Omar appeasing radical political elements in the State, says Bhan
Amid reports of the Defence Ministry's opposition to the withdrawal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) from certain areas in Jammu and Kashmir, the Congress, the main ally of the Omar Abdullah-led coalition government in the State, also voiced its reservations. The party also repeated its demand for rotational Chief Ministership after completion of three years of the present government.
In a hard-hitting statement, senior Congress leader and general secretary of the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) Ashok Bhan on Sunday accused Mr. Abdullah of appeasing radical political elements in the State.
In a statement, Mr. Bhan was quoted as saying the Chief Minster's move was “in order to appease the radical political elements in the State and their masters, to cover up his political and administrative incompetence and to weaken the growing political base of the Congress across the State under the youthful and dynamic leadership of Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi.”
“He [Mr. Abdullah] resorts to rhetoric and political narration, which is amateurish, unacceptable and fraught with divisive regional undercurrents. This narration and gimmickry cannot be countenanced by the Congress,” Mr. Bhan said, speaking to a gathering of Kashmiris at a seminar in Delhi.
“He never discusses nor has he discussed the policy issues in a coordination committee,” he said referring to Mr. Abdullah's announcement about the withdrawal of the AFSPA from certain areas.
Claiming that the Congress had made huge inroads in the State, particularly in the Valley, he said: “Scores of educated youth are joining the party after the recent visit of Mr. Gandhi and after the joint efforts by Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, the PCC chief Saifuddin Soz and other party leaders. The cadres have legitimate expectations that their demand of the Congress taking the lead role in the government with a change of Chief Minister in January 2012 would be accepted by Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who herself is well aware of the sensitivities of the suffering masses and prevailing problems of the coalition government and the glaring misgovernance.”
Mr. Bhan said the change in the leadership of government will accelerate the developmental works launched by Mr. Azad, ensure equitable regional balance, employment and return of displaced Kashmiri Pundits with dignity to their homeland Valley.
“It will also ensure corruption-free, able, astute, and efficient governance, and will end all forms of violence to bring peace and prosperity and, above all, provide an enabling environment for a genuine dialogue to work out a peaceful, democratic and lasting solution of the imbroglio to end the sufferings of the common people.”
Meanwhile, Cabinet Secretary Ajit Kumar Seth arrived here on a two-day visit to review the security and developmental situation with the State government.
Besides meeting Governor N.N. Vohra, he held a series of meetings with State officials to review various flagship programmes and issues relating to the implementation of the current year's Annual Plan, the Prime Minister's Reconstruction Plan, Centrally-sponsored schemes and other major infrastructure development projects.
Considerable attention was devoted to discussing the time-frame within which 3-tier Panchayati Raj institutions would be established in the State.
They also discussed issues relating to hydel power development; the Kashmir Railway Project — particularly to link Qazigund with the new 11 km tunnel across the Pir Panjal; 4-laning Project of the National Highway; growth of agriculture and its allied sectors; and certain other key areas.
Sources told TheHindu that the issue of AFSPA was also discussed and the Army strongly opposed the withdrawal.
Sources privy to the deliberations said the Army said the situation was not completely conducive for the withdrawal, and the challenge of militancy was not over.
They cited intelligence inputs about the presence of militants across the Line of Control, who, according to them, were waiting to cross over.
The issue would again be discussed with Mr. Abdullah by a high-level Central team comprising, among others, Home and Defence Secretaries before they return to Delhi on Monday.
Keywords: Armed Forces Act, AFSPA withdrawal
The partial removal of AFSPA in the valley could not have come at a better time for those terrorists facing the specter of unemployment as a result of withdrawal of US troops and the expected normalization of relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan. I would also call it a blessing in disguise for Pakistan's rogue spy agency the ISI who now will have a chance to move its assets (the terrorists) to focus completely on Kashmir valley.
The recent statement made by Afghan President Hamid Karzai that it would side with Islamabad if Pakistan is attacked by US or any other country for that matter is actually a sign of things to come. The US withdrawal from Kabul will be like a big burden off Pakistan's back who has been reeling under severe criticism for its double standards fighting the war on terrorism. Once the US and allied troops leave Afghanistan we might witness a repeat of what happened after Soviet forces pulled out of Afghanistan in 1989. It is pertinent to recall here that the genocide followed by mass exodus of Kashmiri Pundits in India took place in that very year only. The terrorism and terrorist activities increased in India as a result of vacuum created by Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan. The easy access to sophisticated weapons and poverty and the prevailing confusion among various militant groups worked to the advantage of Pakistan's ISI who directed these unemployed militants towards Kashmir valley. Most likely we are going to witness the same scenario once again resulting in increased terrorist activities in Kahsmir and rest of India in the times to come.
If this happens it wouldn't be the Kashmiri Pundits but the armed forces in Kashmir and innocent civilians in the country that would be in the line of fire of these terrorists. Removing AFSPA would not only prove fatal for the morale of armed forces but also cost dearly to the safety and security of the nation as a whole. The situation could be worst as since 1989 Pakistan has come a long way and now is in better control of not one but huge number of terror groups currently operating in various theatres worldwide. Looking at how creative terrorists are becoming the shoe bomber and the underwear bomber-the threat becomes all the more grave and immediate in nature. The recent intelligence report indicates that terrorist might attempt to blow up airliners by using surgically implanted bombs. According to one UK reporter these bombs will be surgically implanted in the lawless regions of Pakistan!
It’s no time to buckle under the pressure of likes of Prashant Bhushan who has absolutely no knowledge of the ground realities in Kashmir and the threat that terrorists pose to the whole nation. Its time not to remove AFSPA but to think how best we can respond to the threat posed by terrorists post US withdrawal not only to the valley but the nation as a whole. We need to learn lessons from Israel. How many Israeli got killed in Mumbai attack? 3 or 5, Israel killed 1000 people in Palestine immediately after the Taj attack! Close to 3000 people America lost in 9/11 attacks, you got any idea how many people the US killed in response to 9/11? Enough is enough is the message that India should give to Pakistan and to the psychopaths entering India with an intent to cause mayhem.
The threat to our nation is as much from outside as it is from within. We are almost on the threshold of third world war but our defense preparedness as compared to China or other nations is extremely poor. Forget China, a country like Pakistan has acquired more nuclear bombs since the Pokharan test than India. We did Pokharan and sat down, Pakistan went on acquiring bombs after bombs and its nuclear arsenal has now more than 100 bombs.
While we are busy fighting amongst ourselves Pakistan has been continuously finding new ways to bleed India. The ISI agents are hiring gullible Indians going to the Middle East for jobs, it is now been providing support to Maoists with the help of Bangladeshi terrorists in the North East and I am not sure but the ISI might have established contacts with various other Maoists groups operating in different regions in India. South of India has been of special interest to it as a majority of Indian population in the Middle-East is from the South. This fact came to light when armed forces in Kashmir shot down two people trying to intrude into India territory from the Pakistani side of the border-both were from Kerala.
Apart from sending terrorist to India, the ISI has also launched covert propaganda war against India through front organizations based in various countries and within India to create political and economic instability in the country. With billions of dollars pouring in from the US in the name of war against terror and Dawood match fixing network and other illegal trades funding terror activities in India is not an issue with ISI now.
Mind you, we are alone in this battle and if we are not prepared, if our political class continues to be complacent, if the morale of our armed forces is intentionally brought down we the common citizen of India are doomed.
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