⦁ Hurriyat leaders not a part of the engagement
⦁ Islamabad improbable to simply accept any move without restoration of autonomous status to occupied Kashmir
⦁ Test case for Gupkar Declaration signatories
In what are we say in India as a serious reversal of Narendra Modi’s hardline policy occupied Kashmir, the Indian prime minister moodi is about to satisfy pro-India Kashmiri leaders for resumption of political process within the region, but the move is unlikely to satisfy key stakeholders on Kashmir.
The prime minister would meet political figures from Occupied azad jammu Kashmir on Thursday (today), which might be the primary high-level engagement between the pro-India leaders from Occupied Kashmir and therefore the Centre since August 2019 when India cancel the region’s autonomy by scrap the Article 370 of its constitution.
Those welcome to the gathering incorporate previous boss priests of Occupied Kashmir Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah (National Conference), Ghulam Nabi Azad (Congress), and Mehbooba Mufti (Peoples Democratic Party) — three of whom were confined by Indian specialists after the Aug 5 move. Others joining the gathering are Tara Chand, Muzaffar Hussain Baig, Nirmal Singh, Kavinder Gupta, Yusuf Tarigami, Altaf Bukhari, Sajjad Lone, G.A. Mir, Ravidner Raina, and Bhim Singh.
All gathering parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) would not be a part of the engagement.
The meeting is, therefore, being viewed in Islamabad as an effort by Delhi to legitimise its Aug 5 action, which had been heavily criticised in Occupied azad Jammu and Kashmir, by making minor concessions which too to require forward its own agenda without giving any meaningful relief to the Kashmiris.
It is being said there would be no plan for the gathering between PM Modi and the Kashmiri chiefs and they would be for the most part talking about the circumstance in Occupied Kashmir.
But, insiders say, the talks would revolve around the next kingdom elections in Occupied Jammu and Kashmir, delimitation of constituencies and granting the vicinity statehood thru every other Constitutional amendment.
The BJP government is thru delimitation seeking to feature a minimum of seven more constituencies in Hindu-dominated Jammu for domination within the future state assembly whenever polls are held. Therefore, at stake for a few of the participating leaders would be their strategic concern of maintaining their numerical strength within the future assembly.
The other issue is that of granting identity to the region through giving it statehood. Under the Indian constitution, the occupied area is currently a union territory.
As Pakistan had reportedly during the rear channel contacts asked India to reverse its Aug 5 action for forwarding movement in bilateral relations, the key question here is that if restoration of mere statehood would satisfy Pakistan and therefore the people of occupied Kashmir. Apparently, the solution is negative.
Although there has been no formal statement from Islamabad on the upcoming meeting, background interviews reveal that statehood without restoration of special autonomous status for Occupied Jammu and Kashmir wouldn’t be acceptable to Pakistan.
Islamabad, therefore, wants Delhi to visit again its Aug 5 actions and restore Articles 370.
Meanwhile, it might be interesting to ascertain how the pro-India Kashmir politicians, sitting at the table, would answer this likely move by prime minister Modi.
Mehbooba Mufti, other Kashmiri leaders in their pre-June 24 individual interactions with Indian authorities had reportedly shown flexibility on the difficulty of statehood without freedom. But at a gathering of the “Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration” on Tuesday, the component parties besides deciding to attend the meeting agreed on maintaining a joint stance on the problems to be negotiated there.
These gathering parties had within the past, through the 2 Gupkar Declarations, vowed to collectively strive for the restoration of the identity, autonomy, and special status of the state through the restoration of Articles 370. it might be worth seeing if these leaders abide by their commitments made in Gupkar Declaration or pass their individual political considerations and accept statehood without freedom.
