A Funny Thing Happened on Way to the Panchayat Election ....

Mrs. Asha Bhat, wife of Mr. Radha Krishan Bhat, mother of two grown-ups, Suresh and Ashok, and resident of Wussan village, once a "liberated zone" in Kashmir, is elected by her peers as their new Panch. (A Pandit women candidate in a neighboring village was defeated.)

Victory of Aasha, Hope for Harmony

Tejinder Singh Sodhi
(Tribune News Service)

Srinagar: In what was a closely contested election, a 52-year-old Kashmiri Pandit housewife Aasha Ji Bhat defeated her closest rival, a Muslim woman Sarwah Begum, with a margin of 11 votes in the seventh phase of panchayat elections held on Sunday. She became the first non-Muslim to be elected as a sarpanch.

Aasha, the first Kashmiri Pandit woman to win the panchayat elections to become the sarpanch of Muslim-dominated Wussan village in the Kunzar block of Baramulla district, defeated her lone rival Sarwah Begum by a margin of 11 votes. During the onset of turmoil in the Kashmir valley two decades ago, Aasha and her family, along with three other Kashmiri Pandit families in the village, decided against migration and stayed put in the village.

“We saw the worst days of turmoil in the Valley, but decided against migration and stood shoulder to shoulder with our Muslim brethren and now they showed their faith in me by electing me,” she told The Tribune.

She is all praise for the Muslim nambardar of the village Abdul Hamid Wani who encouraged her to contest the elections. “He supported me and encouraged me to contest the elections. He bestowed his faith in me so that I can do some development work for my village,” she said. On his part, Wani says while there was no deliberate intention of making a statement through Aasha’s election, it should remind people that “humanity is still the best virtue.”

Aasha, who lives in the village with her husband Radha Krishan and two sons, said that her victory would send a positive signal to the Kashmiri Pandits who had migrated from the Valley.

“It is a message to the Kashmiri Pandit families living in exile that camaraderie still prevails in Kashmir and that they should return to their roots as things have turned normal here,” she said.

Soon after she was declared the winner, Muslims garlanded her and took her to her house in a big procession, shouting slogans in her praise.

“We voted for her as we knew that she is an energetic lady and would work for the development of our village. We never considered that she was a non-Muslim and we should not vote for her. Our aim was to elect a representative who could help us to focus on development in our village where we face problems like damaged roads, scarcity of potable water and electricity,” said Khursheed Ahmed, a resident of the village.

The villagers in the block said that the four Pandit families who did not migrate from the Kashmir valley had stood with the majority community during the hour of need and now it was their duty to do something in return for them.

Aisha’s elder son Suresh Kumar is a police constable and her younger son helps his father at his grocery shop in the village.

Saving History

The Rising Kashmir editorial suggests that the State authorities should not destroy pristine symbols of Kashmir architecture


Save Heritage

Heritage enthusiasts have started online campaigns to save old Zero Bridge and Zaina Kadal in Srinagar city. Government wants to pull them down and erect new ones with modern concrete technology. Ironically there are various other projects involving whole or part of heritage structures that the government seeks to replace with new, more mechanical buildings.

Irony of such ill-advised policy is that the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah recently laid foundation of “new Zaina Kadal” despite the fact that new Zaina Kadal already exists that was constructed as an alternative to old Zaina Kadal built by the fifteenth century king Zainulabdin Budshah. Apart from being a tourist state, Jammu and Kashmir is a heritage region that has nurtured more than four civilizations over past five thousand years. Any ruling regime keen to develop the state should not forget this civilizational past. In many European states local authorities have set building codes that are commensurate with the cultural and civilization flavour. We have already suffered mishandling of great symbols of European, Central Asian and Afghan architecture in Kashmir. This is despite the fact that the government has a separate culture department that functions under tourism ministry. The government’s move to work out development plans for cities and towns of Jammu and Kashmir cannot be disputed but the plan should consider the socio-culture dimension of old structures that are being razed in the name of development. Let there be a heritage study commission headed by any veteran government servant with sufficient knowledge about the subject.

The bottom line for a new heritage policy should be the reconstruction not construction of the old sites such as Zero Bridge or Zaina Kadal. Civil society should also play its role in highlighting the need to adopt reconstruction of our pristine glory. The government is also planning an artificial lake in Jammu’s Tawi River, which is sacred to Jammu’s Hindu population. Progress and development should be the key concern of the government but erecting a concrete jungle should not be the motive. The chief minister or his cabinet colleagues should remain vigilant against wrong advices which are often fed at the behest of vested interests. When a five hundred year old structure is removed and new one built in its place the moneyed contractor will have his pound of flesh but onus of virtually vandalizing the heritage would lie upon the ruling regime.

If Omar government is really concerned about the development of Srinagar city, it should concentrate on Jhelum sites. The river has scores of heritage sites on either of its banks in Srinagar city. Let there be a heritage enclave beginning from Khanqa Mouallah in Fateh Kadal. Let the government devise a reconstruction plan for restoring all the old sites including Budshah Tomb and Zainalank, the Wullar Island that was once an epitome of secularism.

Childhood Games - A Trip Back in Time

Manzoor recalls a time long gone when Gulli Danda was the King of Sports in a Kashmiri backyard

(Mr. Manzoor Akash, 25, was born in Rafiabad, Baramulla district. He completed his schooling locally, and earned degrees in B. Litt (comparative Literature) and M.A. in English from Barkatullah Vishwavidhyalaya, Bhopal. A very articulate writer, he has published numerous articles in various journals. He is also a budding poet, having published his first book of poems, "Verses of Heart," in 2006. Some of his poems have been reviewed by prominent literary critics in India. He has taught English at high school level, and hopes to teach in a university some day.)


Lathekej Luth

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare?
- William Henry Davies


What a lovely childhood I have had! I had joy, I had fun, I had almost all that would give a carefree child, complete happiness and excitement. Cheerily speaking, my childhood was full of merriment and splendor what though it lasted for only a short time. However spectacular progress mankind may make, however fast life may go; I’ll always pause to count my blessings, cherish my memories, close my eyes and live my childhood again. I can not stand as a mute spectator to my childhood games.

Nevertheless, they were numerous, and I, except Gullidanda, could not juggle all of them. Gullidanda (Lathekej Luth) was one of my favorite pastimes that would keep me busy till it goes dimmer and dimmer. Really speaking, I feel elated as I see children playing the game in the fields.

Flashes of joy seem to sparkle my mind, now and again, when this game is seen played, because I love it too much. This game makes me realize that childhood is not ever remaining. I tell you, I was so particular about this game that I’d play it with all furor and enthusiasm at my command. It was a game that would keep us together for hours.infact,I feel sorry on flying away of time , surprisingly. Time, when this game was joyfully played, escaped stealthily and O, I didn’t realize, how? I am left with nothing but the series of sighs that I heave too often as I see children playing this game in the fields. The indelible imprints that this game has laid on my grey matter will simply sustain me in the rest of my days.

Gulli danda (tipcat), a game that would start just after the corn harvested fields were kept open for grazing animals, was such a beautiful game that I was fond of playing it, most of the time. Whichever field I could happen to loiter, with children, I was often seen carrying gullidanda in my hands. I imagine, my gullidanda, by and large, would keep scores of children busy until day broke for them.

This game is still the same, no matter we have grown up. We still desire to join children to play this game but we are afraid lest it should look odd. We are no longer children now. We had our time, whether we enjoyed or not. The glory we used to find, when we were children, has gone. Except recollecting the delight days we just can’t do anything else.

Mostly in villages, in the days of late autumn, one often happiness to spot children playing this game in the fields. It prompts a person to wait a while and to observe children playing this game which keeps number of onlookers busy to watch. No sooner the sun goes down the silent mountains, in the west to twilight than the village – children start scooping a hole in the soil, linearly, to play this tempting game. However, the smoke streaks billowing out of the villages towards open fields; the flocking together of crows that soar the heights and soon sank out of sight; looking after of cattle and what not- all would add charm to this game. How deeply we were loved by our parents them! Unlike children of today we were kept free. Our childhood was, indeed, something special and magnificent.

This game is now passively played because parents today put on costly dresses to their children and don’t like them to mix freely with other children. They fear that they may grow worse by playing this game. Poor children enjoy this game still. Unlike children, born of goldsmiths, they are not confined and kept away from the healthful dust of this game. This game deserves paramount importance what then life has gone digital.

Life is short and we must therefore be cheerful, and enjoy all the pleasure of childhood that this game provides. It is an amusing game, and I believe a great difference between the games played on the machine screens and the games that are played in close proximity of nature. It’d soothe me for a while if I could play this game once again!

Dismal State of Environment

If you enjoy your mutton dish then reach for the J&K's State of Environment Report (SOER) to know what happens when you leave the mutton shop


Official Survey Paints Dismal Picture of JK’s Environment

Arif Shafi Wani (Greater Kashmir)

Srinagar: Unbridled vandalisation of forests and water bodies coupled with haphazard planning and developmental activities is gradually pushing the eco-fragile Jammu and Kashmir to the verge of an eco-disaster, a fresh official survey has revealed. The baseline survey was conducted by the Department of Environment, Ecology and Remote Sensing, the nodal agency for preparation of state’s maiden State of Environment Report (SOER), an annual countrywide study mandatory for release of funds under a centrally sponsored scheme ‘Green India’ which finances the eco-friendly projects.

The survey has pointed out massive damage to the State’s environment mainly due to improper planning and recommended measures to prevent further damage to its fragile eco-system.

“Scrutiny of the data proved by various line departments has revealed dismal condition of J&K’s environment and points out that State is gradually heading towards an eco-disaster. In absence of proper planning and conservation measures, the condition of the State’s eco-system particularly forests and water bodies has extensively deteriorated,” the State Coordinator for SOER, Mutahirra Abida Wahid Deva told Greater Kashmir.

“An alarming indicator is the erratic climatic conditions particularly in the Valley during past few years which has resulted in fast melting of glaciers. This will ultimately cause soil erosion, floods and lead to paucity of drinking water,” she added.

The preparation of SOER was approved by the Ministry of Environment and Forests in the 10th Five Year Plan and the process was launched in 2002. While most of the states and union territories have prepared the SOER, however the process faced inordinate delay for past 8 years in JK mainly due to lack of expertise and infrastructure.

However, following an advisory by the Planning Commission, the State Government in November last year kick-started the preparation of SOER. For preparing the baseline SOER report, the nodal agency had on priority sought information from all the line departments of the State to assess condition of the environment.

The survey states that most of the developmental activities in the State are being undertaken without the mandatory Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) which helps to assess possible positive or negative impact that a proposed project may have on the environment.

“The State has been turned into a concrete jungle. Concrete constructions have been undertaken even in fragile zones across the State in violation of all environmental norms and, importantly, carrying capacity of respective areas. Despite the fact that Kashmir is placed in seismic zone five, making it highly vulnerable to earthquakes, high rise buildings are being allowed to come up. In case of earthquakes, these very buildings will prove to be major risk to human life,” Deva, quoting the survey, said.

The survey has recommended construction of Green buildings which are eco-friendly and safe and designed to have a longer life-cycle, and help conserve natural resources like water, while consuming minimal power and energy.

The terms of reference of the SOER is to gather information on various human activities including impact of demographic shifts, changes in trends of industrial, commercial and transport character, urban economic activities on air, water and land.
The survey has also pointed that State’s agriculture land, karewas and wetlands face tremendous pressure mainly due to haphazard developmental activities. “The agricultural land is being used for non-agriculture purposes across the State. Major parts of the wetlands and karewas which help to maintain eco-system have been vandalized and encroached upon.”

It states that the cement factories, brick-kilns, and tar plants have come up in eco-fragile zone and are drastically affecting the environment. “The problem is coupled with high emissions from the Army vehicles operating in the State. Studies have revealed that besides eight lakh vehicles in the State, thousands of second hand vehicles registered in other states are operating in J&K adding to the pollution and traffic mess. We have recommended various measures including regulation of new vehicles, strengthening pollution control mechanism to check the menace,” Deva said.

The survey states that the lack of proper mechanism to prevent influx of sewage and other pollutants into the water bodies was taking a heavy toll on the environment. “The problem is more severe in Jammu and Srinagar cities as their sewage directly pours into the water bodies. Ironically, the concerned departments have failed to construct STPs which can fully cater to the sewage load. River Jehlum which is considered to be lifeline of Kashmir, has been turned into a septic tanks as the concerned Government departments directly pump sewage into it,” she said.

The survey states that despite being major consumers of mutton, the State is without scientific abattoirs. “Most of the mutton sellers throw the internal organs and other residue directly into the drains which subsequently empty into the water bodies. In Shalteng area, chemicals and other harmful elements which are used to make leather from hides also pour in river Jehlum affecting its eco-system.”

The survey recommends construction of STPs across the State and micro water treatment facilities around Jehlum have been incorporated in the report. “The objective of the survey is to assess the Government’s current and proposed policy as a response to check further deterioration and build a baseline date to integrate environmental dimensions in the social, economic and sustainable development planning. We will be updating the data every year to maintain a balance between development and environment,” Deva said

Hope is Eternal

Nida narrates a compelling story of immense sorrow and hope

(Ms. Nida Qayoom,23, was born in Sopore. She matriculated from Government Girls Higher Secondary School in Sopore, followed by graduation in the English Literature from Government Degree College,Sopore. She did her post graduation in English from the University of Kashmir in 2008. She is presently working as a contractual lecturer in English Literature, and in 2009-2010 did so at the at the Government Degree College in Handwara. She writes regular columns in Daily English Newspaper, The Rising Kashmir, related to various conflict and social Issues in Kashmir. She has been a National Service Scheme (NSS) worker for three years and participated in the 91st Indian Science Congress held in Chandigarh in 2004. Ms. Qayoom was awarded the best speaker of the college by the then Education Minister in 2004, and best anchor of the college in 2005. She has participated in the National Games for women as an athlete in 2003 held in Pondicherry and also participated and received awards in many debate competitions and symposiums from 2004 to 2006 held in different colleges of the valley.)

Bravely Serving Life

She is a picture of unbearable agony, emptiness and anxiety. Her dreams shatter, and spill over within her and a howling silence surrounds her. She wears a cloak of sorrow.

On a chilly grey November morning, when autumn had passed and the winds blew away the yellow and dead leaves from trees, paving way for winter that came howling and crying.

Her mother was stretched on a bed of pain and labour, oscillating between life and death. A new guest was about to arrive in the world. The would-be father had gone to his usual work, however, the moment he heard about the news, he made haste to reach home but everything does not go as desired. He was caught in a crossfire. He was anxiously waiting for this moment, but alas he fell to the bullets while coming home.

While the mother was battling for her life, the father too was wrestling for his life. The sun was setting and the moon threw cushioned beams, the birds took shelter among boughs and the flowers folded their petals and the silence descended, the mother started her successive cry…a cry of life …the cry of a poor mother who was lying down in despair and unknown about the fate of her husband, unaware that her dreams were shattered.

At the dead of night, the mother delivered a baby girl. However, the father embraced death and closed his eyes forever. When the mother opened her eyes, instead of seeing smiling faces, every one kept looking at her sorrowfully shaking their heads and her soul was warning her of the doubt in her heart. On one hand she attained motherhood – a dream of every woman - a moment when woman becomes complete; on the other hand, she had lost her soul mate…here the infant was wrapped in silk swaddles and placed by her mother and there the father was shrouded in white cloth and safely placed in his grave and left to none but God.

They say time is the best healer, however, the baby girl, now in her teens, is still shrouded in silence and sadness, baffled by the questions which life has posed infront of her. That fateful winter has passed for her relatives and acquaintances then came the hopeful spring, when flowers bloomed again in the fields and grounds, the brooks flow with freshness and life in the valley yet for girl and her mother it is an eternal winter…

Be true unto yourselves, and bear in mind
That every God is still the good Man’s friend
And when the wicked have their day assigned
Then they who suffer bravely serve mankind
(Southey)

Delayed Marriages Add to Mental Anguish

Salman looks at the societal data collected by a University of Kashmir scholar, whose research attributed late marriages to a number of factors, and suggests that gender based violence brings additional complexity to the issue. While highlighting violence perpetuated by security forces, Salman conveniently ignores violence unleashed by militants and Jihadis who recently renewed their murderous campaign against women

(Mr. Salman Nizami, 25, was born in Banihal tehsil of District Ramban. He completed his graduate degree in mass communication and journalism, and joined journalism in 2004. He began his professional life at The OUTLOOK magazine as a columnist, and then started writing for Greater Kashmir, Kashmir Times, Times of India, The Hindu, Asian Age, Statesman, Rising Kashmir , JK Reporter. Mr. Nizami later joined SAHARA television in New Delhi as Desk Editor, and rose to the position of Group Editor of The Rastriya Sahara. He is currently working as a Editor-in-Chief of The Revolution newspaper published from Jammu and Kashmir, Sahara television as Desk Editor and Resident Editor of MID-DAY covering Upper North India including J&K. He is also active with UNICEF India and the Hungary World (NGO) as Media advisor. In that role, he has travelled widely investigating on new developments in the media industry, taking a special interest in child problems including labour, marriage, poverty, education, etc. He is one of the first journalists to research and write extensively about the child growth in Jammu and Kashmir.)

Eve's Daughters Suffering Silently...

In modern times, Kashmir is known more for violence less for scenic beauty. Two decades conflict has not only done irreparable loss to life and property but has done unimaginable harm to the women folk, who are at the receiving end directly and indirectly.

The state authorities in a combat situation used strict measures which include curfew, search operations, arrests and third degree torture which caused a great harmed to native population, particularly on women community. It has been estimated that around one lakh people mostly youth have lost their lives in conflict and 10 lakh have been injured. It has also been estimated that about 50,000 women has lost their partners. The number of persons disappeared is 4000. Sexual violence against women not only occurs but is an essential aspect of conflict history. In Kashmir security forces have used it to punish, intimidate, coerce, humiliate and degrade the women folk. However most of the crimes committed in Kashmir through security agencies went unnoticed because the victims used to face intimidation and social stigma. Conflict caused disruption in their education, job opportunities, and over all development, besides mental disorders assumed considerable importance among women in Kashmir due to on going conflict.

According to studies, the psychiatric morbidity in patients increased from 9 to 25 per cent in 1995. However, there were no comparable statistics available on the number of crackdowns, killings, disappearances, bomb blasts, injured persons at the village level. However, the worst hit villages, according to the District Administration, were the two districts of Kupwara and Pulwama. From this list I selected five villages in each of the districts based on systematic random sampling procedure. While visiting the villages I collected information from the village sarpanches about the number of deaths associated with conflict, number of youths killed, number of widows. I also prepared a list of all households in the villages and selected 30 households randomly from each village.

I used two types of questionnaires: Household and Women’s questionnaire. The household questionnaire helped me to identify eligible women with whom I wanted to have in-depth interviews. The criterion for eligible women was that she should be married age 18-54 years. The household questionnaire helped us to identify 256 eligible women but interviews were conducted with 220 women only. Of these 220 women I identified 28 women who had conceived during 1995-2000, the peak period of terrorism and in depth interviews were conducted with 28 women to get detailed information regarding the reason of their late marriages. Insecurity was the biggest problem for women. Life had become uncertain as it has became so insecure that people were not sure if they would return home safely in the evening after a day’s work or reaching their destinations once set out. The sense of insecurity was greater among girls and young women who became virtual prisoners in their houses because of the threat of abduction and sexual abuse.

Marriage system changed from night to day. Due to killings, disappearance and unemployment girls have become a burden on the shoulder of parents. However, due to the collapse of the education, mass copying and mass promotions in the examinations led to an increase in the age at marriage for both boys and girls. A study by the sociology department of University of Kashmir – “Emergence of late marriages in Kashmir” says that the average marrying age has increased from 24 to 32 years in boys and for Females 21 to 28 years. The socio-economic, educational and political developments in the J&K state have affected the practices, rituals, values and norms of marriage, the study says adding, conflict, poverty, modern education, dowry, unemployment, caste consideration as the major reasons for late marriages in Kashmir.

Many people believe advent of modernization, unhealthy customs and traditions, and “irreligious” attitude in the society have played their part in pushing up the average marrying age. “This two decade long insurgency had to leave a distinct mark on the social and cultural structure of the society apart from politics,” says Professor Bashir Ahmad Dabla, the supervisor of the research. “Marriage is already delayed by many years when the employed person starts looking for a suitable spouse. A highly educated person looks for relevant match that delays the process further,” said Jabeena Begam, a mother of four. “Late marriages are taking a heavy toll on the mental health of Kashmiri youth. When a person has no one to share his feelings with, frustration is likely to occur; whether it is physiological or psychological.

Many unmarried patients come to us with complaints of depression; half of their problem is solved when they are being listened to patiently,” says senior psychiatrist, Dr Aijaz Ahmad Khan. “One out of every 700 children is born with Down’s syndrome. But when the mother is in her late 30s and early 40s chances of birth of mentally retarded child increase manifold,” says Dr Khan. Late marriages alter social fabric with pre-marital and extra-marital affairs creeping into the society. “Late marriage and sexual promiscuity cannot be avoided in a conflict situation,” says Professor Dabla. “Modernization gave rise to materialistic outlook and highlighted the ill effects of early marriage. But absence of a partner results in the crimes, immoral activities and drug addiction,” says Dabla.

Apart from financial uncertainty and political instability, many young boys and girls hold their parents responsible for their delayed marriage by compelling them to go for extravagance. “Every person needs someone to be with and rely on. Life seems worthless when you have none. But when your own parents commit sin and make you suffer for their desire of your extravagant marriage, you cannot help it but wait,” laments Shabir Ahmad, 29. The huge amount of money needed in a traditional Kashmiri marriage has turned it into a burden, says Dilshada, a housewife. “An average person spends around Rs 10 lakh in a marriage; almost a decade rolls by till all the money is gathered,” she adds. Besides dowry and pomp and show, the traditional wazwan - local multi-cuisine feast - has become expensive and unaffordable for many people.

To make marriages simpler and affordable, Humsafar Marriage Counseling Cell was established by Islamic Dawa Centre in 2005. The bureau organises marriages in austere and religious manner and discourages extravagance.

In a place, like Kashmir, where women still are not considered as the bread winners of the family, those with government jobs are preferred for marriage pulling many women towards higher education. With the warnings like decrease in population, mental depression and suicidal tendencies; solutions suggested by the experts include guest control and legal ban on dowry practice, and marrying children at early age without extravagance.

Prevention is the Better Part of Cure

Ashok says that Lokpal will succeed only if it seen more as an executive position that devises processes and procedures to weed out corruption and leaves prosecution to those already doing so. He also believes that in a republic, the Lokpal should report to the Prime Minister

(Dr Ashok Bhan, 61, was born in Habba Kadal, Srinagar, and did his graduation from Punjab University. He did his Masters and PhD in Botany from Kurukshetra University. After joining the Indian Police Service in 1976 he was allocated to J&K cadre which he served in various capacities till his retirement in March 2010 in the rank of Director General of Police. Some of the important posts held by him included those of DGP Intelligence, DGP Prisons, Commissioner of Vigilance, Addl DGP Intelligence, IGP Kashmir Zone, DIG Jammu, SSP Anantnag and SSP Rajouri besides heading the J&K Armed Police, Security wing and the State Police Academy. He had a stint with the Intelligence Bureau. He is a recipient of Police Medal for Gallantry, President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service, Police Medal for Meritorious service, Wound Medal, Sher-i-Kashmir Medal for Gallantry, Sher-i-Kashmir Medal for Meritorious Service and the Chief Minister’s Medal for Honesty and Integrity. He attended the Indian Police Service Command Course in UK in 1987 and Indian Senior Crisis Management Course at Washington DC in US in 2008. He was the Member Secretary of “Expert Committee on Reorganization of J&K Police” and drafted J&K Intelligence Manual, J&K Vigilance Manual and SSG Manual for the security of the Chief Minister. Currently, he is a Member of the National Security Advisory Board and Chairman of the J&K Regional Branch of the Indian Institute of Public Administration. Dr Bhan devotes his time to writing and lecturing on Security issues including conflict resolution, Police and Prison reforms, Good Governance and Fight against Corruption.)


Is Lokpal a Panacea to Eradicate Corruption?

The unsavoury debate over the persona on the drafting committee for the Lokpal Bill and the questions about the constitutionality of such a committee has diverted the nation from the core issue of fighting corruption. Are we drifting from the issue of corruption, which has got institutionalized in the system, to redressing ego hassles of a few activists, whose intentions can not be faulted? Is Lokpal a panacea to eradicate corruption from our society?


To have a correct appreciation of the situation it will be worthwhile to understand the mechanics of bribing and kickbacks. There are, broadly speaking, four types of criminal misconduct by public servants at different levels of the executive hierarchy.

The first, in which all levels extensively indulge in, is misuse of transport, telephone, frequent flier bonus points earned from Government paid travels, fake medical bills, photocopying personal documents and a wide range of similar official facilities for personal gains. Many employees carry out private business during office hours. In far and remote areas teachers seldom attend the schools. A stage has now reached when this misuse is labelled as ‘perks’ and no questions are asked. All this can be prevented through internal vigilance and accountability. Civil service conduct rules are never invoked to teach erring public servant a lesson. No one wants to become unpopular by taking a deterrent action. When no action is taken such misconduct never ever gets reflected in the appraisal reports. The muck which should have normally settled down is able to float and go to the top.

The second and the more serious one is the graft for public services. A common citizen is affected by this every day when he is compelled to shell out money to get his legitimate job done from a public servant. This in terms of volume of each transaction may be ‘petty corruption’ but it adds up to a huge sum as large number of public servants at the lower level are indulging in it at all times and in all parts of the country and to varying degrees in all public utility departments. It is this bribe about which common man talks about and is fed up with. Anna Hazare’s fast gave a platform to the vast majority of sufferers of this ‘coercive corruption’ or ‘jaabraana’. Fortunately, the element of coercion in this category of graft induces hatred and victims are willing to take recourse to law when demand for money is made. There are many complainants willing to get the public servant ‘trapped’ through law enforcement agency. The number of willing whistle blowers swells if the anti-corruption agency enjoys credibility. They do it despite being fully aware of harassment they are likely to encounter during their future visits to the department where a successful ‘trap’ is laid. They want to teach the public servant a lesson. In Jammu and Kashmir from January 2005 to the end of first half of 2008, the State Vigilance Organisation registered 136 trap cases out of 270 FIRs. Revenue department led the field followed by police, engineering departments, finance/sales tax/excise, rural development, forest and so on as far as number of traps goes. A series of successful traps create a chain reaction of complaints. Initially the rates of bribe per activity may increase but a prolonged crusade breaks the resolve of corrupt public servants. The investigation agency must ensure that an honest public servant is not harassed and humiliated through a false complaint. The complainant must produce enough evidence of demand of bribe and that there is a cause for paying it before a ‘trap’ is laid. ‘Trap’ is the most potent tool to target this ‘coercive corruption’. The complainant is protected by section 24 of the Prevention of Corruption Act and he can not be prosecuted for giving bribes.

The third category of corruption prevalent at the middle and top level of bureaucracy includes kickbacks from development projects, social welfare schemes, purchases, recruitments and transfers, to cite a few. Collections made at the lowest level through ‘petty corruption’ get shared up to the top for retention of a public servant at the ‘lucrative post’. As we go up the ladder corruption becomes more and more ‘collusive’ in nature as the bribe is given as ‘shukraana or nazraana’. It is rare to find complainants as both the receiver and the giver share the spoils. The exchanges take place in cosy drawing and bedrooms away from public gauge. Occasionally one comes across a rival to spill the beans or a conscientious insider acting as a whistle blower. The best treatment for this category is to strengthen internal vigilance, make systemic changes for transparency by introducing e-governance in purchases and payments and take legal action for misappropriation, purchases at exorbitant rates and possessing assets disproportionate to known sources of income. The bureaucratic system of checks and balances needs to be restored. Prosecuting alone does not help much in getting rid of the malaise more so because prosecution is a long and time consuming affair in our country and unfortunately criminal justice is ‘purchasable’. Drive against corruption has to be made a management function and not a punitive exercise through investigations and prosecution alone. A mix of preventive internal vigilance coupled with deterrent criminal action holds the key.

Let us pause here for a while. An overwhelming majority of cases of corruption have been covered under these three categories. Legal provisions exist and each state and the centre have law enforcement machinery of one kind or the other. Then why have we not been able to effectively check corruption of these categories? There are a host of reasons beginning with need for large sums of money by political parties for elections and lack of will of the political executive to fight corruption. Every ruling party patronises corrupt bureaucrats so that unquestioned free flow of kickbacks is facilitated. The bureaucracy must be made accountable to the constitution and the law. It must not act as a stooge of a political personality or a party.

There are delays in the criminal justice system and on an average it takes 10-15 years to get a verdict in a corruption case and this is followed by the statutory appeals. Witnesses feel harassed and at some stage walk away in despair. A delayed conviction fails to create deterrence as people have forgotten the case. As the Prime Minister remarked on the Civil Services Day, “people expect swift and exemplary action and rightly so”. Why can’t we have enough Special Courts to ensure that a trap case is decided in 6 months and other cases in a year or so? And till criminal justice remains ‘purchasable’ the corrupt will buy it with their money power. Indulging in corruption has to be made a costly affair. Jammu and Kashmir Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act 2006 provides for attachment during investigation and forfeiture on conviction of a property acquired through proceeds of corruption. The UN Convention against Corruption, which India has not ratified yet, also provides for ‘freezing’ or ‘seizure’ and eventual ‘confiscation’ of property derived from proceeds of crime. A hard look needs to be taken at these provisions. The proceeds of corruption must return to the State.

We are yet to take a serious look at ‘induced corruption’ by the Corporate Houses by inflating the costs of goods and services so that palms of greedy public servants can be greased. For the present, the Prevention of Corruption Act is largely public servant centric with inducer or bribe giver being dealt with for abetment. This is not enough and the inducer must be made a principle accused. The arrest of some top corporate executives in 2G spectrum allocation scam should set the trend for a comprehensive legal provision.

So there is so much to be done to fight corruption of three categories listed earlier. This all is achievable if there is the much elusive political will. Prime Minister has rightly pointed out the growing feeling in the people that our laws, systems and procedures are not effective in dealing with corruption. Once effective checks are in place the upward movement of graft money will get squeezed. The activists spearheading the anti-corruption movement must focus on these areas. The increased public anger must be utilized to put pressure on the Government to introduce reforms so that we can move out of the present state of affairs.

And finally the fourth category of corruption related to policy decisions taken by the political executive and top echelons of bureaucracy which is in public focus at present. There can be no two opinions that the corruption staircase is best cleaned from top downwards. Here not only criminal misconduct but also mal-administration needs to be dealt with and the existing system under the influence of political executive has failed to deliver goods. The Lokpal is definitely the answer. A Lokpal who is independent like the Supreme Court or the EC and does not tread on the powers of other pillars of democracy. A Lokpal who can receive complaints directly, investigate through a designated agency but leave the trial to a designated judge. The selection must be carried out by a Committee headed by the Prime Minister. If the Prime Minister can be trusted with defending the territorial integrity of the country why can’t we have faith in his judgment to select a Lokpal? The CVC fiasco has made everyone wiser. The elected chief executive has the responsibility to lead the country. He must be given power to choose the tools. The Prime Minister can feel the pulse of the people.

Srinagar No More

Majid says that in the name of progress, a beautiful city has turned ugly


(Dr. Abdul Miraj Siraj, 63, was born in Srinagar and went to C.M.S. Biscoe Memorial High School. He completed his medical degree from Patna University and his advanced fellowships (FRCS, MRCS, LRCP) from United Kingdom. Dr. Siraj received a degree in Peace Studies from the Bradford University. He worked as a consultant General Surgeon in England and Middle East. He has published three books, which are Kashmir Peace or Desolation (Minerva, London 1997), Towards Peace in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh (Manas, Delhi 2003), and Kashmir Caselaw (Scottapress, UK 2006). All books continue to be in circulation. He now lives mostly in Kashmir, and enjoys reading and writing.)

Who killed Srinagar?

There is only a miniscule said of how beautiful the city of Srinagar was with its exuberance and style, with its environment and the aroma, with its flowers and trees. I pass by an antic now become vestigial from those times and get lost in nostalgia. I am a living witness to the systematic desecration over the years of this pristine oasis of nature. The transformation over the years becomes imperceptible to a growing up Kashmiri resident. You may still clad in long pherans and sit with a view of outside but there is little left of the icicles dripping water, the fruit vendors shouting in cadence praises for their merchandise or the boatmen in rivers and nalas waiting for passengers.

My journey started in Siraj Bazar Zaina Kadal. This was a routine trip to my school in Sheikh Bagh on the private horse carriage or Tonga. While the horse made a rhythmic trotting music on the road I mused in my little mind over the two previous nights we spent living in a boat. The trip was very refreshing. The boat used was like a floating home (Donga) equipped with soft cushions. We set off in this donga at Bohri Kadal Mier Canal. Two nights through the waterways were silent tranquility punctuated with the sounds of the oars rowing the boat and the rustling of shrubs along the shores. We rode through winding canals emulating feelings of an experience described in paradise.

Where have these canals gone? Where are those promises that more canals will be linked to a network of water transport? What happened to the Venetian dream? Who killed Srinagar?

My Tonga shone like a bride with a bellow horn and a decorative whip. The tall horse we named Samda Gur pulling the carriage was my preferred transport to the Sunbeam Talbot at home. The horse making rhythmic music with its feet trotted alongside the Zanana Park. A tall fence shielded the exuberance of the lush green woman only park full of blooming flowers and manicured shrubs. Men were forbidden inside but little boys like me were an exception. Young women thronged the place and some were airborne on the swings. Seen today who could have imagined that a huge concrete monstrous structure like the Secretariat would sit in the middle of this beautiful recreational park like a gravestone burying splendor and glory? Where do women go for a breath of air? Who killed Srinagar?

The tapping sound made by Samda Gur produced an echo from the other side of the Zanana Park and brought into view the huge expanse of the Gole Bagh play ground. This was my heart beat because all my football heroes like Habib Punzo and Gulam Hassan (Inspector) the bare foot footballers made their mark in matches. Many thousands of people came here to watch the game. These pitches have been razed and bricks and mortar structure stands proud as High Court Buildings administering justice without realizing that the building they are sitting in presides over the demise of a national sports ground, now relegated to history. Now our children play in wasteland and township streets. There is nowhere else to go. Where is that space gone? Who killed Srinagar?

Making my journey to school as a nine year old I was full of delight to be looking at the mighty façade of Exhibition gates. This place gave me the excitement that neither the Disney World nor Disney Land in America gave me. Each shop inside was entertainment. One anna would buy me a solo audience of an instant sight and sound symphony with cascading rainfall standing in front of the shop. I clenched my fists hard when a man lit himself in flames 200 feet from ground on a ladder and like a fireball jumped in a small pool of water. I often wondered if I could be this hero. This Disney world in Kashmir is now a row of offices where files and money change hands and shops inside look a dismal bazaar. Where has life in Srinagar gone?

Maharaja Hari Singh may have been an autocrat who was born in Paris but he would never desecrate parks, canals, or Chinar trees in Chinar Bagh and Naseem Bagh or presaging death of Silk industry by ruthless annihilation of mulberry trees or bring litter and filth in the streets in order to feed the stray cows and dogs and make cesspools of bacteria a ubiquitous scene for built-in Mohallas. Even the streets were clean except for occasional dung from the horses now replaced by millions of cars and decrepit lorries on the same roads that existed then. In creating a hell in the beautiful city of Srinagar who brings unplanned traffic chaos in the streets? Who killed Srinagar with fumes and dust produced by raw surface and millions of potholes?

My tall brown horse Samde Gur continuing in a gentle trot stopped and my fairy tale travel ended at Sheikh Bagh School. My senior Cambridge class was full of British children and we made frequent cross country runs to the top of Takhte Suleiman Mountain. We ran on the Bund along river Jhelum that was immaculate with beautiful shop fronts on one side. No traffic on wheels was ever permitted and not a scrap of litter on this beautiful promenade. Today when I find traffic on this great esplanade of Srinagar and Chhola vendors throwing litter, I cannot stop grieving. Why has this asset been turned into a back street of a backward city? Who killed Srinagar?

My school was clubbed with Haddow Memorial school in sports and I captained the Haramukh house in boating. We excelled in boat races, boat sinking and once a year we competed in a race, swimming 14 miles from Gagribal to Nishat and back. Even the girls from our class made the long swim and we all ate biscuits thrown in the water. We were not allowed to come near a boat. The water in the Dal was so clean that we ate from it. Alas ! Where is that lake gone? Who are those mute spectators presiding over the languishing and dying state of the most beautiful part of the world’s inland sea? Who killed Srinagar?

Where are those polo matches played in polo ground, where is that Nedus Hotel, Srinagar Club and Amarsingh Club, all considered the pride of Srinagar. Two hundred years of a coveted asset was the Kashmir Golf Course (KGC). I could never have thought KGC will become a bog with stench from live sewers wafted in from neighboring homes. This golf course is now a den for gamblers and thousands of stray dogs. Why has Srinagar suffered this humiliation? When will it ever be restored and given its life back? I only hope it is soon because every day more damage is done to the environment and the habitat.

Is Structural Corruption Inherent in a Capitalist Society?

Maroof believes corruption cannot be eradicated in a democratic polity so long as it is dispensed by an entrenched ruling elite. Maroof's article is followed by an editorial on ways to address corruption


(Dr. Muhammad Maroof Shah, 32, was born in Kunan, Bandipore. He has pursued a career in veterinary medicine and animal husbandry, completing Bachelors's degree in veterinary sciences (BVSc) at the Faculty of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry (FVSc & AH), Shuhama campus of the Sher-i-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Kashmir (SKUAST-K), and MA English through the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU). He is presently posted as a Veterinary Assistant Surgeon (VAS) at the Government Sheep Breeding Farm in Dachigam. Dr. Shah is the author of two books, and has lectured as a visiting fellow at the Jaipur University on Western Philosophy. In his leisure time he pursues studies in comparative religion, philosophy and literature.)Corruption debate: What it misses?

Corruption is not just bribery and we need a redefinition of it to tackle the menace. Where lies precise locus of corruption and what constitutes it need to be well understood. Let me venture a broader definition of it as misuse of public money or resources by wrong policies or wrong implementation and this involves everything connected with these things such as wrong basis of recruitment to public office, class based economy, wage structure, structure of judiciary etc.


Corruption is so deep rooted and so pervasive that very few are able to sight it and thus all steps to tackle it fall far too short of achieving the target. Corruption is a worldwide phenomenon and if it is not so prominent in certain countries reasons should be sought in indirect and sponsored corruption that affects colonised or economically less privileged nations. Switzerland is, for instance, cited as clean state but it is the hub of big banks that provide safe heaven to black money stolen by the rich in many a developing countries and play vital role in sustaining the politics of foreign aid and essentially unethical unjust interest based financing structure. I analyse modern Indian polity and political economy from aam admi centric perspective to argue that the central cause of corruption is wrong self definition that is at the heart of market driven consumerist culture created by individualist capitalist enterprise that India has been increasingly embracing. We need to note, however, that pre-liberalisation license raj had not been really pro-people for reasons which protagonists of liberalisation largely ignore. Lack of accountability in public sector enterprises that was the cause of their disrepute and “justification” for increasing privatisation is itself a form of corruption that the State both tolerates and sponsors as demanded by those forces that run the show behind the scene.

Most of us assume that causes of corruption are known but this is precisely one important factor that explains why corruption goes on unabated. One important cause that I shall highlight because others are well known is the structure of so-called democracy that we so uncritically admire. The whole structure of Indian democracy is tilted towards the wrong side that ensures corruption in polity shall be the norm. To begin with, there is no entrance test, no qualification – moral or intellectual – as prerequisite for the most important job of governance. There are no academies for training politicians and hardly any effective institutions that can hold them accountable for wrong policies or wrong implementation. Judiciary, contrary to popular belief, is an organ of the State that implements laws that are fundamentally unjust because complicit with class interests of the ruling elite and this explains why there is no justice for the poor who can’t pay for it or because no law can give them protection against the tyranny inherent in the institutions that the state embodies. If there were indeed any pro-people judiciary most Indian politicians and thousands of corrupt bureaucrats would have been hanged by now. There are few exemplary statesmen in the whole of modern Indian history as is recognised by almost all of us when we spontaneously identify politics with dirty game and the politician with power hungry selfish person. We have been led to believe that we must have powerful political parties to run democracy. This is a myth. We need to ponder why all kinds of fair and foul means are being used by all kinds of people to get membership and mandates or important portfolios in party management.

There is structural corruption in democratic polity and it can’t be overcome as long as ruling elite manages to indoctrinate people regarding its indispensability and need of party system while managing to keep most people politically uneducated or even illiterate (how many Indians know their rights or how to get basic guarantees promised in the Constitution, understand the logic of bureaucratism or working of economy or political economy?) How can masses judge and see through the games vote bank politics plays? The basic fact is people are not, generally speaking, represented by their elected candidates. If they were there would have been no interest based banking that mostly extracts the blood of the poor for feeding the rich, no private schools and private hospitals, little debt of foreign or international financing institutions (our debt runs into billions of dollars and we had little need, to begin with, to take foreign aid, very few market commodities as most things could be supplied to public through nonmarket mechanisms, no rhetoric of progress that has destroyed our environment, our organic farming methods, our health and our traditional economy that took care of environment and our moral-spiritual well being also, no exploitation of our lack for huge profit by the companies, few personal cars but better public transport, no need to hire expensive halls for marriage and similar functions, no need of hotels that fleece indigenous citizens for providing accommodation as the State can provide it for all the travellers – to mention only few of the services and goods denied to ordinary people that a well meaning state could provide but is not providing as this would mean hurting the interests of those controlling money power. It is the rich who hire politicians by managing the drama of elections. Market driven party politician administered economy is the basic cause of corruption.

Cure is restructuring economy, saying no to market as far as possible, implementing constitutional guarantees which would mean aam admi’s right to healthcare, quality education, justice, and access to job. Proper medical education or awareness of public and proper spending on balanced nutrition would significantly reduce incidence of diseases and thus need to spend on health care as was the case few decades before when organic home grown food was mostly available. Heavy taxing of obese people, smokers and addicts would finance much of public spending on healthcare.

Little has been done to ensure the health of cooperative sector. Corrupt officers have been tolerated if not actively sponsored to allow many other industries and public enterprises to rot. Educational system has not been designed to develop local skilled labour. Corruption has been tolerated in police department to allow moral fabric to degenerate and to promote drug culture. Public sector has been deliberately ignored to allow private schools and educational institutions, private clinics and hospitals to proliferate which further erode any fellow feeling between people.

I would suggest overhauling present educational system for the long terms solution to the issue of corruption. Students should be taught why the rich are getting richer and the poor poorer, why our environment and traditional agriculture is destroyed for the sake of money, what happens to our money supposedly spent for our welfare, who really elects people and how huge election funds are created from wealthy industrialists that are ultimately repaid by the politician when in power. The cost of progress and the cancer of consumerism need to be taught as the value of cooperatives for defeating market fundamentalism which really breeds religious or ethnic fundamentalisms or violence. Everything should be debated threadbare. Today moral education is not a focus in school education as the ethics that dominant economic system wishes to be propagated is incompatible with it. All the institutions from army to market and banking need thorough appraisal from the perspective of public good and we need to evolve a moral critique of such fashionable ideas as growth, progress, national interest, if we intend to save ourselves from the menace of corruption. Nothing less than total revolution will one day bring an end to corruption and for that we need to educate the ignorant exploited majority and organise all our resources for bringing this slowly and silently by strengthening nonmarket alternatives, self mastery and self sufficiency.

Corruption Cure

The widespread support evoked by Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption crusade augurs well for the prospects of such public campaigns. Jammu and Kashmir, where corruption has assumed monstrous proportions over the years, is in dire need of measures to root out the menace. Earlier efforts in this regard have gone vain primarily for want of transparency in the administration.


With the rot running deep, the officials have been mute spectators to the corruption and nepotism around them. In the name of action, while small fishes are caught the big sharks of corruption are let off. It is indeed not good enough to trap somebody taking Rs 5000 when somebody taking in lakhs is roaming free. The influential persons, who are caught taking bribe, enjoy virtual immunity. The key to address this problem effectively is to ensure that no culprit, howsoever influential, is spared. Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah has been vocal in advocating tough measures to combat corruption. He has already suggested appointment of full-time departmental vigilance officer for all such departments which are prone to corruption. The vigilance officers can keep a constant eye on the ground. It can serve as a starting point to check the corrupt practices in the administration. The failure of successive governments to tackle rampant corruption has meant that it has become institutionalized in many respects. It has almost become a requisite for getting a piece of work done in government offices. There is a sort of inertia that has crept into the offices where nothing moves till there are some illegal gratifications to be made. According to a Transparency International survey, the nations who are relatively corruption-free like New Zealand, Denmark, Sweden and Switzerland, their clean image reflects political stability, long-established conflict of interest regulations and solid functioning public institutions. These are the very factors which Kashmir has been unfortunately lacking very badly. The daily struggle of people with corruption tells upon the public confidence in the administration. The successive governments have been making tall claims about good governance, but it is impossible to think of good or clean governance if corruption remains rampant.

Omar has the opportunity to reform the administrative system so that the corrupt elements are isolated. By acting tough against corrupt officials, he can set a deterrent for others. The chief minister also has the opportunity at hand to rid J&K of the ‘second most corrupt state’ tag. While people too cannot absolve themselves of the responsibility to discourage bribery, the buck starts and stops at the government. True, corruption cannot be eradicated through magic wand overnight, but it can be substantially minimized by adopting transparency in the administration.
(Rising Kashmir)

Syed Ali Shah Geelani Quotes Mahabharat

Bhushan highlights a point in Geelani's meeting with Pandits that was conveniently "white washed" by every valley newspaper


(Mr. Bhushan Lal Saraf, 66, was born in Batapora, Shopian. He finished his schooling from the Government Higher Secondary School in Shopian, and completed his professional degrees in B.Sc. (Hons.), Diploma L.L.B., and KCS (Judicial) from the University of Jammu and Kashmir, and from the University of Lucknow. Mr. Saraf retired as a Principal District & Sessions Judge. He is presently an Honorary Member of the J&K State Consumer Commission. He has authored a book, "New Lexicon for the Kashmiris," published by UPS in New Delhi. In his leisure time, Judge Saraf, provides complimentary legal counselling, campaigns for legal awareness, and enjoys reading and writing.)


Geelani Sahib’s Welcome to Kashmiri Pandits

It is a statement of the fact that of all the separatist leaders, the politics and the public posturing of Syed Ali Shah Geelani has been an anathema to the Kashmiri Pandits. In fact there is no love lost between him and the Pandit community. There are obvious reasons for that. Some of them have held Geelani Sahib back and quite a few have turned Pandits away from him. We are, though, told that the venerated leader has a good personal equation with a fair number of the Kashmiri Pandits, living here or in Delhi. We are also informed that Syed Sahib has a tremendous faith in the professional capabilities of the Pandit medical practitioners that he prefers to be treated by them, wherever they are, for his numerous ailments. That, indeed, sounds a welcome thought.

Syed Ali Shah Geelani is as usual in the news. This time for the different reason and probably a pleasant one. He has assured protection to the Kashmiri Pandits who are living in the Valley and those who intend to live there. As a welcome gesture the octogenarian politico-religious leader visited the camp at Vesu Qazigund, where hundreds of the Pandit youth have taken a transitory abode on account of their public employment in the Valley, ordered recently. His notable refrain was, “On behalf of the Muslim majority of the valley I assure you that your temples, lives, property and honour will be protected by us when you return to their original homes here.” While addressing the inhabitants of the camp Geelani Sahib told them to explore the possibilities of return to their original places in the villages, towns and cities. He emphasized the centuries old traditions of sharing the inter-community joys and sorrows. He sought to restore and re-establish those traditions. This is indeed a significant move ; coming as it does from a person who, hitherto, was perceived to be lukewarm to the return of the Pandits. When we view it on the face, it does not raise questions which the Pandit community should feel uncomfortable to answer or live with. The matter though needs to be examined coolly. Ali Shah Geelani has not given up his intention to fight against India, whom he blames for nor having kept the promises made. Some may not without a reason, take this statement as a caveat to the Pandit’s unconditional return and living in the Valley.

There is a good deal of political vagueness attached to the phrases ‘ promises made ‘ and ‘promises not kept.’ His reference to the Mahabarat where Arjun is counseled to take on his relatives in the battle based on the principles, though flattering, is couched in the context that may attach many meanings to it. A reference or a phrase which is susceptible to various interpretations –some at cross with one another - tends to evoke the confusing thoughts, particularly, in the prevailing fluid situation. It may, therefore, defeat the very purpose in support of which it is made.

We have been stressing the point that it will be for the ultimate good of the Kashmiri Pandits to live in the familiar environs—wherefrom they were expelled by the circumstances. Nevertheless, a heavy duty is cast on the Kashmiri Muslims to take an initiative in this regard. Thereafter, the effort has been a mutual one, not minimising the role of the government in making the environment conducive for both the communities to live there as they had been living for the centuries. Now that the initiative has come from the majority community in the valley the Pandits must at individual and organizational levels seize the moment. Pandits have a right to return to the place as being the aborigines and live there as on their own terms, subject of course to the general societal constraints. Like in the past, the Pandits should make themselves indispensable for the Kashmir society. For that, they will have to hone the skills they are known for and put them in to the practice sincerely. That would restore a bond of healthy societal inter –dependence, which has been a positive hall- mark of the Kashmir society.

The signals which emanate from the civil society and the separatist camps, in the Valley, reveal a pleasant trend that Kashmiri Pandits have come in the focus. The interlocutors appointed by the central government to solve the Kashmir tangle have also started taking cognizance of the relevance of the Kashmiri Pandits to solve the vexed Kashmir problem. That they are the stake holders in the process is being appreciated. In this connection, they have entered into a dialogue of sorts, among others, with a few Kashmiri Pandits at their individual levels. We appreciate the move: but it would have been better if the interlocutors had broadened their interaction with the Kashmiri Pandits, belonging to the every strata of the society and not restricted the exercise to only those flown directly from Delhi.

While recognising that the onus is on majority community in the Valley to initiate the process of their return to valley, Pandits, on their part, do also need to respond in the true spirit, after due deliberations on the issue. The developments are positively shaping in Kashmir. They call for a mature response from the exiled community. The onus keeps on shifting. Once a person on whom it initially rests has discharged it then it shifts to the other side. The Kashmiri Pandits are on the other side in this case. Let them rise to the occasion. It does not pay to be always in a rage and in denial mode. The Pandits have, at their individual levels, by and large re-established their links with the Valley and the frequency of their visits to the holy places has, substantially, increased. However, care should be taken not to ignore the mischief potential of the vested interests, who are in abundance in both the communities and in the government circles; for whom the inter-community divide, thus far, has been a matter of bread and butter. The tribe is already set on the job. They deride the Geelani call as a belated one. We say; “ Better late than never.”