The blurb by Kuldip Nayar, author, senior journalist and former high commissioner of India to the UK, reads: ‘Saifuddin Soz’s book should be read by all serious thinkers because he does leave the beaten track and paves a new path which can be taken by all the parties.’ Whether they would agree to the proposal of Soz remains to be seen, but a wide debate on them is necessary in the country because Kashmir has plagued India since its Independence in 1947.
Kashmir: Glimpses of the History and the Story of Struggle provides a comprehensive account of the state and its people with objectivity. In the context of the unrest in the Kashmir valley that has been intensifying lately and the misreading of the people of the region, this book tries to cast a dispassionate look at how the Kashmir narrative has unfolded over the centuries. A look at the list of contents in the index, and most of the lay readers will be delighted to know that a major portion of the book covers in details the geographical and cultural aspects of Kashmir and the Kashmiris.
Kashmir has fought the Mughals, the Afghans and the Sikhs in the past. However, it is their fight against the Dogra autocracy that ultimately led to their disillusionment with the Indian establishment. With Pakistan feeding on the emotions of the deeply alienated and disenchanted people and the Indian government taking a hard stand, this culture now stands completely besieged.
What is the future of Kashmir, then? What is the destiny of its people? Can Kashmir reconcile with the past for a better future? Can the Kashmir Valley return to a life of dignity, peace and development? How? All these questions and more are examined in the book. The book explores modern and ancient sources of Kashmir’s history, views of numerous travellers — both foreign and Indian, from Fa-Hian, Hiuen Tsiang, Marco Polo to Arthur Neve and Sir Walter Lawrence. Kashmir has the unique distinction of being a civilisation on its own. According to eminent scholar Balraj Puri, Kashmir’s history is more than 5000-year-old. Even the Burzahom excavations (near Srinagar) establish Kashmir’s antiquity to be beyond 3000 BC.
It is from the chapter on the Afghan Rule that the more knowledgeable readers and those concerned with the future of Kashmir can engage with more comprehensive and scholarly writing. In the chapter titled Kashmir - The Way Forward, Soz states that after the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani, the unrest in Kashmir has taken an entirely different proportion. It has become wider in implication and more popular in essence. The author and the former Union Minister from the region, says Kashmir is in a mode of revolt. The genesis of why Kashmir could not get into a settled situation for a long time since 1947 is very educative, logical and convincing.
As a prelude to his suggestions for settling the Kashmir dispute, Soz mentions that though the international community agrees that the basic party to the dispute happens to be the people of Kashmir, it would be pragmatic to see an agreement between India and Pakistan that will be acceptable to Kashmiris. That’s what an average Kashmiri would like to think. Soz also briefly reminds the present leadership of India that Pt Nehru had come forward for a qualitative shift in India’s policy in 1964. The prominent recommendation is the incorporation of Delhi Agreement of 1952 into the texture of formula.
The (Pervez) Musharraf-(Atal Bihari) Vajpayee-Manmohan (Singh) formula envisaged same borders but free movement across the region, autonomy on both sides, de-militarisation, that is phased withdrawal of troops from the region and a mechanism devised jointly so that the roadmap for a settlement is implemented smoothly. As per reliable sources, Musharraf could convince his top colleagues, both in the army and in the political establishment. I am apprehensive about the success of this formula given the track record of Pakistan with regards to reliability and trustworthiness. Notwithstanding, it will be worthwhile for the present dispensations both in India and Pakistan, to make yet another attempt to resolve the dispute.
(Col Bipin D Shinde has a vast experience in staff and field tenures in the Army, DRDO, NCC alongwith civil administration as the District Sainik Welfare Officer, Pune. He can be reached at bdsshinde@yahoo.co.in)
