What about law and order? This nagging question naturally comes to the mind of the people whenever they see the untoward incidents taking place in Kashmir. The present turmoil in the valley is disturbing – moving fellow citizens to tears. The continuous scenes of stone-pelting on the streets of Kashmir are the lowest points of the current turmoil.
During my schooldays and childhood way back in the early 1990s, a family from Jammu and Kashmir moved into my hometown Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu, India, settling their family in my native place for a short period of time. As a schoolboy then, I had the fortune of meeting the kids of that family who were my age. And one schoolgirl among them often talked proudly about Kashmir. In fact, her words had made me develop love and respect for Kashmir.
But unfortunately, Kashmir today is not as rosy as it was during my 1990 schooldays. The reports of the death of militants have become commonplace now. The unfortunate fact is that factors like strong strategies and great diplomacy are totally missing in the handling of Kashmir.
As the first step, law and order should be maintained across the Valley at all costs. Secondly, the Indian government must wake up to the reality in Jammu and Kashmir and take steps to open the doors of education, growth, employment and business development for the youth and the public in Kashmir.
Finally, the countries riding the waves of technology have the natural tendency of ‘acting rough and tough’ at the drop of a hat. Maintaining good rapport with Pakistan and opening up communication route for strengthening bilateral tie-ups should be the immediate task to be looked into by India without hesitation.
P SENTHIL SARAVANA DURAI,
Mumbai, May 28.