This Is Not The Way To Remove Distrust Between Kashmir Valley And Jammu

When, on 26 March, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) president and the party’s chief ministerial candidate Mehbooba Mufti, along with Leader of the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) Nirmal Singh, met with Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Governor N N Vohra in Jammu and staked claim for government formation, it was believed that both the parties had sorted out all the difference between them and a political government would be in place in the state in a day or two.

But that didn’t happen. Nor is there the possibility of it happening so soon. It may not happen at all. The PDP-BJP coalition is actually in jeopardy. The reason is that both the leaders met with the Governor even before working out a power-sharing deal.

That all wasn’t well when the coalition of disparate parties had become clear on 26 March itself. That day, both the PDP and the BJP leaders spoke differently outside Raj Bhawan while interacting with waiting media persons. While Mehbooba Mufti overruled the possibility of the BJP getting equal representation in the State Cabinet and equal number of portfolios, Nirmal Singh contested her claim and said there were issues which still remained unresolved between the two parties and these would be resolved before the oath taking ceremony.

Thanking the BJP for what she called “unconditional support to the PDP to implement Agenda of Alliance forged by my late father (Mufti Sayeed) with that party” (BJP), she, inter-alia said:

There are no pending issues between the two allies. The coalition government will run on Agenda of Alliance and portfolios will remain same as were in previous government. The departments run by their (BJP) ministers will remain with them and ours with us (Greater Kashmir,27 March).

Contrarily, Nirmal Singh said that “meeting with Governor was just a step ahead for government formation and other issues will be resolved after that” (Daily Excelsior, 27 March).

On 30 March, things turned more complicated. The BJP insisted on equal representation in the Council of Ministers and equal number of portfolios, saying that both the parties have equal number of members in the Legislative assembly. And the PDP stuck to its earlier stand. The PDP said it will not kneel under the BJP’s pressure.

“There is a general perception that as the number of our MLAs is same as that of PDP, there is nothing wrong if we expect that our numbers (in government) to be same. We should get just and equitable share in distribution of power. B-team status is not acceptable to the BJP,” BJP’s state unit chief spokesman Sunil Sethi told reporters ahead of the party’s core committee meeting in Jammu (PTI, 30 March; Dainik Jagran,31 March).

As for the PDP, it took no time to reject BJP’s demand. The PDP leadership said:

It is not going to concede the demand of more representation in the cabinet than it had at the time of Mufti Sayeed’s government’s. The BJP must realise the fact that being in the government for the first time was itself not a small thing for it. We are clear on this count and local BJP leadership should realise the ground reality (State Times, 31 March).

Indeed, the PDP went back on its pledge that it was committed to removing the distrust between the Kashmir Valley and Jammu by evolving and implementing policies based on the principle of justice and equity. Two days after holding meetings with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 22 March at his official residence, she had said:

Confidence-Building Measures are not meant for Kashmir only. It means whole of Jammu and Kashmir. The basic purpose of Agenda of Alliance is to keep Jammu and Kashmir together and put them on the same page and the distrust that exists between Valley and Jammu needs to be removed (Greater Kashmir, 25 March ).

Her statement was then taken by people of the grossly ignored and politically marginalised Jammu region to mean the solemn pledge that their night of discontent and despair would soon draw to its close and a new day of just and rational hopes and aspirations was about to dawn. But it was not to be.

Indeed, the PDP disappointed the people of Jammu region by misinterpreting the principle of justice and equity and making the BJP and the people of Jammu to conclude that it was as Kashmir-centric and anti-Jammu as the National Conference (NC) and the Congress were.

It is pertinent to mention here that the BJP has 25 MLAs, all from Jammu region and all, barring one, Hindus, and it also enjoys the support of three other MLAs, two from Kashmir (both Muslim) and one independent Hindu MLA from Udhampur, Jammu. In other words, the BJP + has 28 MLAs. The PDP has 27 MLAs, 24 from Kashmir and three from Jammu – all Muslims – and it also enjoys the support of an independent MLA from Zanskar in Kargil district of Ladakh region. He is also a Muslim.

It would also be not out of place to mention here that late Mufti had inducted in his Cabinet 19 ministers. 12 were from the PDP, including Chief Minister, and five from the BJP, including Deputy Chief Minister. All, barring one, PDP ministers belonged to Kashmir Valley. Besides, the PDP had manipulated almost all the vital portfolios.

Some of them included Home, Finance, Planning, General Administration, Revenue, Agriculture, Sericulture, Education, Tourism, Law and Parliamentary Affairs, Information, Labour and Employment, Science and Technology, Public Distribution, Public Works and Sports.

On the other hand, Jammu, which housed almost half of the state’s population and was the two-time bigger than the Valley in terms of land area, had to remain content with the financially bankrupt Power Development, Irrigation, Transport, Health and Medical Education, Industry and Forest departments.

All this shows that this grossly discriminated against Jammu, which had never got its due share in the governance of the state ever since its accession with India in October 1947, also got only crumbs during the regime of Mufti Sayeed.

It happened despite the fact that the people of the region gave a massive mandate to the BJP, which hitherto was only a marginal outfit in the region having its support-base confined only to half a dozen Assembly constituencies in the urban Jammu district.

It was no wonder that they turned against the BJP and accused it, and continue to accuse, it of “betraying their trust”, “subverting the mandate” and “bartering their general political and economic rights and interests”.

It may appear unbelievable, but it is a fact that the story of Jammu region post-1947 is a story of neglect. The office of Chief Minister has become the sole preserve of Kashmir and the representative of Jammu in the civil secretariat is not even 10 per cent.

Not just this, the rate of unemployment in Jammu region is over 69 percent, as against less than 30 percent in Kashmir and the number of employees from Jammu region is less than one lakh as compared to over three lakh from Kashmir. Besides, Jammu returns only 37 members to the 87-member legislative assembly and Kashmir 46 – more than 50 percent.

One can catalogue here innumerable instances to prove that the life of the people of Jammu region is not one of political and economic aspirations and that their status in the polity is that of the status of subjects, and not really of citizens. A reference to just one example will be enough to put things in perspective and establish that the life of the people of this region is miserable and pathetic.

The development of Jammu province has been prevented by inadequate funds allotted to it. For example, in the eighth five-year plan (1992-1997), the ninth five-year plan (1997-2002), tenth five-year plan (2002-2007) and eleventh five-year plan (2007-2012) Jammu’s share in such sectors as agriculture was Rs 57.61 crore, 147.31 crore, 270.49 crore and 337.56 crore, respectively; irrigation 91.14 crore, 112.79 crore, 267.76 crore and 282.04 crore, respectively; roads and buildings 144.2 crore, 29.38 crore, 730.93 crore and 1229.24 crore, respectively; health 123.92 crore, 226.07 crore, 330.32 crore and 510.81 crore, respectively; tourism 15.21 crore, 34.99 crore, 47.17 crore and 36.29 crore, respectively; sewerage 2.92 crore, 6.26 crore, 30.61 crore and 11.54 crore, respectively; drainage 20.37 crore, 27.84 crore, 32.31 crore and 67.75 crore, respectively; housing and urban development 19.38 crore, 39.87 crore, 69.65 crore and 279.4 crore, respectively; and power 516.75 crore, 56.94 crore, 1154.3 crore and 3278.78 crore, respectively.

In contrast, the share of Kashmir in such vital sectors as agriculture was 104.5 crore, 253.17 crore, 380.29 crore and 519.41 crore, respectively; irrigation 136.64 crore, 210.05 crore, 466.72 crore and 365.35 crore, respectively; roads and buildings 247.22 crore, 403.67 crore, 751.03 crore and 1229.24 crore, respectively; health 135.34 crore, 274.45 crore, 390.25 crore and 819.22 crore, respectively; tourism 34.39 crore, 58.01 crore, 109.85 crore and 83.09 crore, respectively; sewerage 6.81 crore, 14.61 crore, 71.42 crore and 35.67 crore, respectively; drainage 47.53 crore, 64.96 crore, 75.41 crore and 1091.61 crore, respectively; housing and urban development 45.23 crore, 93.02 crore, 162.52 crore and 518.88 crore, respectively; and power 775.12 crore, 85.41 crore, 1731.43 crore and 4918.17 crore, respectively.

The BJP has not made any reasonable demand. It has only echoed the sentiments of the ignored Jammu region by demanding parity with Kashmir in the governance of the state. Mehbooba Mufti would well to appreciate the concerns and aspirations of the people of Jammu region.

In fact, this is the only option available to her to break the logjam and end the Governor’s rule, which was imposed a day after her father died at the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi on 7 January. She cannot ignore the fact that the BJP has to also cater to the needs of its constituency in Jammu like she needs to cater to the needs of her constituency in Kashmir.