Rattan Singh Gill
Jammu Tawi, Feb 19: The upcoming visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Jammu on February 20 holds significant importance in the context of the Bharatiya Janata Party's Mission Kashmir. In the last few years, the BJP Government has made substantial strides towards fulfilling the aspirations of its founding leaders, including Syama Prasad Mookerjee, who sacrificed his life advocating for ‘Ek Vidhan, Ek Pradhan, Ek Nishan'. This demand was ultimately realized by PM Modi during his second term by abrogating vital provisions of the Article 370 and ensuring the complete integration of Jammu Kashmir with India.
With this move, followed by declaration of a zero-tolerance policy against terrorism, corruption, and separatism, the centre has demonstrated its mettle and showcased to the world its strong willpower. Today, the terror ecosystem in J&K is in shambles but not fully dismantled; Corruption though hit hard but there are loopholes in the system that pave the ways for the menace to sustain. Non-retrieval of assets accrued out of large scale corrupt practices by J&K politicians, bureaucrats, Police Officials, middlemen etc failed to give a clear message to the corrupt element still doing their stint.
One thing is sure that things which were chaotic and have gone out of control in J&K couldn't be tamed and rectified overnight and that is the reason behind gradual progress in bringing back the Union Territory on tracks.
The balloon of autonomy and segregation from the rest of country was punctured by the 2019 constitutional amendments. Politicians seem to be mired in the past, while the general public seems to have come to terms with the current reality. This is the reason it is so evident that New Delhi has not been able to alter the political landscape in the Valley.
Following streamlining the constitutional provisions, the Modi Government has given free hand to the security forces in Jammu Kashmir to address the UT's challenges. This strategic decision has resulted in visible improvements in the security situation, showcasing the effectiveness of the government's approach. At present there is no harassment of security forces, no stone pelting, no Hartals witnessing in the Valley.
Despite significant strides, separatist elements inside the administration are still deep entrenched though dormant for the time-being; lack of structured efforts to deradicalize youth and reform the educational system. Continued existence of sleeper cells affiliated with separatist groups within government departments, including the state owned bank, educational institutions and among other social layers remains a cause for concern. This underscores the apparent lack of robust action taken to address both separatist ideologies and corrupt elements that persist in the Union Territory. This situation necessitates ongoing vigilance and the implementation of proactive measures to effectively combat these threats.
The presence of fear among the minorities and other soft targets across the Union Territory underscores the lingering apprehensions and tensions prevailing in the Union Territory.
There is no iota of doubt that the BJP government under the strong leadership of PM Modi has succeeded in freeing the Jammu and Kashmir Bank from the clutches and claws of the Kashmir's political hawks who misused this big financial institution as part of their personal fiefdom leading to irregularities which were monumental.
The region continues to face security challenges, including cross-border terrorism and separatist movements besides issues related to sleeper cells and hybrid terrorists, and it is imperative to counter this on war footing to relieve the population from the vicious cycle of violence.
Radicalization is the single biggest obstacle and danger to the Valley's stability and security. But there has been no structured plan to take on the radicalization of the youth. There has been some impact noted from the decision to fire government employees who had ties to Jamaat and other separatist groups. However, the government is hesitant to eradicate separatism entirely from within its own ranks.
The encroachment of land in the erstwhile J&K state was a patronized phenomena and it was also a part of separatists' ecosystem. To break this ecosystem, anti-encroachment drive was started with much fanfare but remained subtle as the approach was full of flaws because instead to taking action against the big sharks on ground, the campaign was first launched against poor strata giving big fish time to instigate masses against the drive resulting into tirade losing the steam. The names of offenders were never made public to infuse confidence among the masses.
It is evident that the Kashmir's monopoly over the political power has been broked as of now, the focus, however remains Kashmir valley in all spheres. This contrast is noticeable in the allocation and execution of several development projects. An objective and comparative appraisal of the Smart City Project in Srinagar and that of Jammu will make the picture clear. This disparity suggests that the mindset regarding development priorities has remained largely unchanged since the revocation of Article 370, with Jammu continuing to lag behind Kashmir in terms of attention and resources allocated to development endeavors.
The Dogra certificate, which was previously beneficial for Jammu region youth in seeking preference in recruitments to Armed forces and done away with earlier government, has not been restored.
This raises questions about the BJP's commitment to addressing the concerns and priorities of the Jammu region, particularly regarding employment opportunities for its youth. The failure to reinstate the Dogra certificate highlights a missed opportunity for the BJP to fulfill its promises and effectively advocate for the interests of Jammu's population.
The existence of the Custodian Department remains questionable, with many advocating for its abolition. Despite calls for its removal, the department continues to operate, raising questions about its relevance and effectiveness. The reluctance to dismantle the department reflects a broader reluctance within the government to initiate structural reforms. It is imperative to address this issue promptly and decisively to streamline governance and allocate resources more efficiently.
The Union Territory suffers from the political vacuum that the local body elections in 2020 were unable to fill due to lack of empowerment and bureaucratic dominance in working with the new breed of grassroot leadership. Thus the political process has not taken off in real sense.
Development efforts appear spectacular on papers, but in practice, they are not that glaring. In spite of this, the public conversation continues to center on security rather than the other concerns that require and deserve more attention from the state.
All said and done, what the center and UT Government have achieved in J&K so far is unprecedented when compared to successive dispensations but the road to normalcy is still a distant dream and therefore Centre should come with more impeccable plan to overcome all those issues which remained unaddressed and need to be tackled as soon as possible.
