Gallstones, gangrene, gastric conditions have a cure but greed can’t be cured. I as a commoner can be greedy and as a matter of fact as a politician more greedy. I can be money greedy, and if accessible power greedy. Therefore I don’t see major exceptions in Mehbooba Mufti, Omar Abdullah and Sajad Lone. They are essentially birds of the same feather. The primary capacity of the leader (not just a politician) is that they should make difficult decisions for their constituency. He should not be worried about love or hate but instead he should be feared and regarded and it never means he should be cruel. The ruler is there to provide to his subjects stability and governance. Leaders give subjects a vision they don’t represent a sentiment. They foresee challenges and prepare in advance. When Joseph (Yousuf, Peace be upon him) said to his father: “o my father! I did see eleven stars and the sun and the moon: I saw them prostrate themselves to me!” and his father Jacob (Yaqub) said : “my (dear) little son! Relate not thy vision to thy brothers, lest they concoct a plot against thee: for Satan is to man an avowed enemy! (Verses 4, 5 chapter 12 Al Quran).
This conversation is between divinely inspired people who could understand and relate. The dream selling project which started here had buyers initially but the shop sold products with expired dates thus saw a fall in the market. The present dreams have to be differentiated from the hoax.
Since we don’t have an option we will either go to the devil, the deep blue sea or now the crocodile (with expertise in mainstream and separatist tendencies). These are the parties with same permutations and combinations as they change horses amid courses. Where do we go? True that these are here to cater to our daily needs. The political problems of Jammu and Kashmir are bigger than their mandate and state assembly. Who will solve those problems? Who will bridge the defunct communication lines between New Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir. The separatists if not be blamed for executing the killings but for sure could be blamed for facilitating those. Their report card is as dismal as anything. Their diplomacy and soft power has not earned even attention from Delhi for a long time not to say listening to their demands. Deaths (militant, civilian, any other) have reduced just to statistics and names are forgotten. The uprisings slip from their hands and thus the occasions to negotiate with Delhi. We don’t see any new face groomed in Hurriyat either so that fresh avenues could be discovered. Hartal calls have not found a substitute in half a century.
Dishonest, dubious politicians rule the roost. They look London in electioneering and talk Tokyo on chair. Results are available before elections are contested or before new wave of violence starts. Everything is scripted and with minor changes in screenplay everything will go hunky dory. What we as a nation across the divide of topography or rivers should do is that strengthen a party or leader who could bail us out of this crises where every next day we have to wake up to the death of young and prosperous Kashmiri. Our economy is devastated due to this confusion and political vacuum. Our successive governments are nothing but service providers. We pay tax they give us roads, water supplies, electricity or healthcare. Like we do jio recharge to get mobile services from jio and cable fees to watch TV channels. We should not expect them to do more. The main issue is beyond their cusps and better for all of them, is to admit it candidly and go public with it so that people could understand their helplessness when they are on job of Delhi in Kashmir. Nobody will question their killing instincts or for that matter their jackboot functioning when they are on official duty and could accept their cosmetic gestures, melodrama on mourning the killings when they are off from office. What is evident from their gimmicks is that we as people fail our aspirations when we expect any of these to champion the cause of people, the popular sentiment, the debate on the bumpy coarse relationship which the state shares with New Delhi. They won’t do any of that and this is hurting the cause of both parties in New Delhi and Kashmir. In this era of post truths Sadhbhavana is sold as army’s success to main land India and civilian killings to break the popular resolve as fighting over ground workers of militant modules. The tying of Kashmiris to bonnet of jeep is seen as the presence of mind shown by army. This false propaganda has no takers at international level. The ever increasing atrocities by armed forces, enforced disappearances, mass rapes, tortures keep isolating Kashmiris from India and the local partners to the crime of muscular policy add insult to injuries. Kashmiris are pushed to the wall more so by its own politicians who lack the political will to bring Delhi to talk about the core dispute. They all are ready to rule over the blood spills of tens of thousands teen Kashmiris. With the elections coming up we will choose someone to run the show for Delhi. Both Kashmiris and Delhi have to find substitute to these event mangers in order to live amicability, with peace in the neighborhood.
Those who will get elected (Election boycott or not) are only different shades of grey. They use their political constituency as cannon fodder and get reelected over and over they have perfected this art of deceit. So this is evident that we will get ditched one more time then next time and next until we find a substitute to the existing political structure. Let’s introspect! Can we “Reimagine” politics? Do we see political “disruption” happening within mainstream? Could we settle for clean governance atleast? Could we give trust a chance amid the fear of getting old wine in new bottle? I think, yes! since proletariats have nothing to lose but their chains says Karl Marx.
Showket Akhoon is Ph.D Research Scholar, Department of Chemistry, University of Kashmir