ended on March 1, 2015 when the PDPand BJP
Mount a fresh all-out operation against the mili- formed an alliance.
tancy, stack up an impressive figure of fresh militant
fatalities alongside civilian collaterals, and hope to J&K was again placed under Governor’s rule on

bring the situation under control by the time elec- January 8, 2016, after allies PDP and BJP deferred
tions are around and sell it as an achievement. the government formation after the sudden demise
But as has been the case in Kashmir, the situation of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed.
may not play according to script. Instead, repression
could lead to more alienation and anger and more

Tehelka / 15 july 2018 19 www.Tehelka.com

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