Kashmir Watches: Modi’s normalcy or INDIA bloc’s rifted integration?

What binds Bengal to Kashmir today? Not geography. Not culture.

- TUSHI DEB

But a tenuous political thread woven through the INDIA alliancea coalition that increasingly resembles a sartorial patchwork of frayed egos and fractured ambitions. The recent meeting between West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah in Kolkata has set the political circuit abuzz.

On the surface, it appeared cordialtwo stalwarts of the INDIA bloc coming together post the Pahalgam massacre to project unity and reaffirm the vision of normaley in Kashmir. Mamata urged Bengalis to travel to Kashmir, calling for joint cooperation in tourism, culture, and trade. Abdullah echoed optimism, declaring that "tourism is bouncing back.” But scratch the surface, and deeper contradictions emerge.

With Mamata Banerjee encouraging Bengali tourists to visit Kashmir, the question here stands clear. The irony is hard to miss. Both Mamata and Omar appear to be borrowing heavily from Prime Minister Modi's post-370 Kashmir doctrine-especially his use of soft-power diplomacy through aggressive tourism marketing.

Modi called Kashmir a "peaceful and user-friendly zone." Now, INDIA bloc leaders are echoing the same narrative, albeit without acknowledgment-repackaging Modi's script under a new authorial brand. Their shared message? Kashmir is open for business. Their shared strategy? Economic pacification. But their fractured delivery only highlights the alliance’s internal discord.

Banerjee has pushed for "joint coordination in tourism, culture and trade" in an unusually cooperative tone.