10 Things We Need To Agree On For Kashmir To Heal

Ten things we need to agree on for Kashmir to heal

- Barkha Dutt

The collapse of the alliance between the BJP and the PDP in Jammu and Kashmir has not taken any of us by surprise. Some of us have been arguing that the ideological dissonance of the coalition was far too grave to risk in a situation as volatile as the one in the valley today. As governor’s rule looks inevitable, we are in for a long phase of unrest and turmoil ahead. For Kashmir watchers, there is an acute sense of déjà vu. We are standing on a precipice from where Kashmir could plunge into free fall, because we keep making the same mistakes again and again. If there is even an element of seriousness in rebooting the Kashmir policy, here are ten things we should be able to agree on.

We cannot afford to play partisan politics over Kashmir. A national political consensus is needed to frame a Kashmir policy that is neither the subject of prime time bickering nor the focus of parliamentary one-upmanship. The coalition government was buried under the weight of its own contradictions. This is a warning to parties on the right and left of the spectrum to find a way to agree on next steps. In the past, all-party delegations have managed to show maturity and unison during moments of crisis. This is an unprecedented crisis; our politicians need to measure up. They should commit to leaving the Kashmir situation outside the purview of the 2019 election campaign.