Kashmiris want Democracy and Development

By Farooq Ganderbali

The middle phase of year 2008 was turbulent for the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The state was rocked by the agitation over Amarnath land transfer. Both the capital cities of Srinagar and Jammu were paralysed by these events which often were violent in nature. Not to be left behind the separatists had managed to somehow turn the agitation for
their own gains and were thought to have become quite powerful. At this point of time the elections were announced and to the surprise of all it succeeded so spectacularly that everyone was surprised. With poll percentage standing at 61 per cent, it was far ahead of 44 per cent during 2002 assembly elections.

The fear of Pakistan-sponsored terrorists in the state is definitely waning and the Hurriyat is also realizing that, even as it stayed away from the polls, it could not enforce a general boycott. The successful conduct of the elections is a fall-out of the cease-fire accord between the former prime minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and General Musharraf still holding—a development that is independently reflected in the steady drop in Valley violence from year to year. There are also other factors responsible for this rebuttal of separatist politics.

In these elections people voted according to their choice. The party which they thought would be able to deliver at the development front was their obvious choice. The fractured mandate also indicates the growing awareness among the people who want to keep these parties under check. The increased participation of people in the elections reflects greater acceptance of current reality and the need to deal with it on its own terms. The participation in the elections therefore marks a shift from living under fear of terrorists to a more realistic willingness to participate in self-governance.

Though the state is still in a fragile mood following the flaring up of sensitive issues, but none of it kept the people from abstaining from voting. They know that if they miss this golden chance the separatist leaders and their terror supporters will get another opportunity to boast of their hollow victory. What follows then is the same cycle of death and destruction in which only these separatist leaders make hay. So the best way to silence these separatist leaders was to enthusiastically embrace the great Indian democracy and this is what they did.

The scars of last twenty years are written all over the state in every sphere. Even as the rest of India moved by leaps and bounds, Kashmir had to remain tethered to violent elements for no choice of theirs. Now they want to forget the bitter past and catch up with other in the development sector. For this they have extended their hand of cooperation towards the political parties and they hope that the new government will do wonders. It is vital now that those who run the administration ensure good governance and rapid economic development. The Kashmiri sense of exceptionalism is such that no one should hope for any kind of economism to replace even the most unrealistic political day-dreaming. Still, local demonstration of the Indian success in marrying democracy and development can and will make a difference. The new leadership has started with this new pragmatism. People have been fed up with the previous government’s who had been
given the chance but were not able to deliver upto expectations.

A young state like Jammu and Kashmir needs a more flexibility and intelligence than what is provided by old politicians. So it was a welcome news that Farooq Abdullah agreed to step aside and allowed his son Omar to take charge of the reins of administration. Omar has been

actively present at the centre of Kashmir politics for the last ten years and his family has been in this field for the last seventy years. This makes an envious blend of experience and youth, which everybody hopes will do wonders in the state.