The delimitation process cannot be complete or fair if the rights of the Kashmiri Pandits living in exile are not taken into account.
Dialogue and reconciliation are an intrinsic part of the democratic process. The meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and 14 political leaders of Jammu and Kashmir on 24 June, convened at the behest of the government and the first since the abrogation of Article 370 is a welcome development that needs to be lauded. However, for these talks to be productive, both parties must be cognizant of and work within the framework of the new reality: a reality that categorically buries the ugly past and envisions a healthy and prosperous future.
The first ground rule of this altered new reality is that the abrogation of Article 370 is a done deal; permanently sealed and stamped with little chance of retraction. The abrogation of Article 370 was a monumental, historic and sentinel decision in the narrative of modern India; a moral rectification long overdue that eradicated the unacceptable barrier of separation that existed in a sea of religious, ethnic and linguistic equality. Article 370 violated the basic right to equality guaranteed to all Indians by our Constitution. It was an anomaly that allowed political dispensations in the Valley to diminish our sovereignty and somehow persuade Kashmiris and the world at large that Pakistan had a say in the affairs of our country. It was an anomaly that was exploited by the Muslim majority state to establish a religious apartheid that culminated in the ethnic cleansing of over quarter million Kashmiri Hindus.
That these current talks were initiated on 24 June, a day after the 68th death anniversary of Shyama Prasad Mookerjee, the founder of the Jana Sangh, is of profound significance. The erstwhile leader died in custody in Kashmir in 1953 agitating against Article 370 and in support of the BJP’s core principle, “Ek desh mein do Vidhan, do Pradhan aur Do Nishan nahi challenge (A single country can’t have two Constitutions, two Prime Ministers, and two national emblems)”. The message is clear: there is no place in a modern democracy for a morally challenged, logically invalid and discriminatory statute like Article 370. There cannot and will not be any compromise vis-à-vis Article 370. The sooner that the politicians of the Valley accept this reality the better for all.
The next step in this rapprochement process is the question of trust. It is naive to believe that the Centre-State distrust is the sole driver of the current impasse. The distrust is multilayered and bilateral.
In fact, at the heart of the Kashmir problem is a deep-seated and existential distrust that exists at the societal level between the Muslim majority and Hindu minority of J&K; a breach of faith that negates the very concept of India as a secular pluralistic nation and one which has been deliberately overlooked. The ethnic cleansing of a quarter million Kashmiri Pandits from the Valley is textbook definition of brute majoritarianism craftily masked by calls for autonomy from a predominantly Hindu India; the basic depravity of this act cannot be mitigated by any so-called extenuating factor.
Over the last seven decades attitudes of some in the state have failed to instil any confidence in the Hindu community. All Chief Ministers of J&K have been Muslims since Independence despite Hindus constituting at least 30% of the population. In contrast, several Hindu-majority states have had Muslim Chief Ministers over the years: Syeda Anwara Taimur (Assam, 1980-81), A.R. Antulay (Maharashtra 1980-82) and C.H. Mohammed Koya (Kerala), to name a few.
At the political level, the political leadership of the Valley has exhibited a degree of good sense by not insisting on restoration of Article 370 as a precondition for talks with the government. But they need to do more to burnish their credentials: Pakistan must be deleted once and for all from the vocabulary of Kashmir-related negotiations with a finality that is irrevocable. Pakistan must never again be invoked in discussions.
On its part, the Centre has done its duty by taking the first step. The Centre has always been committed to restoring statehood to J&K and the PM reiterated this commitment in the recent meeting. As per the government’s plan, delimitation, Assembly elections and statehood will follow in that order.
Stressing on urgency, the PM remarked: “Delimitation has to happen at a quick pace so that polls can happen and J&K gets an elected government that gives strength to J&K’s development trajectory.”
Delimitation is a process whereby electoral constituencies are redrawn to reflect the changing population so as to ensure equal representations to equal segments of the population. In some countries geographically area is also taken into consideration, prompting Jammu-based parties to ask for the same. Jammu accounts for 62% of the state.
The reason for J&K being subject to delimitation at this time is two-fold: one, J&K did not undergo delimitation in 2008 along with the rest of India, and second, the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act 2019 increased the number of Assembly seats from 107 to 114—making delimitation a necessity.
The delimitation process cannot be complete or fair if the rights of the Kashmiri Pandits living in exile are not taken into account. Until such time they are rehabilitated in the Valley with dignity and security they must be assured of representation in the new Assembly and Lok Sabha. Using the criteria of roughly 145 to 150 thousand voters per constituency they would qualify for at least 2 dedicated seats in the Assembly.
A note of caution. The mindset that exists in the Valley has evolved over nearly 70 years and will not disappear overnight. It may take years or even decades but with sustained persuasion that goal can be attained. A year or two is too short a time to assess the impact of abrogation of Article 370. The Central government must not blink or compromise its principles in its haste to move the peace process forward.
If the politicians from the Valley are not willing to play ball, then status quo must be allowed to prevail for some time. The heavens will not fall if J&K is subject to electoral limbo for a few years more. What is crucial in the long run is that the democratic and secular principles of our country in accordance with our Constitution prevail in J&K, without extraneous interference so that growth and development can occur.
After the meeting, PM Modi said, “Today’s meeting with political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir is an important step in the ongoing efforts towards a developed and progressive J&K, where all-round growth is furthered. To attain the objectives outlined by the PM, it is imperative that the political leadership of the Valley and the entirety of civil society of Kashmir introspect deeply, alter its parochial ways, refrain from trifling with our sovereignty and be in sync with the rest of India with regard to democratic and secular principles. That alone is the way forward to bringing peace and abundance to Kashmir.