A Performance Audit of the J&K Government

Statecraft

HAPPYMON JACOB

When Omar Abdullah was sworn in as the 11th chief minister of J&K in January 2009, at the age of 38, in an election that was widely considered as reasonably free and fair, we were all delighted, and hopeful. We continued to be hopeful despite having reservations about an NC-Congress tie-up (with key ministries going to the Congress) because of what NC-Congress tie-ups have done in the past to J&K. It was not an easy job for Omar Abdullah, at least in the beginning, due to the agitations on the streets of Srinagar in 2010. However, the post-2010 years were comparatively calmer, if not entirely peaceful. Unlike the PDP Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, Omar managed to convince the Congress party to give him a full term as the Chief Minister. And the fact that there was a “friendly” government in New Delhi was an added advantage. More importantly, the government was led by a well-meaning man, Omar Abdullah, who is personally not corrupt. This was a truly historic opportunity for the “young and dynamic” Chief Minister to prove his mettle as a leader, for the National Conference to redeem its sins of the past, and for the State of J&K to go past its many miseries. Has the NC-led government managed to live up to the expectations or have they have wasted a truly historic opportunity? 

AFSPA faux pas
The continued existence of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) is a shameful testament of NC’s political inability, and Omar Abdullah’s personal failure, to persuade their ally and coalition-partner, the Congress party, to revoke the much-hated Act from J&K. The UPA government in New Delhi, as usual, engaged in all kinds of political tactics – including hypocrisy, conveying half-truths, taking contradictory positions, among others – to wriggle out of having to even dilute the controversial Act. The J&K government claims it did everything to persuade New Delhi to concede to its request, even as New Delhi claims that the J&K government never gave its request officially, in writing (as if it would have made any difference!). If only the J&K government had managed to get AFSPA out of the way, Omar could have stood in Lal Chowk, with his head held high, and claimed that he is capable of taking the legacy of his grandfather, Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah, forward. But he has missed the bus. I don’t even want to talk about the grand claims Omar made about a so-called “Truth and Reconciliation Commission” which, according to the NC manifesto (2008) would “suggest ways to redress the wrongs, compensate the affected and punish the guilty.” It further says,  “we owe it to the people so they all know what went wrong and where”.  Yes, you do! 

Forget AFSPA for a moment: will the Chief Minister please explain why he could do nothing even to revoke the Disturbed Areas Act and the Public Safety Act from the state? The 2008 Election Manifesto of the National Conference refers to these laws as ‘anti-people’, by the way! 

Decentralization of power The much-hailed Panchayat elections in the state were seen as a way to decentralize power and ensure that the people had a say in how they should be governed. However, the Panchayat Raj system in J&K has essentially made a mockery of the concept of decentralization of power. The local bodies and their representatives continue to be deprived of the necessary powers including financial autonomy and sufficient resources to bring development to their areas. Panchayat development funds are often channeled by the state government through MLAs which defeats the whole purpose of the local bodies. As a result, those elected to the local bodies have lost their credibility in the eyes of the common masses. 

“Bijli, Sadak, Paani” 
NC’s 2008 election manifesto also goes on and on about the need to provide “Bijli, Sadak, Paani” to the people. It breaks my heart to see the state of “Bijli, Sadak, and Paani” in the state of J&K. There are hardly any roads in Srinagar city, forget about any in the far-flung villages. The general infrastructure in the state is in such ruin that one could mistake Srinagar for a 16th century township. The government has not done anything to ensure that there is timely payment of electricity tariff by the consumers without which it would not be able to buy electricity from the NHPC: a state that can not collect taxes will eventually be in deep financial trouble. And that is exactly what is happening to J&K. There is no point is shouting from the rooftops that the electricity generated in the state is consumed by other states, without having ensured that a proper payment mechanism is put in place. Nothing comes free, including electricity. 

Industrial development 
Kashmir is alien to industrial development. Hardly been any new industrial projects have come to the state in the past 5 years. When the government organized star-studded functions in Srinagar with Ratan Tata, Rajiv Bajaj and Kumaramangalam Birla in October 2012, there was great hope that this was going to be a grand beginning for the state’s economic development. Barring a few pharma companies, none has set up shops in the state ever since the much-publicised road show of 2012. 

State of Human rights 
Human rights violations continue unabated in Kashmir. Hardly anyone is held accountable when innocent youngsters get killed at the hands of the authorities.  What has the government done to ensure accountability for what happened in 2010 when more than 120 young Kashmiri lives were lost? Whatever happened to the Omar government’s repeated pledges that the guilty will be brought to book? 

What about the many unmarked mass graves found in Kashmir? The government refused to conduct DNA tests to find out the identity of the persons buried in those graves because doing so was considered to be impractical! Sure, ensuring human rights is never easy. But then that’s part of your job.

(Source: Greater Kashmir, 10 AUGUST 2014. URL: http://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/2014/Aug/10/a-performance-audit-of-the-j-k-government-25.asp) 

Countdown to the Battle for Srinagar

Statecraft

HAPPYMON JACOB

State Assembly election in J&K is not a local event: it is not only analysed by national and international Kashmir watchers and pundits but also has implications beyond the confines of the state. Elections to the state assembly are not declared, and yet the political rumblings have already begun in Kashmir. The ruling coalition fired the first shot by agreeing to enter into a divorce of convenience. The National Conference (NC) does not want to be seen in the company of the Congress party anymore, because the latter, for a lot of Kashmiris, represents the arrogance of New Delhi, and rightly so. Congress party comes to Kashmir with a heavy burden of the past, of terrible and unforgivable mistakes. The NC, which was often at the receiving end of the Congress party’s soulless politics in Kashmir and the brazen tactics used by it to gain power in Srinagar, clearly does not want to go to the people seeking votes with the Congress in tow. But after a neat political arrangement that benefitted both sides for close to six years, even as it did not benefit the state, can the two now really keep this relationship off the minds of the Kashmiri voter? 

For the Congress too, this divorce makes a lot of sense. While both the Congress and the NC presided over an unabashedly corrupt regime in Srinagar for six years now, the Congress gets to point fingers at the NC especially when it gets down to electioneering in the coming months. And it can state with such innocence: ‘we are not responsible for the rampant corruption in the state because the NC was running the government’! Or so it hopes. 

Moreover, given that it sees itself as the only party that can put up a serious fight against BJP in the Jammu province (which has 37 seats), it would benefit the Congress to go to the Jammuites “minus” the ‘taint’ of Omar Abdullah’s well choreographed and widely televised outbursts on Article 370 and ASFPA. This “running with the hare and hunting with the hound” strategy that the Congress is likely to use in Jammu, combined with the usual arguments about ridding J&K of corruption (for which, of course, NC is responsible!) and deterring the spread of RSS fascism by upholding the values of secularism in Jammu (which only Congress can do!), the Congress leadership in the state believes, will increase its gains in the upcoming election.  

My word of advise to the Congress party is this: whatever may be the final outcome of the 2014 Assembly elections, they should try hard, however difficult it may be, to resist the temptations of grabbing power in Srinagar, just like it did after the two previous elections in the state (and many times previously). Congress party’s devious designs to grab power in the state are legendary and have greatly contributed to the current state of affairs in J&K. Congress should keep itself out of office, and support, if need be, a truly local party to form the next government in J&K.

Can the separatists rethink their politics? 
The political decisions of the Valley’s separatist parties would make a significant difference to the electoral outcome in the upcoming elections. They have a number of political choices before them, both constructive and unproductive. Just like they did in previous years, they can completely shun the process and give a boycott call, extend some under-the-table support to individual candidates, or alternatively articulate a political choice and back it up with a sound political rationale. Clearly, the support base of the separatists are eroding by the day and, as a result, their politics will soon be irrelevant in the larger context of Kashmir’s political future. The only way, to my mind, they can continue to be relevant to the emerging political landscape in Kashmir is by clearly articulating their support for one or the other mainstream political parties in Kashmir, without giving up their essential stance, of course. Even better, they could decide to contest a few seats from their strongholds in Kashmir. But I don’t think they will do that.  

The real question is how long can the Mirwaizes and Yaseen Maliks remain outside the mainstream political developments in Kashmir and how long, by doing so, can they keep their politics alive. I suspect not too long. Hence the upcoming election is an opportune moment for them to take a relook at their brand of politics and its future. The reason why BJP is steadily increasing its vote share in J&K is because the Kashmiri separatists nudge their supporters not to vote in the elections. Given that the BJP is seriously readying itself to come to power in Srinagar, by any and all means, the separatists should make up their mind now or by the time they decide to stop the saffron tide towards Srinagar, it would be too late to do so.

(Next Week: “A performance audit of the National Conference Government”). 

(Source: Greater Kashmir, 03 AUGUST 2014. URL: http://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/2014/Aug/3/countdown-to-the-battle-for-srinagar-16.asp)