Why should we raise hackles on what Lt. Gen. B.S Jaswal said in his maiden press conference as General officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Northern Command at Udhampur last week? In giving vent to his feelings he has neither played to galleries, nor resorted to double-speak. Without corrupting his mind and polluting his soul, the General has exhibited professional courage in speaking truth, pure and unadulterated. I salute him for his straight forward articulation.
            In this goddamned land when everything what General spoke about is practiced in letter and spirit why cry, why protest. In fact, the local narrative – that in the garb of democracy it is military raj that prevails here – got the strongest defense in General’s assertion. How much we are honest in our appraisal, based on stark ground realities of the situation, the Indians always dubbed it as a ‘malicious propaganda’ aimed to ‘tarnish image of India and security forces’. Now coming as it does from the mouth of top brass in olive green, holding seven lakh troops in his command ‘shielded’ with AFSPA against legal action for gross human rights abuses, the victims’ plea stands vindicated. It might not be hailed as twist of fortunes for a repressed nation but at least in General’s “crude” assertion we see how the Cleopatra of India democracy, the “cleanliness” of which they hold next to “godliness”, loses the beauty, the virginity in Kashmir. This blight of ugliness smudges it so deep that all farcical electoral exercises were unable to wash it off {Remember PDP leader and MLA Muzafar Beigh’s candid admission of ‘Hum Bikaw Hain (we are saleable entities)}. Without camouflaging his intent, General spoke the language of battle-field. Where he has to fight a war against people not willing to integrate with India. Not an unprecedented route he takes. All his predecessors trudged the same path. His difference is in his blowing the covers of deceit and showing the state in colonial mode. That is why he carves his ‘immortal’ place in the psychological landscape of the people of Kashmir.
            To display that it is only writ of army that runs large here, the GoC-in-Chief told the reporters that ‘presence of security forces will continue till the threat of re-emergence of militants is totally eliminated’. This statement rather rejoinder comes only a day after Home Minister of India P. Chidambaram said Delhi was mulling ‘vacation of occupied houses and land’ by the army and withdrawal of paramilitary forces from the valley. Obviously, the discordant rather defying voice of the General does not go in line with the demand of democracy and civilian rule India takes pride to hold and abide by. In other parts of India, India’s political leadership has a definite command over military apparatus and they cannot allow such erosion in its political authority to take place from the latter. That here it does reflects the free leeway they give to army is deliberate. The silence of the Home Ministry stamps the approval.
            General Sahab then pleads the threat of re-emergence of militants as an argument for army’s presence, although in the same press conference GoC admits that ‘militancy was on decline’. In which militancy infested part of India (and there are many) you have some seven lakh troops pitted against 400 militants? Won’t some sixty thousand police personnel be tasked for the job? But the General does not want to eliminate militancy only, he is obsessed to carry the military offensive to the psychological domain too. Where he has the ‘cause’ of flattening of minds to pursue. He, therefore, devises the strategy of pre-emptive strikes. So apart from winning this physical component, he wants the occupation of minds and soul too. In other words, controlled population they want to grow. Barricaded by farce of democracy. Only then presumable threat will betotally eliminated. That implies the real motive for army to stay here. Since re-emergence threat has no “gestation period” defined the heavy militarization of Kashmir might look a permanent feature.
            Referring to the frequent street protests and shut-downs the GoC said though incidence of violence has registered a drastic decline, with just 36 incidents of violence reported this year as compared to 276 in 2006, however, the ‘agitational terrorism’ was a cause of worry. Recession in violence and improvement in ground situation should have gravitated General to make, on his own, a strong case for troops withdrawal or, at least, reinforce Home Minister Chidambaram’s efforts in this regard. But skipping these genuine expectations and instead extending the arc of military operations beyond militancy to peaceful agitation habitat – and coining a phrase ‘agitation terrorism’ for it – is a reflective of deep inalienable suspicion that even if last militant gun was recovered, Kashmir as a nation won’t reconcile with India. Both Generals and political class in India are veering round to the sour reality that unlike Punjab it is the non-violent peaceful aspect of resistance that is irreconcilable in Kashmir. So it is here, they think, Kashmir has to be Guantanamo bayed. Otherwise what other plausible conclusion can you draw from when senior army officer speaks his mind on slapping terrorism on peaceful dissent so transparently so unambiguously. Last year world witnessed how unarmed mass uprising (Intifadah) Indians crushed brutally. Seeing hundreds of thousands of people surging on roads chanting azadi, azadi, many upright voices from India itself asked Delhi to heed the voice of Kashmir. Arundhati Roy, Booker Prize Winner cried ‘India needs Azadi from Kashmir as much as Kashmir needs Azadi from India’. In the words of Times of India celebrated columnist the non-violent mass-campaign has proved beyond doubt that ‘Kashmir is no longer a ventriloquist’s dummy speaking for its Pakistani masters’ nor the massive protests against India rule are ‘ISI-sponsored stratagem’.
            Instead of honoring this open referendum Kashmiris pronounced in broad day-light, New Delhi decided to quell it through sheer brute force. Killing 62 youth, injuring hundreds. And converting Kashmir virtually into a prison. Clearly demonstrating that Delhi won’t digest any democratic voice even if it is one hundred one percent non-violent and within the approval parameters of Indian constitution.  The hubris-driven attitude of Delhi betrayed the fury of the state to suppress ‘agitational terrorism’. General, as we said earlier, is not on a new hunt. He is honest in showcasing iron fist pulling off velvet gloves.
            Just for sake of debate , if street protests, shut downs, are the ‘cause for worry’ intoxicating state or Generals to read ‘agitational terrorism’ in them, by the same yardstick father of Indian nation M K Ghandi must be hailed as biggest terrorist as he led the mass agitations both in South Africa and India. Wasn’t his Satya-grah and Quit-India Movement then ‘agitational terrorism’? If you kill, maim, dishonor, imprison and torture Kashmirees for this non-violent protest mode why to lay floral wreaths at Gandhi’s Smadhee in Delhi? Killing Gandhi in Kashmir, paying homage to him in Delhi do not jell together. We may not stretch the argument to Advani’s rath yatra agitation that culminated in Babri masjid demolition, communal polarization and scores of communal riots. His was violent anti-Muslim mobilization State India should have restricted, even banned. Lest goddess of democracy might lose one hair of grace, the yatra was allowed to fuel anti-Muslim sentiments for years. Agitations and protests are not special to Kashmir alone. In Bengal peasantry class fought pitched battle against Marxist government’s radical industrialization of paddy fields. People swarmed in Mumbai under racist slogans and agitated violently against non-Marathees particularly North Indians. Agitations are part of democracies throughout world. And, moreover, such activities pertain to law and order which by all means is a state prerogative. Why should army “trespass” in the state authority.
            Tail Piece: -
1. GoC’s observation reminds us that we are under the watchful eyes of ‘Big Brother’ (George Orwell’s 1984) who does not wish to leave a cubic centimeter of your mind empty. General aims to shape Kashmir into a monolith of tamed population with sheepish behavior and effeminated temperament.
 2. AFSPA is, in fact, the amended version of Armed Forces Special Powers Ordinance that the then Viceroy Lord Linlithgo brought on 15 August 1942 to quell “Quit India Movement” Gandhi Jee spear headed. The imperialist British left but AFSPA still remains. We ask which side of the divide you are, Gandhian or Lord Linlithgo’s? And can the two incompatibles, democracy and AFSPA, be sheathed together?
3. That you have shielded even the Achille’s heels of the “holy cows”, already armed to the hilt, with legal protective gears, what for the ‘children of lesser gods’ unarmed and exposed to all dangers. Where shall they go if even courts don’t hear them?

(The author can be reached at zainagiree@yahoo.co.in)

Lastupdate on : Thu, 12 Nov 2009 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Thu, 12 Nov 2009 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Fri, 13 Nov 2009 00:00:00 IST