{"id":2408,"date":"2015-06-22T09:33:41","date_gmt":"2015-06-22T04:03:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/?p=2408"},"modified":"2015-06-23T10:02:25","modified_gmt":"2015-06-23T04:32:25","slug":"trifurcation-a-discourse-from-jammu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/editors-take\/trifurcation-a-discourse-from-jammu\/","title":{"rendered":"Trifurcation – A Discourse from Jammu"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/fb:like>

PUNCHLINE<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

Discordant Discourses <\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

Z.G. Muhammad<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Kashmir, for past sixty seven years has been a cauldron of the \u2018dominant\u2019 discourses. In forties and fifties, the Communists ideologues conjured alternative discourse to erode the people\u2019s narrative born in 1924. That was in concrete terms manifested in the 1932 resolution adopted on the\"BPL<\/a> founding day of the Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference. For subverting the Kashmir narrative, in fifties, the Hindu nationalists stirred agitation in Jammu against symbols of Kashmiri nationalism with the objective of strengthening their idea of India.<\/p>\n

In the post 1990 scenario, some non-state subject NGO\u2019s operating in the state, flirting with one after another \u201cdominant discourse\u201d have been engaged in wearing down the popular political narrative of the state. Talking about the ethnic and linguistic diversity of the state, in one breath they call Kashmir as compendium India and yet in another they set yet another discourse into motion by pronouncing Jammu and Kashmir as \u00a0an \u2018artificial state\u2019 clubbed together hundred and sixty years back \u00a0by the Dogra rulers. \u00a0To undermine, the historical reality of the popular political narrative of the state, such organizations play upon sectarian sensitivities in the overwhelming majority and project their political aspirations as incongruous to each other. \u00a0And through so-called academic sponsored assignments they endeavour to project\u00a0\u00a0 various ethnic groups of the majority community as \u201csub-sub-nationalities\u201d working for cross purposes so far as the popular political narrative of the state is concerned. \u00a0Ostensibly, there are two objectives behind this whole exercise, one to becloud the importance of the \u2018popular narrative\u2019- drawing it\u2019s strengthen from the history of the dispute and two to strengthening the discourse against the integration of the state- such as\u00a0 \u00a0trifurcation of the State.<\/p>\n

Immediately, after appointment of Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, leader of the National Conference by Maharaja Hari Singh first as Chief Emergency Administrator then as Prime Minister, the discourse about \u2018Kashmiri hegemony\u2019 was set into motion by Jammu leaders with a particular mind-set. \u00a0\u00a0Abdullah\u2019s appointment was made on the direction of the then Home Minister of India Sardar Patel after troops from New Delhi landed at Srinagar on 27 October 1947.\"Nehru<\/a> Since, then this discourse found various manifestations. Seen in right historical perspective, Praja Parshid agitation against the Article 370 was one such manifestation. The Hindu leadership of Jammu \u2018was uncertain that in the event if a plebiscite is held majority of Muslims will vote against India. To quote Balraj Puri, \u201cThese fears bred ideas of division of the State and Zonal plebiscite in the minds of a section population. Provoked by such demands- for instance of the Praja Parishad, the Jammu counter part of the Jan Sangh. Abdullah had reacted sharply\u2026\u2026The Parishad modified its stand into an apparently nationalistic demand of abrogation of Article 370.\u201d (Kashmir Insurgency and After, Page 29).<\/p>\n

It found another important manifestation in agitations over alleged\u00a0 \u00a0\u2018discrimination\u2019 against Jammu in development and employment resulting in the appointment of a commissions like the one under Justice Sikiri. \u00a0The allegations of Kashmiri hegemony and discrimination in late seventies found expression in floating ideas like creation of \u2018Dugger Desh\u2019 on the basis of the Dogri language and culture. The concept at best could encompass two and half districts and \u00a0\u00a0in as much as Jammu province on the whole was concerned the idea stood on a slippery slope. \u00a0\u201cJammu province is torn by linguistic, cultural and caste division. The Chenab Valley is densely populated by Kashmir-speaking people. Gujjar\u2019 and Pahari constitute bulk of population of Pir-Panchal range. As against this Kashmiri province is largely homogenous with its ninety percent population Kashmiri speaking.\u201d The idea had not found many a taker but it was followed by yet another discourse \u2018the trifurcation of the state\u201d i.e. creating a separate of Jammu State and giving Ladakh a union territory status.<\/p>\n

This discourse that goes against the integration of the state has ironically found takers in some political parties and trade bodies in Jammu. Last week (17 June 2015) for the first time Jammu Chamber of Commerce and industries (CCI) openly sought trifurcation of the state as panacea for economic problems of Jammu. “Be it AIIMS or all the issues related to welfare of Jammu\u201d, it said, \u201cThe government has always been soft on the Valley while putting our region to all hardships. The CCI is of the opinion that under such circumstances trifurcation is the only way out.”<\/p>\n

The demand for trifurcation from chamber of commerce brings three things into focus, one if they seek status of separate state for Hindu majority areas of the province, two, where does the Chenab Valley and Pir Panchal range that constitute \u201c60.25 percent of entire geographical area and account for over seventy percent of total Muslim population of Jammu province\u201d stand in terms of economic development when compared to Jammu district. So far growth and economic development of Chenab Valley and Pir Panchal range are concerned, as compared to the plains of the Jammu province, these hilly areas have suffered worst discrimination and dis-empowerment. Economic surveys of the state testify that far as development of Jammu district is concerned, it stands at number one and the hilly areas are at 23rd<\/sup> position.<\/p>\n

Third, it also brings into focus the popular political narrative of the state and very subtly suggest the partition of the state almost in line with the Dixon Plan as solution of the Kashmir Dispute. In fifties, this plan had hogged international headlines. Owen Dixon after meetings with Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan had come up with the idea of \u201cregional plebiscite.\u201d \u2018It was either \u201ca plan for taking the plebiscite by sections and allocation of each section or area according to the results of the vote therein. Or, a plan by which it is conceded that some areas were certain to vote for accession to Pakistan and some for accession to India and by which, without taking to therein, they should be allotted accordingly and the plebiscite should be confined to uncertain area, which appeared to be\u00a0 the valley of Kashmir\u2019.<\/p>\n

Notwithstanding, demand of trifurcation raised by the Jammu CCI is against the integration of the State, still there is scope for debating it for finding \u00a0amicable settlement of the dispute over the future of Jammu and Kashmir.<\/p>\n

(Appeared in Greater Kashmir on 22-6-2015)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/fb:like><\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PUNCHLINE
\nDiscordant Discourses
\nZ.G. Muhammad
\n 
\nKashmir, for past sixty seven years has been a cauldron of the \u2018dominant\u2019 discourses. In forties and fifties, the Communists ideologues conjured alternative discourse to erode the people\u2019s narrative born in 1924. That was in concrete terms manifested in the 1932 resolution adopted on the founding day of the Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference. For subverting the Kashmir narrative, in fifties, the Hindu nationalists stirred agitation in Jammu against symbols of Kashmiri nationalism with the objective of strengthening their idea of India.
\nIn the post 1990 scenario, some non-state subject NGO\u2019s operating in the state, flirting with one after another \u201cdominant discourse\u201d have been engaged in wearing down the popular political narrative of the state. Talking about the ethnic and linguistic diversity of the state, in one breath they call Kashmir as compendium India and yet in another they set yet another discourse into motion by pronouncing Jammu …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":735,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[3,4],"tags":[212],"class_list":["post-2408","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-editors-take","category-point-of-view","tag-jammu-divison"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2408"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2408"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2408\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2413,"href":"https:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2408\/revisions\/2413"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/735"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2408"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2408"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peacewatchkashmir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2408"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}