What about insaniyat? Kashmiris question Modi's integrity on talks with Pak

It has become a tradition of sorts for Kashmiri separatists to meet the Pakistan High Commissioner in New Delhi ahead of any talks between the two countries. This time too, ahead of the crucial foreign secretary-level talks scheduled for 25 August, those in the Kashmir valley believed it was only a matter of routine that some of the separatist leaders would be travelling to Delhi to visit the Pakistani high commission. [caption id=“attachment_1671065” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] AFP[/caption] Maybe that is the reason that the surprising cancellation of talks following Pakistan high commissioner Abdul Basit’s meeting with Hurriyat leader Shabir Shah, has disappointed leaders across the political spectrum in Kashmir. Given that such meetings in the pats never led to a disruption of the dialogue process, leaders in Kashmir have reacted strongly, calling it a ‘knee jerk reaction’ by New Delhi. Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh, who was scheduled to travel to Islamabad for talks with her Pakistani counterpart Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhary, reportedly told Basit, just moments after his meeting with Shabir Shah ended, that the talks now stand cancelled. The last meeting between the Foreign Secretaries of the two countries took place in Islamabad in September 2012. The additional disappointment in Kashmir comes from the fact that the Narendra Modi government was being seen by many in Kashmir as a ray of hope, with Modi himself visiting the state twice in as many months, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh doing a Vajpayee by calling for insaaniyat or humanity in tackling the Kashmir question and all indication through Modi’s ‘sari diplomacy’ pointing in the direction of progressive talks. “The cancellation of these talks have brought disappointment to the faces of people,” Noor Mohmmad Baba, a political analyst based in Kashmir, said. “The reasons could well be attributed to the coming general elections in India.” Assembly elections are due in the state later this year, and the BJP is keen to focus its attention on Jammu where the BJP picked up all the Lok Sabha seats and on key Assembly constituencies elsewhere in the state. Reflecting the opinion of many residents of the Kashmir Valley, Shabir Shah told The Hindu that the Indian side appeared to have merely wanted an excuse to cancel talks. The MEA statement said Pakistan’s continued interference “in India’s internal affairs” was the reason for the talks to stand cancelled. Shah said Kashmir should not be seen as an internal domestic issue for India. “How is this an internal affair… the whole world talks about it… why was (US President) Barack Obama allowed to speak about it when he came to India… EU parliamentarians… UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon… all have come to India and said the Kashmir issue should be resolved… so why were they allowed to come here… why were there no protests?” Shah is reported to have told The Hindu. National Conference senior leaders describe the move of the Modi government as “childish”. Senior leader of the National Conference Ali Mohammad Sagar said the Government of India has never had a problem whenever Kashmiri separatists met Pakistani officials in Delhi in the past. “Why now?” he asked. “And why is a question being raised over the process at present by the Modi government? This is not the first time they have gone to the Pakistani diplomatic offices, they even go to iftaar parties and on occasions such as Pakistan day. Why it became such a problem for the Government of India now we don’t understand.” Sagar also pointed out the incongruity of the BJP claiming on the one hand that it follows the Vajpayee policy on Kashmir and on the other hand appearing reluctant to follow the process of talks. “When Vajpayeeji was the Prime Minister, Musharraf had come to India and he too had met Hurriyat leaders. The BJP had no problem with that,” he said. People’s Democratic Party (PDP) President Mehbooba Mufti said the development are “highly negative” and cast a shadow on the atmosphere of reconciliation generated by Modi during his earlier invitation to Nawaz Sharif at his swearing-in ceremony. “Is it something new,” she asked, referring to Hurriyat meeting the Pakistani envoy. “This flimsy ground for shelving a bold initiative that was taken by the BJP government in resuming diplomatic talks with Pakistan is disappointing,” Mufti said. “There is no alternative to dialogue between two countries. In the process Jammu and Kashmir continues to suffer from hostility between the two countries and the people of the state obviously feel saddened.” Despite the government of India cancelling secretary-level talks with the government making it clear that Pakistan would have to talk either to the separatists or to the government of India, the separatists are going ahead with their scheduled meetings with the Pakistani High Commissioner. Ayaz Akbar, a spokesperson for the Hurriyat Conference (G), says Chairmen Syed Ali Geelani is meeting Basit today. Geelani had earlier termed the cancellation of talks as ‘unfortunate’ and criticized New Delhi for adopting a policy of ‘confrontation’. “This vindicates the belief that New Delhi never wanted to resolve Kashmir peacefully and those who say that Kashmir cannot be solved with talks are proven right,” Geelani said. Ajaz Ahmad, a political science lecturer in Kashmir University, says the move appeared to have more to do with domestic compulsions before the Indian general elections. “The Modi government wants to send a signal that they are not going to tolerate the non-serious attitude of Islamabad. They want to act tough, but even after doing so, they will have to ultimately come to the dialogue table for solving issues between the two countries.” Ahmad said.