Does Kashmir represent only a political problem? I submit that today’s Kashmir is not merely a political problem as political analysts and the intelligentsia tend to aver rather casually. There was a time when the issue had only a political dimension and could be solved politically. There was also a time when the J&K imbroglio as a whole could be solved by riding piggyback on a military victory scored in the 1971 war and with a farsighted political/military approach.

However, our polity and government functionaries have always missed such opportunities in the past due to lack of political, diplomatic and strategic maturity. Over the years we have got into the habit of covering up our weaknesses and inadequacies of governance rather than engage in course correction in our endeavours to resolve the problem permanently. In fact, Delhi along with a few chosen local politicians of J&K have always tried to keep the populace out of the information loop so that a handful of so-called intellectuals/officials had the privilege of discussing and deliberating such important issues and in the garb of a national security environment. This covered up their mismanagement and intellectual inadequacies.

All this has happened at the grave cost of allowing the slow and steady spread of dissatisfaction among the masses, lack of development, drastic decline in the educational system and standards of education, steep rise in corrupt practices and finally loss of faith in the government and governance. Pakistan along with a few separatists and gullible politicians never lost an opportunity to exploit the situation to the hilt.

The fact remains that Kashmir is not a simple problem and does not have a simple answer. The issues are multi-dimensional and call for a multi-dimensional approach to stabilise, control and resolve. There are no quick-fix solutions. A long-term view as well as execution of a calibrated long-term policy with patience is required. The situation will need concurrent action with political, military, administrative, educational, psychological and development facets.

Let us also realise that there is a definite and intense relationship between security in Kashmir, Indo-Pak borders including the Line of Control, crossborder infiltration and Pakistan-sponsored terrorism. These issues are intertwined and need very mature policies, executed by direct as well as indirect methods without bias towards any particular stakeholder. Some of the politicians and political analysts have been insisting on talks with Pakistan and Pakistanbacked separatists for resolving the Kashmir problem. Little do they realise that any such move will entangle them in the quagmire of enlarging the scope of Indo-Pak issues resulting in undue pressures of external forces which must be avoided. India must deal with the internal issues of Kashmir on its own… never mind who says what.

Talks and reconciliation must certainly be the basis for resolving differences with our own countrymen who have been misled and misguided. However, it can be effective and result-oriented only if terrorist activities are brought under control and a reasonably peaceful environment for such talks with the administration is ensured. Armed militancy and terrorism have to be dealt with militarily so that these elements are neutralised to a level where talks and peaceful endeavours are allowed to fructify.

Over the past two decades, there were at least three occasions when militancy was brought under reasonable control by the Army and the security factor raised hopes of peace and development. However the governments of the day in J&K as well as at the Centre could not utilise the opportunity to successfully integrate the region with the rest of the country. In fact the political class ~ mainly from J&K ~ played dirty and exploited the sentiments of the locals for their personal gains. It also made use of the local administration, police force and certain governmental /non-governmental institutions for their personal agenda and corrupt practices.

The situation in J&K today is extremely complex. The people are being misled, misguided and coerced to a level where they succumb to the environmental pressures and are almost pawns in the hands of some rogue politicians, separatists and terrorist organisations especially those supported by Pakistan. A section of the administrative system has also been infiltrated; some of them work against the national interest and assist the separatists and terrorist organisations in some form or the other.

The local media plays the game of survival and the national media remains busy exploiting the sensationalism to improve their TRP. Terrorists are operating freely in populated areas with support from separatists and dubious politicians.

It is a travesty of the overall situation that the forces have by and large become cautious and are shy of dealing with terrorism in a completely professional manner. Their actions are influenced by instructions emanating from an operationally unprofessional administration or legal entities such as courts.

We are all very clear in our perception and belief that J&K is an inseparable part of India and the sinister designs of Pakistan will not be allowed to succeed… whatever the cost. So what do we need to do? All possible measures will have to be taken to preserve the territorial integrity of our country and the security of our people. The present central government is fully capable and competent to deal with the prevailing situation provided it is not unduly influenced by the facade created by a few so-called intellectuals in the corridors of power who avoid dynamic policies and prefer to continue talks and attempted reconciliation… without any results.

Let us hope that we act in a mature and firm manner. Now is the time to take hard decisions ~ both nationalist and political ~ along with professional security and deft administrative handling of the situation. On the one hand, proactive operations against terrorists and their supporters is a professional imperative; and on the other it is the duty of the administration and security forces to ensure the security of innocent people. Our forces are quite capable of achieving our aim provided we give them clear-cut directions with adequate operational flexibility. Today we are facing an extraordinary situation which demands extraordinary methods and efforts to achieve optimum results.

The writer is a retired Lt-Gen, PVSM, AVSM**, SM, VSM, and former DGMO and Corps Commander.