Round The States

New Delhi, 12 August 2010

Peace, Jobs, Autonomy

KASHMIR-- CENTRE’S CONUNDRUM

By Insaf

Turbulent Jammu and Kashmir continues to be a conundrum for the Centre. Nothing seems to work to bring the State out of turmoil. Be it the latest offer of a peace dialogue or employment package --- or even autonomy. So far there are no takers amongst the big players. At the all-party meet in New Delhi on Tuesday last, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s impassioned appeal to the protestors to give peace a chance has apparently cut no ice. Curfew has been re-imposed in the Valley. The separatists have outright rejected Singh’s offer. Hardliner Syed Ali Shah Geelani wants the PM to see the writing on the wall and declare the State a “disputed territory.” He argues: The Kashmiri youth aren’t on the streets for jobs but are fighting for their rights. For moderate Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, New Delhi cannot weigh emotions of the Kashmiris on the scale of money and jobs. Political and not economic dimension needs to be addressed, he asserts. According to the People’s Democratic Party leader Mehbooba Mufti, the PM’s speech was good in tone and tenor but lacked in substance!

However, the ruling National Conference, which is much to blame for the current turmoil, has welcomed Singh’s initiative. The PM is after all finally singing its tune. According to the Abdullahs “greater autonomy” could provide a workable political solution and the Centre should act and restore the devolution of more powers to the State. But the big question is will this step not further alienate Jammu & Kashmir from the rest of the country, as warned by the BJP. Importantly, what does the Centre have in mind precisely and how does it propose to restore the State’s autonomy? Both have yet to be spelt out. Meanwhile, let us not forget that whatever steps New Delhi initiates could have wider repercussions. More so, in the sensitive and strategic North-East, which is closely watching every move. Many there believe it has a bigger claim to stake autonomy. Large areas of the North-East were not fully administered under the British Raj.

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Mamata Embarrasses Centre

Union Railway Minister and Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee’s histrionics in West Bengal continue to be an embarrassment for the UPA-II. Her recent hobnobbing with Maoists at her rally in Lalgarh on Monday last raised a storm in both Houses of Parliament. The rally had a 60,000 crowd in which a 2000-odd strong contingent of Maoist backed People’s Committee Against Police Atrocities was present. The Congress found itself at the receiving end, as both the CPM and the BJP questioned how the Centre proposed to deal with the “biggest internal threat” when its coalition partner was in political collaboration with the Maoists. The principle of collective responsibility is being breached and there is disagreement on the policy of the Government towards Maoists, warned the BJP. It specifically sought to know whether the government would conduct a CBI probe into the encounter death of the Maoist leader Azad as Didi claimed it was a “murder” and whether the Home Ministry  would give up its Green Hunt Operation?  With the Trinamool being the second largest contingent amongst the UPA partners, the Congress can really provide no honest answers. 

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Jungle Raj In UP?

Law and order has become a grave issue in Mayawati’s Uttar Pradesh. It rocked the State’s Assembly time and again during the week. On Tuesday, it was raised not only by the Leader of the Opposition, Shivpal Singh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party but also by Pramod Tiwari of the Congress and Om Prakash Singh of the BJP. All sharply slammed the Government’s contention that the law and order in UP was good and the crime rate had shown a decline and denounced it as fudged. Yadav even accused the ruling BSP of patronizing criminals and the mafia and said that crime against women was on the upsurge. Pramod Tiwari accused Mayawati of inflicting “jungle raaj” on the State. Ambika Chaudhrey of the SP said that UP today topped the list in human rights violations, not even sparing the Dalits. Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Lalji Verma, refuted the charges. But the Opposition was not satisfied and walked out.

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Bellary Helps Cong

The Bellary brothers in Karnataka may well prove lucky for the Congress. Out in the cold since 2006, the party has new-found hope of a revival in the southern State. Its 320-km and 16 day-long march to Bellary to protest against the illegal mining and iron ore export business by the Reddy brothers proved to be a major hit. Not only did the Congress manage to pooh-pooh the Reddy brothers’ challenge to enter Bellary, but also evinced keen interest amongst the locals. An estimated two-lakh people thronged its rally on Monday last. This apart, the presence of Central ministers from the State, including SM Krishna, former CM Veerappa Moily, Mallikarjun Kharge along with Ghulam Nabi Azad at the rally sent a clear message that New Delhi meant business. The leaders warned the Yeddyuruppa Government that the Centre was closely watching the “loot” of natural resources and would take action at an appropriate time. Will the historic march to Bellary yield the desired results for the Congress?

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Battle Of The Burqa

Human rights and liberalism have won the surprise battle of the Burqa in the Kolkata Madrasa campus of West Bengal’s first Muslim University named Aliah. Sirin Middya, 24, was barred for more than three months from teaching Bengali at the Madrassa campus by the West Bengal Students Union for refusing to heed its diktat that she wear a Burqa. Sirin was not against the Burqa. But, unlike other women teachers, she insisted that wearing the Burqa should be a matter of personal choice. Thanks to an intervention by the Minister in charge of Minority Affairs and Madrassa Education, Abdus Sattar, the Aliah University’s Administration has asked her to resume her duties without a Burqa, assuring that she would face no problem. The Minister told Aliah’s Vice Chancellor, Syed Shamhul Alam, that the imposition to wear the burqa was a violation of the Constitution and went against “our culture and would not be tolerable”. ---INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)