Kashmir is experiencing a mass upsurge. All the claims of “normalcy” have been exploded by recent demonstrations in context of land transfer to Amarnath Shrine Board. Previously, pro-freedom activists remained confined to their organizational meetings. Nowadays, they lead massive protests and attract huge crowds on account of mobilization of Kashmiri society against the status quo. Though apparently the upsurge has been catalyzed by transfer of land to Shrine Board, but it will be a mistake for everyone to interpret it as a simple reaction to the alienation of land. Land transfer no doubt contributed to this mobilization but this is not the sole factor. The way use of beef and pig infested cartridges served as a catalyzer of 1857 rebellion against British colonization, same way land transfer in Kashmir triggered a mass upsurge which was otherwise overdue on account of indifference of Indian state to aspirations of Kashmiri people. This time these events can’t be attributed to external factors because Pakistan has already abandoned its proactive Kashmir policy.
For proper analysis of Kashmir Intifada, one must understand the societal changes that have taken place in Kashmir during past decades of continuing insurgency. The strategies aimed at containing Kashmiris might have worked in context of their moderate leaders but have proved futile to tame rebellious masses of Kashmir. The leaders tried to compromise in the name of realism. Masses remained custodians of an aspiration and erupted like a volcano. The theories relating to war fatigue and compromising attitude of Kashmir society have been blown into pieces. All these theories proved to be concoctions of Indian agencies. Result of misdirected evaluation became obvious with every passing day during the agitation. Alien establishment and its instruments collapsed within first three days of the protests.
Patting phenomenon
Once you pat a weeping child he feels relaxed and falls asleep after some time. Different theories have been formulated to explain this phenomenon. One of the theories says that a child gets addicted to hearing the heart beats of his mother before birth. Once out of womb there is a feeling of dislocation in his sub-conscience because he no more hears the beats. Patting induces within him a sense of restoration to his original habitat, thus a feeling of relaxation.
What is true about patting universally, same is true about gunshots and the psychology of present day Kashmiri teen-agers. For two decades, they have seen nothing other than gun shots, firing, crackdowns and other facets of the continuing insurgency and counter insurgency measures. If they don't experience it for some time they miss it. They feel that some thing has gone wrong in their society and aspire for revival of the phenomenon. They are not worried about the losses suffered in the process. When I drew attention of a teenager towards the killings that occur in the valley, his answer was clear and forthright. "The killings merely symbolize death of individuals. If a nation gets silenced without achieving anything that is the indicator of death of a community. We have opted for the lesser evil".
Decadal fillip
The patting phenomenon is compounded by another phenomenon and this I call decadal fillip. I have been closely associated with studies on communal riots in India. At some places I observed that riots usually occur at an interval of one decade. On enquiry from the locals I was told that the generation which once experiences communal disturbances seldom tries to get involved in it again. However, the infants harbor an aspiration of revenge for the atrocities committed against their community. They try to settle the score once they become mature. Every generation plays its innings and doesn't wish to repeat it again. The new generations do it for them and the riots continue. Two decades after eruption of militancy, Kashmir is experiencing a mass upsurge. Those who initiated militancy of Kashmir in early nineties are not the ones who are sustaining the mobilization of Kashmiri society at present. It is those who were infants at that time and have now grown up. They are those who have experienced unprecedented mass upsurge and turmoil in their childhood. They grew up in an atmosphere of explosions, rampant death, custodial killings and harassment. They have seen their mothers getting tortured and their sisters suffering molestation. They have experienced blasting of houses and devastation of localities. For a long time they have been harboring a wish to seek revenge for the injustice they have been experiencing in and around their localities. At the beginning of insurgency, aspiration for emancipation was the sole motivating factor for youth, now a wish to seek revenge for atrocities has become a contributive factor. On top of it they have an experience of two decades. It is this generation of young men, which has secured control of present mobilization.
Error of Generalization
The policies of the Indian government are also responsible for the present mass upsurge. Its policy towards Kashmir suffers from an error of generalization. In formulating its policies towards Kashmir, Indian Government was guided by its experience of dealing with Naxalites, Sikhs and the insurgencies of North-East. In all these states they killed the militants and the militancy got exhausted. Indian Government mainly relied on huge size of its army in operations against these insurgencies. The limited resources and support base of rebels of these areas also contributed to the success of Indian military operations. The policy seems to have failed in Kashmir. Killing of militants has strengthened the aspiration for independence here. The reason is simple and obvious. India overlooked two factors that were unique to Kashmir. Contrary to Punjab & North East, Kashmir continues to be an internationally recognized dispute. World community at large has a locus standi in this dispute because the issue remains on the agenda of the world body i.e. United Nations Organization. The happenings at a place which is focus of international attention has extraterritorial ramifications for India. It is not easy to overlook these. Muslim factor is the most important aspect that was not taken into consideration by the Indian Government while formulating its Kashmir policy. Since Kashmiris are Muslims, any movement launched by them invokes support from the Islamic World. Muslim Governments may be guided by their national interests while responding to Kashmir situation. Muslim masses however are motivated by the bonds of Islamic brotherhood. The level of their support can be assessed by the fact that Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) continues to support Kashmir cause. In past scores of foreign militants entered into the valley and joined the ranks of militancy as a manifestation of this support. They kept Indian army engaged, giving respite to locals, thus providing a breathing space for them so that they can regroup and reorganize their ranks. The Muslim factor also contributes in terms of commitment of individuals and the society which supports them. It acts as a force multiplier. The way killing of Maqbool Bhat instead of serving deterrence provoked Kashmiris to resort to militancy en masse. Killing of civilians and militants also helps to infuse the sense of revenge and retaliation among Kashmiris.
“Army can kill militants, not the militancy”, these words of an Indian army commander can explain the story of present intifada for us to a considerable extent. Solution of the mass rebellion has to be sought politically. This is the simple message that present upsurge conveys. The experience of Punjab, North East and operations against Naxalites is not going to work in Kashmir. The situation demands a forthright policy aimed at resolving the dispute once for all, unless it is done, Indian state will have to face mass upsurge and militancy in Kashmir in one pretext or other. The rebellious upsurge over Baltal land transfer conveys this message loud and clear. Is there anyone within Indian state system ready to understand?
For proper analysis of Kashmir Intifada, one must understand the societal changes that have taken place in Kashmir during past decades of continuing insurgency. The strategies aimed at containing Kashmiris might have worked in context of their moderate leaders but have proved futile to tame rebellious masses of Kashmir. The leaders tried to compromise in the name of realism. Masses remained custodians of an aspiration and erupted like a volcano. The theories relating to war fatigue and compromising attitude of Kashmir society have been blown into pieces. All these theories proved to be concoctions of Indian agencies. Result of misdirected evaluation became obvious with every passing day during the agitation. Alien establishment and its instruments collapsed within first three days of the protests.
Patting phenomenon
Once you pat a weeping child he feels relaxed and falls asleep after some time. Different theories have been formulated to explain this phenomenon. One of the theories says that a child gets addicted to hearing the heart beats of his mother before birth. Once out of womb there is a feeling of dislocation in his sub-conscience because he no more hears the beats. Patting induces within him a sense of restoration to his original habitat, thus a feeling of relaxation.
What is true about patting universally, same is true about gunshots and the psychology of present day Kashmiri teen-agers. For two decades, they have seen nothing other than gun shots, firing, crackdowns and other facets of the continuing insurgency and counter insurgency measures. If they don't experience it for some time they miss it. They feel that some thing has gone wrong in their society and aspire for revival of the phenomenon. They are not worried about the losses suffered in the process. When I drew attention of a teenager towards the killings that occur in the valley, his answer was clear and forthright. "The killings merely symbolize death of individuals. If a nation gets silenced without achieving anything that is the indicator of death of a community. We have opted for the lesser evil".
Decadal fillip
The patting phenomenon is compounded by another phenomenon and this I call decadal fillip. I have been closely associated with studies on communal riots in India. At some places I observed that riots usually occur at an interval of one decade. On enquiry from the locals I was told that the generation which once experiences communal disturbances seldom tries to get involved in it again. However, the infants harbor an aspiration of revenge for the atrocities committed against their community. They try to settle the score once they become mature. Every generation plays its innings and doesn't wish to repeat it again. The new generations do it for them and the riots continue. Two decades after eruption of militancy, Kashmir is experiencing a mass upsurge. Those who initiated militancy of Kashmir in early nineties are not the ones who are sustaining the mobilization of Kashmiri society at present. It is those who were infants at that time and have now grown up. They are those who have experienced unprecedented mass upsurge and turmoil in their childhood. They grew up in an atmosphere of explosions, rampant death, custodial killings and harassment. They have seen their mothers getting tortured and their sisters suffering molestation. They have experienced blasting of houses and devastation of localities. For a long time they have been harboring a wish to seek revenge for the injustice they have been experiencing in and around their localities. At the beginning of insurgency, aspiration for emancipation was the sole motivating factor for youth, now a wish to seek revenge for atrocities has become a contributive factor. On top of it they have an experience of two decades. It is this generation of young men, which has secured control of present mobilization.
Error of Generalization
The policies of the Indian government are also responsible for the present mass upsurge. Its policy towards Kashmir suffers from an error of generalization. In formulating its policies towards Kashmir, Indian Government was guided by its experience of dealing with Naxalites, Sikhs and the insurgencies of North-East. In all these states they killed the militants and the militancy got exhausted. Indian Government mainly relied on huge size of its army in operations against these insurgencies. The limited resources and support base of rebels of these areas also contributed to the success of Indian military operations. The policy seems to have failed in Kashmir. Killing of militants has strengthened the aspiration for independence here. The reason is simple and obvious. India overlooked two factors that were unique to Kashmir. Contrary to Punjab & North East, Kashmir continues to be an internationally recognized dispute. World community at large has a locus standi in this dispute because the issue remains on the agenda of the world body i.e. United Nations Organization. The happenings at a place which is focus of international attention has extraterritorial ramifications for India. It is not easy to overlook these. Muslim factor is the most important aspect that was not taken into consideration by the Indian Government while formulating its Kashmir policy. Since Kashmiris are Muslims, any movement launched by them invokes support from the Islamic World. Muslim Governments may be guided by their national interests while responding to Kashmir situation. Muslim masses however are motivated by the bonds of Islamic brotherhood. The level of their support can be assessed by the fact that Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) continues to support Kashmir cause. In past scores of foreign militants entered into the valley and joined the ranks of militancy as a manifestation of this support. They kept Indian army engaged, giving respite to locals, thus providing a breathing space for them so that they can regroup and reorganize their ranks. The Muslim factor also contributes in terms of commitment of individuals and the society which supports them. It acts as a force multiplier. The way killing of Maqbool Bhat instead of serving deterrence provoked Kashmiris to resort to militancy en masse. Killing of civilians and militants also helps to infuse the sense of revenge and retaliation among Kashmiris.
“Army can kill militants, not the militancy”, these words of an Indian army commander can explain the story of present intifada for us to a considerable extent. Solution of the mass rebellion has to be sought politically. This is the simple message that present upsurge conveys. The experience of Punjab, North East and operations against Naxalites is not going to work in Kashmir. The situation demands a forthright policy aimed at resolving the dispute once for all, unless it is done, Indian state will have to face mass upsurge and militancy in Kashmir in one pretext or other. The rebellious upsurge over Baltal land transfer conveys this message loud and clear. Is there anyone within Indian state system ready to understand?
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