Indian Army Chief General V. K. Singh must be an enthusiastic admirer of Roman legions - otherwise how could he describe deaths of thousands of Kashmiris at the hands of Indian security forces as the "gains". And what a pride in that 'achievement'; he says that the "basic reason" behind the present flare-up in occupied Kashmir is due to the failure of the civilian government "to build on those gains that had been made by the security forces".
He contends that the Indian troops had brought the situation under control to a certain level 'from where other steps should have been taken to carry forward the process and bring peace to the Valley'. He thinks, rightly, that the administration has failed to connect with the people, but believes, wrongly, that the 'gains' mean that the Kashmiris have been vanquished.
Not a day passes when the Kashmiri youth don't pour unto the streets of Srinagar and throughout the Kashmir Valley, baring their chests before the trigger-happy Central Reserve Police Force. Their courageous defiance must have made General Singh acknowledge India's stark failure in the occupied Kashmir.
One wouldn't think, yet, that the Indian security forces feel fatigued over killing innocent people and their commander wants to call it a day. But the General's remarks do seem to be suggesting that given the Kashmiris' undaunted spirit and readiness to die for their freedom, New Delhi should consider revisiting its policies in Kashmir - a la General Stanley McChrystal who, too, found a way out of the Afghan quagmire by making disparaging remarks about the Obama administration officials. The fact however is that V. K. Singh's "gains" are nowhere there on the ground in occupied Kashmir.
Despite the unusually prolonged deployment of more than half a million of paramilitary troops, the Kashmiris' spirit remains un-subdued. In fact, the struggle to wrest freedom from Indian hands has intensified. Not only has a younger generation come to the forefront, the usual accusation that freedom-fighters get material help from across the Line of Control has also forfeited its international backing. There is absolutely no doubt about the fact that the ongoing movement is entirely indigenous. The Indian army chief must be out of his wits if he thinks puppets like Omar Abdullah are in position to do something and build-on the so-called gains made by the security forces.
Regrettably, there is a tinge of hubris to V. K. Singh's perspective on the present phase of the Kashmiris' movement. He wants the administration "to identify the miscreants behind the violent protests", as if there is no such thing as a popular struggle for rights joined by the common people. They are not miscreants, to be hunted down by security forces; they are ordinary Kashmiri people who have been making peaceful protests, but are fired upon by the trigger-happy CRPF elements. Wouldn't you concede to the people their right to protest against rampant killings, custodial murders, gang-rapes and illegal arrests?
If the Indian military command has embraced such a bleak view of the Kashmiris' right to protest, someone has to enlighten them on this globally recognised political right. And that someone should be Foreign Minister Qureshi when he meets his Indian counterpart in Islamabad later this week. Pakistan is a recognised party to the Kashmir dispute and it cannot abdicate its responsibility of pointing out massive human rights violations in the occupied Kashmir.
Yes, there is no dearth of public opinion in support of restoring normalcy to the Pak-India relationship. But how can you do it without resolving, or at least beginning to address the hurdles in between, the greatest and most formidable of which is Kashmir. Yes, it can be a testing, slow-moving exercise. But India can help start it by taking some very basic initial steps - like thinning out the military presence in the Valley, revoking the Armed Forces Special Powers Act and freeing the Kashmiri political prisoners.
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