NOVANEWS
By Sajjad Shaukat
One the one side, Indian new government led by the fundamentalist party BJP’s leader and
Prime Minister Narindra Modi is trying to divert attention of international community from the
Kashmir dispute by various sinister steps, on the other, Kashmiri leaders and Pakistan have been
keeping this issue in limelight.
In this regard, terming the support and advocacy of the right to self determination of the people
of Jammu and Kashmi (J&K), as historic commitment and duty for Pakistan, Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif, while addressing 69th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA),
stressed for settlement of the Kashmir issue, and offered Pakistan’s readiness to endeavour for
the same through negotiations. He also reminded the international community of its pledge
and responsibility for holding “plebiscite” in the Indian-held Kashmir, and resolves the issue
in accordance with UN Charter. The speech generated appreciations from the political circles
of Pakistan and Kashmir as well. It is also acknowledged that the speech is true reflection of
sentiments of the people of Pakistan, who believe that peace and prosperity in south Asia is inter-
linked with solution of core dispute of Kashmir between Pakistan and India.
Pakistan’s attempt to sensitize the international community on the unresolved state of Kashmir
issue at the annual session of the UNGA seems to have irked Indian political circles in general
and diplomatic and journalist communities in particular. Under the growing frustration, a
notoriously controversial journalist affiliated with the Indian NDTV namely Barkha Dutt
engaged Pakistan’s prime minister’s special advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, and managed
to create a controversy through aggressive posture to make him concede that Pakistani High
Commissioner Abdul Basit’s meeting with the Kashmiri leadership in New Delhi was ill-timed
and affected Secretary level engagements. Majority of Pakistani media also covered the remarks
of Sartaj Aziz in the similar fashion projected by the NDTV. And, Barkha Dutt, while trying to
create misunderstanding to discredit Pakistan, has also hinted that Kashmir issue is “Achilles
heels” of the Indian diplomacy. No doubt, Barkha-Aziz episode has been projected by the Indian
media as admittance on the part of Pakistani official that due to the meeting with Kashmir leader
by High Commissioner in Delhi, India was justified to cancel Secretary level talks with Pakistan.
An impression is also given that Islamabad was not serious about engagements with New Delhi.
In this context, by using the pretext of meeting between Pakistan’s High Commissioner and
the Hurriyat leaders of Kashmir, Indian Prime Minister Narindra Modi called off peace talks,
scheduled to be held in Islamabad on August 25, 2014 between foreign secretaries of India and
However, the created controversy on the part of Indian media is a deliberate attempt to
discredit Pakistani leadership’s sincere efforts to remind the international community of their
responsibilities on resolution of Kashmir issue. Moreover, Indian media created an impression
that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif by highlighting Kashmir issue made an effort to improve
relations with Military establishment in the backdrop of the protesters of the sit-ins led by PTI
and PAT. Indian Media also generated attached controversies of gray relations between political
and military echelons of Pakistan. It may be recalled that on the pretext of boiling political
situation, a segment of Pakistani media had suggested the prime minister to skip attending the
UN General Assembly’s session.
It is notable that the extremist party BJP led by the Indian Prime Minister Modi is implementing
anti-Muslim and anti-Pakistan agenda. In this context, BJP leader Dr. Subramaniam Swamy, a
staunch promoter of Hindutva (Hindu nationalism) stated on July 12, this year that India needed
only two years to defeat Pakistan militarily, and the only solution of Kashmir was war, as “there
is no peaceful, democratic solution.
Hence, the decision to terminate the secretary level parleys came as a political maneuvering
by Narindra Modi’s regime, showing signs of Indian arrogance and intransigence, driven by
emotional reaction, on which BJP top leadership capitalized to win the elections 2014. Besides,
India recently intensified unprovoked firing at the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir including
Working Boundary in Sialkot and other sectors to terrorize Pakistan, without caring the fact that
the latter is also a nuclear power.
Nevertheless, India has never been sincere in engaging in meaningful peace process with
Pakistan. Every Indian government due to international pressure found it easy to make false
pledges that it was willing to engage in peace process to resolve all issues including Kashmir
dispute with Islamabad. But, New Delhi earnestly endeavored to find excuses and pretexts
to cancel peace talks, while shifting the blame to Pakistan. For example, in 2002, under the
pretension of terrorist attack on the Indian parliament, India postponed the dialogue process.
Again, in 2008, India cancelled the ‘composite dialogue’ on the pretext of Mumbai terror attacks.
It is mentionable that on May 27, 2014 Prime Minister Modi’s meeting with Prime Minister
Sharif who went to New Delhi to participate in the oath-taking ceremony proved faultless,
because Modi raised baseless issues of terrorism as pre-conditions to advance the Pak-Indian
dialogue to resolve various issues including the core dispute of Kashmir. He said that slow pace
of trial against the terrorists regarding the Mumbai 26/11 terror case, being held in Pakistan—
Islamabad should take action against the culprits, and should stop cross-border terrorism in India.
While showing unrealistic approach, and talking in the terms of Hindu religious extremism,
Indian new prime minister ignored the fact that on July 19, 2013 the Indian former home
ministry and ex-investigating officer Satish Verma disclosed that terror-attacks in Mumbai in
November 26, 2008 and assault on Indian Parliament in January 12, 2001 were carried out by the
Indian government to strengthen anti-terrorism laws.
Similarly, Modi also neglected the statement of Indian ex-Army Chief Gen. VK Singh openly
confessed in September 2013 that special intelligence unit like Technical Services Division
were raised by him to operate inside Pakistan, particularly in Balochistan and Azad Kashmir to
conduct terrorism and to bribe the politicians in the Indian-Occupied Kashmir.
In fact, it is a set practice of India to engage with Kashmiri leadership prior to any high level
meeting with Pakistan. Kashmiri leaders are the central representatives about whom New Delhi
and Islamabad will proceed to decide their fate through peace parleys. Therefore, they cannot be
ignored as vital stakeholders. In this regard, Indian interpretations of stakeholders in the light of
Simla Agreement (By ignoring the Kashmiri leaders) are absolutely mischievous.
It is of particular attention that soon after assuming power, Modi government, hurriedly decided
to forcibly annex and integrate disputed territory of the State of Jammu and Kashmir, uncovering
its intentions to wrap up the article 370 of the Indian constitution which ensures a special status
to J&K. The aim behind is to fortify measures and continue its illegal occupation in the J&K.
Therefore, United Nations Military Observer Group India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) in New
Delhi was asked to vacate official accommodation, claiming that its role had become irrelevant,
and indicating its intention to violate UN Security Council’s resolutions on Kashmir dispute, and
to further commit human rights violations in the India-controlled Kashmir.
So, Indian extremist rulers’ efforts to abrogate article 370 in the Indian occupied Kashmir
indicates that BJP led Modi government is proceeding with a plan to promote Hindutva
philosophy and annex Kashmir as part of Indian union.
Nonetheless, it is Pakistan’s high officials and media must point out that New Delhi is willfully
blaming Pakistan for cancellation of Secretary level talks. Indian hypocrisy is quite evident that
on the pretext of meeting with Kashmiri leaders, they cancelled the engagements with Pakistan.
Maximum projection is required to be extended especially through print, electronic and social
media to highlight that India played a mischievous role (Various forms of state terrorism) in the
Indian-controlled Kashmir from purported accession of Kashmiri Maharaja to neutralization
of Sheikh Abdullah by Nehru, followed by increasing Army deployment there, and atrocities
committed against men, women and children of an independence loving Kashmiri nation.
Indian mischievous activities in the Indian-held Kashmir are also narrated and confirmed by an
ex-RAW official R K Yadu in his book “Mission RAW.”
No doubt, Pakistan un-dauntingly supports self-determination struggle of Kashmiri people, and
its political, military and public is in complete harmony in this respect, yet its top officials and
media including the Kashmiri leaders must keep the Kashmir issue in limelight by showing to
the internal community that being the usurper and occupying state, India is not sincere to engage
in peaceful dialogue to resolve this issue with Pakistan.
Sajjad Shaukat writes on international affairs and is author of the book: US vs Islamic Militants,
Invisible Balance of Power: Dangerous Shift in International Relations
