The following excerpt has been reproduced without changes from Shehla Rashid’s book ‘Role Models: Inspiring Stories of Indian Muslim Achievers’ published by Penguin Random House India whose publication date is 30th October, 2024. The book is available on Amazon and at Gulshan Books, Residency Road Srinagar. It was unveiled by Hon. Lt. Gov. of J&K Shri Manoj Sinha ji and Kashmir University Vice-Chancellor Prof. Nilofer Khan on 27 Oct, 2024 at Raj Bhawan, Srinagar.
Ever since I appeared on a podcast with Smita Prakash on ANI in November, 2023 where I praised Modi government’s decisive steps in J&K, I am often asked by people I meet what the ‘true situation’ in J&K is. Since this book is about Indian Muslim achievers, I did not want to digress too much from the topic. So, for reasons of argument flow, I have added this Appendix to substantiate the assertions using both qualitative as well as quantitative information.
Public memory in Kashmir is divided into pre-Abrogation and post-Abrogation phases. It is well-known that, in the pre-Abrogation phase, whenever ordinary Kashmiris were asked who was the “best Prime Minister,” they’d fondly recall Late Vajpayee ji. The reason is simple. He was seen by Kashmiris as the only Prime Minister who sincerely tried to resolve the Kashmir issue. Late Mr. Vajpayee spoke of all possible solutions within the ambit of “Kashmiriyat, Jamhooriyat, and Insaniyat.” While the Modi government has gone truly out-of-the-box in resolving the Kashmir issue by removing Article 370, what needs to be stressed is that the solution also fits the parameters of Kashmiriyat, Jamhooriyat, and Insaniyat.
Article 370 and 35A were socially regressive. Post-abrogation, I would go to the Boulevard Road by the Dal Lake for a morning run as all gymnasia were closed due to COVID. We were stunned to find girls in workout gear walking, cycling and running. This was a landmark shift for us. Growing up in Kashmir meant facing immense moral policing for simple things that we take for granted in Delhi and other cities, like wearing jeans. Recalling this now seems like a déjà vu from a past life, but that is exactly what the Abrogation has done – made orthodoxy and moral policing a thing of the past, along with Article 35-A which denied women who married outside the state the right to dispose of their property as they wished.
Let’s now examine the impact of Abrogation in light of the Vajpayee parameters.
Insaniyat (Humanity)
Nobody could have imagined that the solution to the Kashmir issue or even the removal of Article 35-A would be a bloodless event. However, the forward march of history does not stop just because theory failed to explain or predict it. Not only was the Abrogation bloodless, its aftermath has seen a steady decline in violence and bloodshed. Terrorist attacks in the Valley reduced from 228 in 2018 to 41 in 2023. The number of civilians killed in terrorism-related incidents decreased from 55 in 2018 to 13 in 2023. The number of security personnel killed in action fell from 91 in 2018 to 20 in 2023. There’s an unmistakable perception of security and peace which has enabled more economic activity, physical movement of people till late hours even in winter, increased investments including by local businessmen, and a palpable reduction in fear psychosis. This has been made possible by the government’s zero tolerance approach to terrorism, cracking down on the entire ‘ecosystem’ of terror and not just its symptoms.
Jamhuriyat (Democracy)
The government is slowly creating a space where political opinions can be expressed without fear of reprisal, censorship, or gun violence. Democracy is, foremost, a marketplace of political opinions. But the freedom to hold political opinion was held hostage to soft-separatism which was the key formula to surviving in politics without fear of being shot dead. The government is creating space for genuine democracy to flourish and not just a stage-managed show of elite politicians who are protected by a mix of state machinery and soft-separatism. The government by ensuring elections to all levels of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) has created over 27,000 stakeholders in the democratic process. Over 9,000 of these elected representatives are women, thereby ushering in a critical mass of grassroots women leaders who, in the future, will form the cohort of empowered women seeking representation in legislatures once the 106th Constitutional Amendment Act comes into force. The Lok Sabha election held in 2024 was a free, fair and transparent process – which is significant given the fact that insurgency in Kashmir was a direct result of widespread election rigging in 1987. A record number of voters participated, and a candidate lodged in Tihar Jail won by record margins! Now, Assembly elections are being held, and the restoration of all three tiers of government will be a reality very soon.
Kashmiriyat
Nearly 2 crore tourists visited Kashmir in 2023, and Srinagar city proudly hosted the G-20 meeting signaling confidence and cooperation between security establishment and the masses. No incidents of stone-pelting have been reported in 2023 and 2024. For the first time in thirty years, the full academic calendar was followed in both years. There have been no hartals, curfews or strikes. Schools and colleges have been able to function without disruption. For the first time in decades, Muharram processions by Shia mourners were allowed under the LG Manoj Sinha administration, ensuring freedom of religion for all Muslims.
Besides this, government processes have been streamlined and institutions have become more accessible. Recruitments are happening at record pace and in a transparent manner. 31,380 selections (Gazetted and Non-Gazetted) have been finalized by the recruiting agencies since 2019. The LG administration has instituted enquiries against erring cops, addressed concerns of candidates around the integrity of JKSSB exams by blacklisting the erring companies, and integrated 914 online services with the Rapid Assessment System (RAS) whereby citizens who have accessed a service can submit feedback regarding their experience, along with a system of auto-escalation. Institutions are functioning for everyone regardless of political patronage.
With an increasing number of services being successfully digitalized, citizens are coming to depend less and less on personal influence, proving conventional wisdom about e-governance right. The Back to Village programme has been a spectacular success as government delivered G2C services at people’s doorstep, with senior officials visiting villages rather than citizens visiting government offices. Welfare schemes such as Ayushman Bharat, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, etc. have touched the lives of numerous Labhar this.
Public infrastructure has received a visible facelift with state-of-the-art transport, heritage conservation, decongestion and renovation work being done at fast pace. The breathtaking Chenab bridge in the Reasi district is the largest civil-engineering initiative taken up by Indian Railways. Investment figures have seen a ten-fold spike from ₹296.64 crore in FY’20 to ₹2079.76 in FY’24 up to 31st October, 2023. A visible uptick in private enterprise is attributable to peace and investor confidence.
Governance issues such as power cuts, waste management, unemployment, stray dog issue, etc. need redressal. But the integration of Jammu & Kashmir with mainland India has ended the psychological duality of the residents of the Valley which, while a measure for greater federalism within the Indian Republic, served to boost separatism by providing for a separate Constitution, a separate penal code, and a separate flag. People can now be seen participating enthusiastically in festivities such as the Independence Day and the Republic Day. The academic session has been synced with the March session followed in the rest of India, as opposed to the earlier system which caused students from J&K to lose a year compared to their counterparts in the rest of the country.
Security challenges remain, especially the targeted killings of police personnel and the shifting of terror incidents to the Pir Panjal area. One of the aims of terrorist actions (globally speaking) is to provoke the country which is at the receiving end of violence into a reaction which inevitably results in missteps, collateral damage and human rights violations. These real injustices are then exploited by advocacy lobbies which are in cahoots with the original aggressor group or country to portray the party at the receiving end of terrorism as the villain. Without this understanding of international relations, it is difficult to make sense of seemingly ‘mindless’ acts of terrorism which are not so mindless after all.
While insurgency in the Muslim-majority Kashmir division has dwindled, incidents of infiltration have picked up pace in the Hindu-majority Jammu division. Constant provocations, attacks on pilgrims, ambushed security personnel every now and then are likely to send security forces on a wild goose chase in order to look for infiltrators in the thick forests of the Pir Panjal range. This will inevitably involve questioning and interrogation of locals who are suspected collaborators. During this process, it is not rare to expect an emotional response from soldiers whose comrades have been ambushed. If any human rights violations take place during this, as they sometimes do, these are exploited by the international human rights lobbies which won’t bother to call out the original sponsor of terrorism.
Thus, the terrorist acts in Jammu require a calibrated response which takes on board locals and empowers them in the fight against terrorism, so that the resentment that my generation grew up with is not handed down to future generations. It is in fact a result of improvements in Kashmir that the site of mischief has moved to Jammu which is closer to the border and much easier to infiltrate. If Kashmir had been the preferred site so far for infiltration owing to local support, Jammu is now the more practical route for infiltrators owing to proximity. All this is likely to create friction between civilians and security forces in the Jammu region, an issue-based resentment that can get channeled into a larger anti-India sentiment among the locals.
Keeping in view the larger geopolitics of Pak-sponsored terrorism, India must carve out a bigger role for Muslims especially when it comes to articulating our national security position and strategic objectives both domestically and globally – a kind of ‘Muslim para-diplomacy’ if you will – leveraging our diversity as a diplomatic strength. This book is a humble attempt to showcase the diversity and openness of India. Between the dozen odd people featured in this book, they share six civilian honours of the highest level that are awarded by the government of India. Muslims can aspire to reach the highest positions in all fields including the military. After all, how many non-Islamic countries can boast of having Muslim army generals? We have had not one but many Muslims as Army Generals, three Muslim presidents, numerous Bollywood stars, and so on. This diversity needs to be showcased and celebrated.
Email:-------------------------insta.shehla@gmail.com
