Arif Mohammad Khan, Governor of Kerala, said on Friday that the central government was committed to end the terror ecosystem in Jammu and Kashmir while restoring democracy.
IN an exclusive interview with Brighter Kashmir Editor-in-Chief Farooq Wani, Khan, who is on a visit to Jammu and Kashmir, said that the sponsors of terrorism have been pinned down and in the next year or two, they will no longer be able to export terror.
“Pakistan is now passing through a stage where it is internally holding crisis meetings on how to neutralise its own terror creations such as the Tehreek-i-Taliban, the Balochi rebels, etc. Islamabad is not even able to maintain basic law and order,” he said.
Khan said that Pakistan has indulged in several actions to promote unrest and instability across the border, “But now they have reached a point of saturation. J&K, Kashmir is on the path of enlightenment, development and progress. The world is now seeing India as a country that counts globally and Kashmir is a contributing factor to that vision,” he said.
Taking about the restoration of democratic processes in Jammu and Kashmir, Khan said that the incumbent Lt Governor Manoj Sinha is very keen to have a political system back in place.
“Not only him, our Prime Minister is concerned about it and our Home Minister is also concerned about it. We need a gap, an intervening period so to speak, where we can send a final message that ‘terrorists will not be able to operate in any part of Kashmir henceforth’. We are all keen and committed at the leadership level to ensure that a people-centric government exists and works in J&K,” he said.
Khan said that the J&K administration is working to create the right atmosphere where people contesting elections do not fear for their lives. “That is the responsibility of both the Centre and the Lt Governor,” he said.
Khan said that the people of India must look at Kashmir as the crown of their heads and the crown of the nation. “This is what is so special about Kashmir, about Srinagar. It cannot be limited to just law or law and order. Kashmir is and has been rooted in our culture and it has been in our veins for tens of thousands of years. It is unfortunate that Pakistan used Article 370 to spread confusion and instability in Kashmir, especially after their rousing defeat in the 1971 Indo-Pak War,” he said.