Kashmir needs to rediscover its soul

However, trees have been cut down mercilessly and familiar pavements have been dug out to accommodate fancy thoroughfares. Walls running along the road have been demolished and the rubble is still there for all to see. Probably, something new and modern will replace what once aroused feelings of nostalgia. As I made the journey to my hotel, I missed the old Kashmiri houses from which women with trinkets would peer out to see the incoming tourists.

Shops are well stocked and full of customers. Too much money is flowing and the guess is that it is from the Gulf, Pakistan and India — in that order. The number of cars on the road is many times more than before. There are traffic jams and one has to keep this in mind when planning a trip. People move freely and I saw many women on the road without burqas or headwear.

Militancy is by and large rare. Some terrorists strike once in a while. They attacked the police at Lal Chowk a few days ago. But I get the feeling that the media magnify these stray incidents so as to sensationalise. When attacks were a regular feature, there was a curfew after sunset. Now people are on the road even at 11pm.

I did not see a single policeman on the road from the airport. The bunkers are mostly gone. I found one at Lal Chowk, where some policemen stood with their fingers on the triggers of automatic weapons. The interrogation centres have been closed, but the capricious detentions still take place. The biggest worry is the occasional disappearance of the youth. Incidents like the rape of two women at Shopian are rare. But whenever they take place, they infuriate the people to the extent that they come out on the streets.

The mode of search, whether of a vehicle or a person, has changed. Policemen are more polite than before and less intrusive. Still, a member of a very respectful family told me how he and his wife were stopped on the road until the helicopter of a member of the top brass had flown over the place. A policeman wanted to search his wife, but on his insistence a policewoman did so.

The anti-India feeling is there beneath the surface, and people are not afraid to say so. However, pro-Pakistan sentiments have practically disappeared, more because of Kashmiris' perception of the dire security situation in Pakistan. Even Azadi is mentioned less and less because of the increasing realisation that a landlocked area could not think of being independent.

Positive

I found the Hurriyat leaders sober. One leader told me that they had "vibes from Delhi" that something positive would emerge. They are looking forward to talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who is expected to visit Srinagar at the end of the month. There is an effort to have a consensus among the different parties, including the Hurriyat, before the prime minister's arrival. Mirwaiz, the Hirriyat chief, is reportedly in favour of it. State Chief Minister Omar Abdullah also wants New Delhi to talk to all political parties, including the Hurriyat. But he has also emphasised that India should have a dialogue with Pakistan to resolve the Kashmir problem.

There is a suggestion that both Kashmirs should be demilitarised, India withdrawing its forces from the valley and stationing them on its border and Pakistan doing likewise and pulling out its forces from their part of Kashmir. But this is dependent on India and Pakistan reaching a settlement, supported by the Kashmiris. New Delhi will not agree to a unilateral demilitarisation, definitely not before the question has been resolved.

The problem of Jammu and Ladakh has become, indeed, pressing. They do not want to stay with the valley. Jammu wants to join India and Ladakh wants a Union Territory status. True, the Hurriyat has never tried to woo Jammu and has seldom cared for the Kashmiri Pandits languishing there. Still, both Jammu and Ladakh could be brought around if they were granted autonomous status.

I have no doubt that the Kashmir problem will be resolved sooner or later. But too much has happened in the state in the past that makes it difficult for the old Kashmir to come back to life. Familiar symbols are dying. Kashmiri music is on its last legs. Old crafts attract fewer artisans because there is a race to earn a quick buck. The wazwan, a string of Kashmir dishes served at one sitting, is still there but new cooks are hard to get.

The reintegration of Muslims and Pandits, divided during the insurgency, looks difficult. The animosity among the three regions — Kashmir, Jammu and Ladakh — may be diluted, but it will not disappear. Jammu and Kashmir may remain a state, but the soul would be missing. I pray that Kashmir gets its soul back.

Kuldip Nayar is a former Indian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and a former Rajya Sabha member.