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New White Paper on Article 370
The chapter 370 Z. G. MUHAMMAD It is a political naivety. To say debating Article 370 is being sucked into the ‘dominant discourse’ or falling in the RSS trap. On 25 December 2030, some best legal minds and constitution experts of Kashmir had gathered on a chilly day in a local hotel and dusted off this Article of hackneyed interpretations. During brainstorming deliberations it became evident that the Article under debate with all its historicity and dynamics does not strength the ‘dominant discourse’ but bolsters the ‘Kashmir narrative’- that many of us prefer to call as the peoples discourse. Mian Abdul Qayoom and Zafar Shah, two important legal wizards of Kashmir analyzing Article 370 along with other allied Articles, such as 307, 368 and 253 with all provisos attached to these convincingly made … Read entire article »
Filed under: Editor's Take
Of A Dream Merchant And His Goals
Of Dreams and Goals By Z. G. Muhammad It is not a political enemy’s dig at his arch-enemy. It is not an opponent’s last-ditch attempt to challenge political ideology of a leader. Calling a leader as ‘dream merchant’ is in fact an acknowledgment of his greatness- all great people dream high. I have no idea, what might have crossed the mind of the scion of the Abdullah family when he used this phrase for Syed Ali Shah Geelani. Nevertheless, he deserves kudos for naming the octogenarian leader, who has been on the political scene of Jammu and Kashmir for over fifty-five years as ‘dream merchant.’—it is the highest honor that could be bestowed on a leader. When, I read phrase ‘dream merchant’ in the screaming headlines, the famous speech of Martin Luther … Read entire article »
Filed under: Editor's Take, Kashmir-Talk
Fetters on Scholarship. Why?
Z.G. Muhammad ‘Kashmir University has become an extension of the ‘state establishment. Moreover, academic freedom and genuine scholarship is the biggest causality.’ This lament has been finding an echo in most of the academic seminars held outside the campus. On 10 December 2014, when across the world people were observing the Human Rights Day and pledging to uphold all the thirty Articles contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in a seminar some scholars, researchers and students were raising their voice against denial of academic freedom in the Kashmir University. This seminar had been organized by a group of civil society to mark the historic day. Scholars mostly from social sciences and languages narrated stories after stories about their being coerced to change their findings and bringing them in line with … Read entire article »
Filed under: Editor's Take
Article 370 and UN Resolutions are “dove-tailed”
Punchline 370 and United Nations By Z. G. Muhammad Thank you Narendra Modi for sparking a debate on the Article 370 of the Indian Constitution and its application to Jammu and Kashmir. There can be no debate on the Article, in isolation of the 1947 and the ‘accession story of Kashmir’. Your statement prompted some political leaders subscribing to the ‘finality of the accession of the state to Indian Union’ to look afresh on the article. You also made … Read entire article »
Filed under: Editor's Take
With Deference Something For Jumpy Kashmir Leaders
PUNCHLINE ‘Political fatigue and surrendering the cherished political causes for which leaders have whipped up public sentiments, mobilized millions to come on the streets and made people to suffer immensely is neither pragmatism nor realpolitik’ . This was central theme of my column, ‘the story of climb-downs’, published two weeks back in this newspaper. To illustrate, how the ‘climbing-down syndrome’ afflicting our leadership had defeated the resolution of the Kashmir Dispute and worked as dampener for bringing in lasting peace in South-Asia, I had quoted examples of the 1964 Holy Relic Movement and Sheikh-Nehru Dialogue, the 1965, students agitation and civil disobedience movement, the 1968 State Peoples Convention and the 1975 Indira-Sheikh Agreement. Nevertheless, for limitations of space, I had not been able to dwell in detail, how our leadership had … Read entire article »
Filed under: Editor's Take
The Politics of Boycotts in J&K
Z.G. MUHAMMAD Everyone has right to his dreams- even pipe dreams. Jamal – the great hashish smoker in our locality too had his dreams. Many times, sitting on shop fronts, he soliloquized and made his dream of becoming the chief executive of the state and replacing the “tailor’s son”, known to passersby and dizzy friends sharing his pipe. Jamal committed no sin, anyone can dream of becoming the chief executive- And for wishing to be the chief executive or getting a berth in temple of “democracy” there is no need for stoking a debate or conjuring discourses that are not holistically in conformity with the with historical realities and run contrary to the established ‘Kashmir narrative.’ ‘Is boycotting the elections right politics or participation in 2014 Assembly election is the correct option.’ … Read entire article »
Filed under: Editor's Take