Retired Lt. General Syed Ata Hasnain has said that there is a lack of awareness about Kashmir issue among the international think tanks.
“There is lack awareness about Kashmir issue as far as international think tanks are concerned. However, as far as the Indian think tanks are concerned they have a good knowledge about the Kashmir issue,” the retired General, in an interview with Brighter Kashmir Editor-in-Chief Farooq Wani, said.
He said that Jammu and Kashmir is a sensitive area in the region given its promoxity with neighbouring countries.
“These think tanks understand the Great Game given that Jammu and Kashmir close proximity with Afghanistan, China, Pakistan and also Central Asia. However, there is very less knowledge about the issue of Jammu and Kashmir,” the General, who has commanded the strategic 15 Corps in Srinagar for the Indian Army said during the interview.
However, the retired General said that after the abrogation of special status of Jammu and Kashmir these international institutions have started to research about the Jammu and Kashmir issue.
“Soon after New Delhi abrogated the Article 370 and Article 35-A on August 5, 2019, the thinking in these international think tanks started to change. Now they have started to read about the Kashmir issue,” the retired General said.
He said that soon after the Article 370 abrogation people in various think tanks started to ask questions about the Jammu and Kashmir issue.
He said that many international think tanks also have less knowledge about the proxy war that is going-on in Kashmir.
He said that most of the think tanks in Europe and America have less or knowledge regarding Kashmir issue and only talk about human rights violations in Kashmir and don’t see it politically.
“In Middle East, there is a lot of noise as far as Jammu and Kashmir issue is concerned but there is less or no knowledge in European and American think tanks and not politically,” he said during the interview.
About abrogation of Article 370, the retired General said that the decision taken on August 5, 2019, abrogation of special status of Jammu and Kashmir, was building-up since 2016.
“There was need of transformational change as far as Kashmir is concerned so that Pakistan could stop meddling in Kashmir,” the retired General said.
He said that the decision was finally taken on August 5, 2019 which was taken legally via parliament.
He said that Pakistan has been successful in building their own narrative on Kashmir internationally, “While Pakistan was able to build their Kashmir narrative internationally, the Indians lagged behind and was not able to build its own narrative internationally about Kashmir,” the retired army General said.
He said that India needs to work on building its own narrative on Kashmir. “Countries like Saudi Arabia and UAE have started to come close to India. This will help India in building its own narrative on Kashmir,” he said.
He said that when it comes to Organisation of Islamic Conference there too Saudis and Emiratis show a soft corner for India.
He said that Pakistan has always tried to destabilize Kashmir economically as well as politically and that Pakistan’s only motive is to shame India. “Pakistan only wants to shame India and its army on the issue of human rights violation in Kashmirs. You and me know how Indian army is associated with the people of Kashmir via Sadhbawna. However, I accept there are one or two incidents of human rights violation and investigation has taken place in there but by-and-large the attitude of Indian army in Kashmir will never be understood by Pakistan,” Hasnain said.
Answering about the human rights violation about the Shopian fake encounter, the retired General said that it was Indian army first who initiated an inquiry when it came to forth that those killed were not militants.
“In 2005, there were reports of rape by an Indian major in north Kashmir’s Langate area. I myself did court martial. And the Indian army Major was dismissed from service,” the retired General said.
He said that even in Machil fake encounter the accused Indian Army personnel have not be acquitted. “The Indian army personnel are out on bail and have not been acquitted till now. The case is still in court,” he said.