J&K land row in absence of political empathy

Vikash Ranjan

New Delhi

Wed, 06 Aug 2008: 

When we are in a process to fix our foot on moon, we, on the other hand, are far from development in some context. Our blind rational do not allow us to move an inch ahead over the issue of communal matter. For the rest of the period we live along with other community in peace and harmony, but on the crux of communadisharmony, we create a wide gulf between us.

A small piece of Amarnath Shrine Board’s land, not bigger than Nehru stadium, has brought the people as well as the state to a standstill. What could be solved with a sincere effort of our politicians has been put in a brawl over 37 days since, resulting into loss of lives and property. Shutdown and strike has completely paralysed the state and hampered the people’s normal life.

In 61 years, the religious divide has never been so wide and the worst part of the current ongoing row has its genesis over a mere 800 kanals of forestland. Major General Goverdhan Singh Jamwal (retd) says, “This is the worst communal situation in the state since 1947. It is unimaginably bad.”

A deep analysis of the land transfer row however gives a different picture, which is more political in nature than religious. The basic reason of the land row needs to be seen above what the separatists in the valley is saying as “Hindu conspiracy against Kashmiriyat.” A number of people are of the opinion that state government should manage the facilitation of the Yatra, not the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB).

The issue, in fact, is about who should have the right to take the lion’s share. The debate that has now moved to an ugly turn is not about the state entitlement to religion, but about the first right to claim state resources. Muslims are of the demand that the hereditary share of chadhava (pilgrim offering) which was their sole right, but withdrawn in the past, should be entitled to them again.

The local Hindu priests who used to share in offerings were also bereft of the facilities at both Amarnath and the Vaishno Devi shrine. After the emergence of the government shrine board in 1986 the hereditary priests were provided a lump sum amount instead of entitling them a share in it.

The Vaishno Devi Shrine Board was constituted in 1986 with J&K Governor as head of the body to ensure proper facilities to scores of pilgrims so as to provide them a safe and comfort journey; the hereditary priests however did not offer to have a share in Shrine’s wealth.

Another discontent for the Muslims muleteers who used to carry pilgrims up to the mountains shrine earlier were registered free of cost with the local deputy commissioner. But, now they have been pressed to pay for registration.

The Muslims felt swindled as they were not only deprived of their age-old hereditary share of pilgrim offerings, but rather the government’s move generated into them suspicion that government was aimed to alter the religious, democratic and cultural composition of the state.

The outgoing Governor S K Sinha- retired on June 25, 2008- rejected such charges of Kashmiri leaders; the subsequent violent protest that reduced the state to a standstill forced the new Governor N N Vohra to revoke its earlier order granting land to Sri Amarnath Shrine Board.

The matter which had its genesis in socio-economic system turned into a communal row in the absence of political will and empathy to reach out a commonly acceptable solution.