The Kashmir Dialogue : A top-down approach, limited peace building infrastructure and absence of Kashmiri representation are among the potential roadblocks

/ By Ershad Mahmoud /

Since India and Pakistan have finally embarked on the path of reconciliation and dialogue, it is time to reflect upon and identify the major roadblocks which have the potential to hinder forward movement once again.

These hurdles include: a top-down approach, limited infrastructure for peace-building and, more importantly, the absence of Kashmiri representation and limited support of all the stakeholders. It is a sad reality that, despite periodic engagement in dialogue, both India and Pakistan have remained unable to yield any tangible results, particularly in the context of the Kashmir dispute and Siachen.

In the present circumstances, it is imperative to find the key entry points which might help both countries initiate a continuous, uninterrupted and insulated dialogue process, ensuring the involvement of all stakeholders in the process including the political and civil society representatives.

A major obstacle is the tendency of a top-down approach. Most of the time, the top leadership initiates talks which is a top-down approach, with its own limitations. The civil-military bureaucracy plays a vital role in constructing the contours of the dialogue process which is conservative in terms of generating fresh thinking and is also averse to new ideas for the engagements. A well thought-out and properly structured peace process, involving citizens and multi-layer stakeholders, has not been formulated so far.

Additionally, seven decades-long acrimonies and rifts among the leaders resulted in the creation of some permanent infrastructures meant to undermine and compete with each other at the diplomatic level for economic gains.

Secondly, the institutional structures for the peace process have not been created so far; these could have served as a platform for dialogue and cooperation. Instead of creating institutions to promote dialogue and reconciliation, prevent conflict and enable mediation; heavy investment is made to prevent each other’s socio-political growth and damage international standing.

Third, several accounts acknowledged the significant role played by the secret backchannel set up by the two governments to resolve contentious issues and find a common ground for the settlement of the Kashmir issue during 2004-2008. However, the delay in the pronouncement of what was agreed on made it redundant as the altered political environment in both countries made it infeasible to make things public.

Fourth, several dialogues and even summit meetings hit a dead end quickly because these were not mutually planned and well-designed, and there was no strategy to contain backlash in case of failure. Conversely, both New Delhi and Islamabad tried to outmaneuver each other at all meetings instead of focusing on resolving the contentious issues. Regrettably, politics was played to address the domestic audience and larger regional interests were conveniently compromised.

For instance, in July 2009, on the side-lines of a Non-Aligned Movement summit in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, then Indian PM Manmohan Singh acknowledged Pakistan’s apprehension about alleged Indian involvement in insurgency reported in Balochistan. Likewise, in July 2015; the prime ministers of India and Pakistan, on the side-lines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in the Russian city of Ufa, issued a joint statement which outlined the future course of action to normalize bilateral relations; they mentioned that both sides should strive to combat terrorism. Pakistani media and politicians accused the then PM Nawaz Sharif of accepting Indian terms by including the term ‘terrorism’ in the joint statement, without mentioning Kashmir in particular.

Almost all the meetings of the Indian and Pakistani leaders are intensely followed by their respective media which largely promotes the traditional narrative, often led by ex-government officials who are generally driven by the popularity syndrome instead of balanced thinking. The media has thus made it virtually impossible for the political leadership to think creatively to find new ways of engagement. In this background, both countries have to carefully manage their domestic media, besides ensuring solid support from the opposition parties.

Last but not least, since the LoC ceasefire implemented on February 25, Kashmir has not witnessed any respite in violence or state-led repression. Thousands of Kashmiris are still in jails or under house arrest despite the growing danger of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The dialogue process between India and Pakistan cannot yield the desired results unless the Kashmir Valley witnesses some noticeable changes such as the release of prisoners, exercising zero tolerance to human rights violations and creating space for political activities run by people with all shades of political attachments and opinions.

The writer is a freelance contributor.

Email: ershad.mahmud@gmail.com

From Mendhar to the list of top 2 per cent of the scientists

The journey of a student from a small village near the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir to Stanford University.

Dr. Shakeel Ahmed was recently included in Stanford University’s list of the top 2% scientists in the world. Of the 2,313 Indians who made it to the list, he is an exception with most of them from IITs and IISc. He is also a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry.

Students at the Government Degree College in Mendhar Tehsil, Poonch district, Jammu and Kashmir, are often disturbed by sounds of shelling and firing across the Line of Control (LoC).

Recently included in Stanford University’s list of the top 2% scientists in the world, Dr Shakeel is an exception as most of the 2,313 Indians who made it to the list were from the IITs and IISc. The 31-year-old is also a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry and the American Chemical Society.

Dr Shakeel Ahmed is teaching and motivating students from areas near the LoC.

Overcoming the odds

Born in the remote village of Dhangri in Rajouri district, Jammu and Kashmir, Dr Shakeel was barely a year old when his father passed away.

“I was the youngest of seven siblings. When my father passed away, my mother, a housewife, had to take up all the financial responsibilities that came with raising us. It was a real struggle for my mother. She started labouring in other people’s fields and stitching clothes to make ends meet. Meanwhile, my siblings and I would help her in rearing the household goats and sheep. We are from the nomadic Gujjar community,” Dr Shakeel tells.

Fortunately, he was an exceptionally bright student who first studied at the local village school. From there, he went on to study chemistry at the Government Degree College, Rajouri, for his Bachelor of Science (BSc) before heading to Jamia Millia Islamia in New Delhi for his MSc and PhD. After his PhD, he was awarded the prestigious National Post Doctoral Fellowship and made his way to IIT Delhi.

“All through my education, I was fortunate enough to study on scholarships that took care of tuition and hostel fees. After my MSc, I cleared my NET exam and became eligible for the Junior Research Fellowship (JRF). All expenses for my PhD were taken care of by the JRF. The struggle to pursue an education in this part of the world was immense. Despite being a bright student, I struggled with not just financial issues, but even access to libraries. I also didn’t have anyone to guide me on how I could further my career,” he recalls.

After a couple of months as a National Post Doctoral Fellow at IIT-Delhi, he had the opportunity to be appointed as an assistant professor there. But after a couple of months, he resigned from the fellowship and joined the Government Degree College in Mendhar as a professor. He is the only one among the two chemistry faculty members in the college.

Changing Course

This is his first posting as an employee with the Higher Education Department in Jammu and Kashmir. He is subject to a transfer to any government college in the area. Usually, postings last about two years, but he has been teaching here since April 2017.

Speaking about giving up a career to teach at a prestigious institution like IIT Delhi, he says, “I decided to go back so that the youth won’t have to face the kind of situation I did. Considering how difficult it was for me to study growing up, I always wanted to come back home and help students from these very remote areas close to the LoC. Nearly 99% of the students here come from surrounding villages. Students here don’t have the sort of opportunities like they do in Delhi or other major cities. I came back to educate and guide the youth so that they may fulfil their desires and go for further education in science. Most people from my part of the world who finish school don’t pursue higher education and end up in the Middle East as labourers.”

In his first year, Dr Shakeel barely had 20 students. But thanks to his classes, teaching methods and how he generated a lot of interest around the subject, the following year saw his class blooming to over 100 students with half of them consisting of women.

“After teaching the relevant material on the blackboard, he would give us problems to solve. He would ask every student whether we understood a particular concept or not and that’s what I really liked about his teaching method. He taught us with so much love and established such a close bond with us. While I got accepted into multiple PhD programs across different IITs and CSIR Labs, three other students from my batch also ended up completing their MSc. But they are now studying for the civil services examination,” he adds.

Dr. Shakeel Ahmed is teaching students living near the LoC.

Dr Shakeel still goes back to IIT Delhi and Jamia during his vacations, where he is given access to labs and leads collaborative research efforts thanks to his teachers there because the government college has no quality research facilities.

“In this backward area, we don’t have the necessary financial support or the infrastructure to carry out research since setting up these state of the art labs can cost crores. I can carry out some of my research work at the chemistry lab here, but key experiments are conducted in IIT Delhi and Jamia. In the meantime, however, I have published 20 reference books and over 30 research papers in reputed international journals on polymer chemistry,” he claims.

His next objective is to establish an NGO through which he can work with other teachers to help educate, guide and counsel the students in these remote border areas.

(The article was first published in the Better India. )

Thakyal Rajputs of Fatehpur

Tribe in Focus

Fatehpur Thakiala and the present day Nakyal city of Mirpur Division in Pakistan Administered Jammu and Kashmir were part of Mendhar sub-division of the state of Poonch before the partition of Jammu and Kashmir in 1947. The current town of Nakyal lies along the Line of Control (boundary between Indian and Pakistan-administered Kashmir).

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The 1947-48 war between India and Pakistan divided the border Thakiala into two parts. One went to Pakistan and the other became part of India. After the separation from Mendhar it became a tehsil of Kotli District.The old name of this area was Thakiala, named after the Thakial Rajputs who live here since ancient times but it was renamed Fatehpur Thakiala to honour a veteran politician and local elder Sardar Fateh Muhammad Khan Karelvi. It is also the birth place of the former president and prime minister of Pakistan Administered Kashmir, Sardar Sikandar Hayat Khan.

Thakyal Rajputs are of the Suryavanshi lineage and legend claims they are descended from Rama, a mythical king of Ayodhya. Thakial tradition links them to Jamwal and Raja Agnigarba who came to Ayodhya and founded a small state on the banks of River Tawi. The Dogra Maharajas of Jammu and Kashmir belong to Jamwal clan. Minhas or Manhas Rajputs are also an offshoot of this clan. It is said that one Raja Malan Hans took up agriculture and left the throne to his younger brother, Raja Suraj Hans. Since that time Rajputs who took up agriculture are styled Minhas, whereas the name ‘Jamwal’ is confined to the royal branch.

The Thakials are named after a Raja Jothar Singh Thakial who established the Bhimber state in the northern Punjab at the foothills of the Himalayas. It remained an independent state for thousands of years under the Thakial rule until the fourteenth century.

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The last Thakial Maharaja of the State was Siripat. It was at this time that Partab Chand, a prince of Kangra started his journey from Kangra to Bhimber. When he reached the hill tops near Bhimber, Partab Chand observed that it was very difficult to capture the state. He set a camp there and named this hilltop as Kangra and the village still exists by the same name even today. Partab Chand stayed for a long time with his troops on the hilltop waiting for a suitable opportunity to attack and capture the state but this did not arise as he had run short of supplies for his men.

Partab Chand sent his soldiers in disguise with his own jewellery to go down to the markets of Bhimber to get the much-needed supplies. His men went to a jeweller who was astonished when he saw the royal jewels. The Maharaja of Bhimber, Siripat Thakial learned about the men with the royal jewels and found out about the deployment of the Kangra troops on hill top. He sent his ambassador to Partab Chand which resulted a friendly meeting between the Partab Chand and the Maharaja of Bhimber.
Maharaja Siripat Thakial had a daughter but no sons. He married the princess with the oldest son of Partab Chand, the Raj Kumar Chib Chand. On the death of Maharaja Siripat, the Raj Kumar Chib Chand became the Maharaja of Bhimber. From this union, of the Thakial princess(rani) and Raj Kumar Chib Chand, the Chib Rajput clan emanates. Raja Dharam Chand was the seventh Raja of the Chib Chand line. He converted to Islam and was named as Raja Shadab Khan of Bhimber. He was killed by Ibrahim Lodhi and his tomb still exists on the hills of Bhimber by the name of Baba Shadi Shaheed.

After Chib Chand became the ruler of the state, some Thakials conspired to overthrow Chib Chand which resulted in Chib Chand executing some leaders and driving others out of the state. The Thakials who were driven out of the Bhimber state by Chib Chand settled in the area north of Bhimber, currently known as Fatehpur Thakiala. This area was ruled by the Jayrah clan.
Among the Thakials was a man of great stature and resolve named Rusmi Dev. Rusmi Dev lived in a place called Thakar Dhooli in the village Dhuruti in Fatehpur Thakiala. There are many stories about Rusmi Dev; among them being the one where he fought and killed an evil jinn. It is said that he was travelling across the Pir Panjal mountains when he met an old holy man who told him to return to his home for he would one day will become a ruler and also told him that he will convert to Islam.
The relationships between the Thakials and the Jayrah were not good and war broke out between the two clans. The Jayrah clan was defeated and Rusmi Dev became the ruler. Islam was spreading all over India during this time and under growing influence of Islam in the Subcontinent Rusmi Dev converted to Islam and changed his name to Rustam Khan. On his death Rustam Khan was buried in Dhuruti, a village in Fatehpur Thakiala and every year a gathering is held at his shrine where people in their hundreds go to pay homage.

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As with other Muslim Rajputs, they hold the title of Raja, which is the ancestral title of the Rajputs since the times of the Mahabharata and some have additional titles like Sardar, which was conferred upon them by the rulers of latter days.

Rustam Khan had four sons and their decedents are the modern day Thakials. His oldest son was called Sangi Khan, whose decedents live in Muzaffarabad and Bagh in Azad Kashmir, Abbotabad in the North West Frontier Province and Gujarkhan, Muree and Rawalpindi in Punjab. The descendents of other three sons, Bagh Khan, Kangi Khan and Kaloo Khan live in the Mendhar area of Jammu and Kashmir. Bagh Khan’s descendents are known as Baghal. The Tehsil Fatehpur Thakiala in the Kotli District is named after them. Around 150 Thakyal Rajput are also residing in Charri Panchayat of Kangra District in Himachal Pradesh. They are Hindu Rajputs and living in Charri Panchayat since around 1850. For more information on Thakyal Rajput tribes please visit here

Content Source: Thakyal Rajput Photos Credit : Nakyal Azad Kashmir

Meditating in a Cave

Meditating inside a Cave was prevalent in ancient Kashmir. Hindus believed that mountain caves more specifically Himalayan caves were the abode of Shiva. Many Yogis , Saints , Hermits, Sadhus and later highly revered holy men of Reshi cult practiced it . Shaiva scholar Acharaya Abhinavgupta along with more than 1200 followers is believed to have marched insidethe Bhairva cave in kashmir for meditation and never returned thereafter .

Nund Rishi or Sheikh Noor Ud Din Alamdaar e Kashmir of Tsraar Sharif or Baba Zain Ud Din Wali of Aishmuqaam also meditated inside caves .Baba Shukar Din ( His shrine overlooks wular lake in Kashmir ) is also reported to have meditated inside a cave.
During Buddhist period, Monks meditated inside caves. Cave meditation was also practiced by Buddhist Monks in Ladakh and Tibet. Rishis believed in peaceful coexistence, humanism and non violence. The evolution of a Khraav or wooden sandal in Kashmir is a proof if it. The lower surface of the Khraav had minimum contact with ground so that no creatures would be put to harm upon it’s use.The followers of a Reshi would give due respect to the Khraav or wooden sandal of their Guru. No Reshi walked with bare feet.Even to this day, the Khraav of Reshi Peer (Ali Kadal) or Swami Ram Ji of Fateh Kadal is preserved and revered by his followers.

Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front -JKLF (S) ends Freedom March at LoC

Jammu & Kashmir Liberation Front (S), a pro-independence political party has ended three day protest and Freedom March, the local media persons have confirmed in Pakistan Administered Kashmir. Earlier, at least 40 people were arrested after demonstrators of pro-independence JKLF (s) and other nationalist parties clashed with police near Tatrinote village near the Line-of-Control (LoC).

A local journalist Riaz Shahid reported from Rawalakot that JKLF’s freedom march and solidarity sit-in has ended. If, however, the party workers arrested by local police are not released by 12th September, the protest would start again.

The Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) is a political organisation active in both Pakistan-administered and Indian-administered Kashmir. It was founded by Amanullah Khan, with Maqbool Bhat also credited as a co-founder. Originally a militant wing of the Plebiscite Front, it changed its name to JKLF in England in 1977.

After 1994, the JKLF (Y) in Kashmir Valley, under the leadership of Yasin Malik, declared an ‘indefinite ceasefire’ and reportedly disbanded its military wing. It committed itself to a political struggle for achieving its objective of independence for the entire region of the former princely state. The JKLF factions based in Pakistan-administered-Kashmir did not agree with this change of direction and split off from the JKLF (Y).

Renowned Kashmiri separatist leader Yasin Malik is the head of JKLF in Indian held Kashmir. Even though the JKLF has only Muslim members, it is notionally secular. It continues to assert that a secular, independent Kashmir free of both India and Pakistan is its eventual goal.

The JKLF in the Kashmir Valley was banned by Indian government under anti-terror law in March 2019. According to various media reports, after nearly 30 years, a trial in the killing of four Indian Air Force personnel in Kashmir will begin next week as a special court has issued production warrant against JKLF chief Yasin Malik, officials said.

Chairman JKLF (S) Sardar Saghir Khan (Centre) addressing a rally near Line of Control (LoC).

The clashes between protesters and police took place on Saturday near the village of Tatrinote, about 80km south of the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, Muzaffarabad, and close to the Line of Control that divides Indian and Pakistan-administered portions of the disputed territory.

On third day (Monday), a sit-in continued at the site of the clashes, police said. Mobile phone service in the remote area was disrupted, complicating reporting of the situation by the media.

India and Pakistan frequently violate a 2003 ceasefire agreement at the Line of Control, with both sides blaming each other for killing civilians and security forces on opposite sides of the de facto border.

“Our main demand is that the international community must take steps to resolve the issue of Kashmir and take steps to send back the armies of both countries [from Kashmir],” Toqeer Gilani, a senior JKLF leader in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, told Al Jazeera.

Gilani, who was at the protest site, said more than 40 JKLF members had been arrested overnight, and that they were being pressured to end their protest.

Top security man in Kashmir blames Pakistan an incubator of terrorism

In a fresh volley of accusations, India’s top security man in Jammu & Kashmir, Lt Gen AK Bhatt has termed Pakistan as an incubator of terrorism. He blamed the country for exporting terrorism in the valley and brainwashing the youth to sponsor the indigenization of terrorist activities. Bhatt also confirmed that forces in troubled parts of the state killed at least 250 people in 2018. The number of militants killed in 2018 was highest ever in a decade in Kashmir. The number of militants killed in 2018 was highest ever in a decade in Kashmir.

In the meanwhile, heavy firing exchanges took place on Thursday between Indian and Pakistan troopers on the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district, various news sources said.

“Our positions are effectively retaliating. Firing exchanges were continuing,” the sources said. Heavy shelling and firing exchanges between the two armies have been intermittently continuing for the last eight days in Poonch and Rajouri districts.

Gen Bhatt said that social media was being used to radicalize youth as well as to mobilize crowds to sites of counter-terror operations, adding that “all stone-throwing groups in Kashmir have Pakistani numbers”.

In an earlier interview, he said that the military could only have a limited role, with solutions critical for resolving the larger Kashmir issue lying in the realm of politics — good governance, and political engagement as witnessed during the Vajpayee years.
“The military can only create conditions of normalcy. Beyond that, the initiatives have to be at levels of good governance, politically talking to people. During the Vajpayee era, it has happened, and similar initiatives the government will take at the right moment. I am sure they will,”

Turtuk – a place that stays

This is one of the best travel blog posts that I have read so far. Your description of the peculiarities of local Balti culture, impact of a cruel division on people’s life, encounters with villagers and remnants of a powerful culture of small dynasties is vivid. Every single description is full of information and honest comments.Indeed, this is more than a very powerful blog entry.

travel'n'tales

A faraway land, a lost kingdom and a Prince – sounds like the making of a fairy tale, doesn’t it?
Line of Control, army camps, airstrips and helicopter landing – sound like a war zone, doesn’t it?
Extreme rocky terrain, steep mountain ranges, deep turbulent river – sounds like an expedition doesn’t it?
Well, the small village at the far end of India, Turtuk, is all this and much more as I discovered to my surprise and delight.

When my itinerary out of Leh mentioned Turtuk, a lot of people, including locals from Leh, were skeptical of my decision to head there. It was roughly 80 kms beyond the popular sand dunes at Hunder and would mean “2-3 hours of extra driving for a place that had nothing much to offer”, went the rant. It was, however, in my sacrosanct itinerary and therefore simply had to be visited, no matter…

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Keran: Kashmir’s Valley of Tears

JK HUMANITARIAN

“Be still, my soul: when dearest friends depart, and all is darkened in the vale of tears.” 

KERAN: December, 2016/ Part 1:

In this quiet village of Keran Kashmir-divided between India and Pakistan, it is a case of oneness – one village, one identity, but two nationalities. Keran people live on two sides of the Line of Control, (LoC) which unfortunately happens a 30 meters wide stream with two names -Neelum for Pakistan and Kishanganga for India.

For people residing here this scenic stream is simply a line of treason, which has divided their blood relations from decades. There are hundreds of families who have blood ties on the other side of Pakistani Kashmir, but are separated by this stream.

In pics: Left Indian Keran and Right Pakistani-Keran divided by Neelum Stream

With a few thousand families living across both sides of Neelum/Kishanganaga, this hamlet fits the larger historical narrative…

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Urumqi to Skardu via the Silk Road

Urumqi is the capital of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China.

The ancient city of Urumqi was a major hub on the Silk Road during China’s Tang dynasty. The city further developed its reputation as a leading cultural and commercial center during Qing dynasty in 19th Century.

With an estimated population of 3.5 million in 2015, Urumqi is the largest city in China’s western interior as well as in Central Asia in terms of the population.

There has seen a huge economical development since the 1990s and currently Urumqi serves as a regional transport hub, a cultural, political and commercial centre of gravity.

Urumqi, Xinjian , China

Urumqi is well known among tourists as the last destination on the Silk Road, as it serves main transportation hub in the region and links the north and west Tian Shan mountain regions and Xinjiang region.

 

The city is rich in cultural diversity, demonstrated by the 43 ethnic groups who reside there. Among the interesting places to visit are the Russian and Muslim markets and the Heavenly Lake, a lake created amongst the mountain tops, the Red Hill, symbol of Urumqi, the Shanxibig Temple, a famous mosque, the Southern Pasture, a natural summer resort, the Xinjiang Regional Museum and the Night Market.

Shangrilla Resort Skardu

Urumqi is a main tourist city on China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a mega under-construction $ 54 billion economic corridor between China and Pakistan, that aims to connect Gwadar Port in southwestern Pakistan with Xinjiang in far-western China. 

The project is a collection of various infrastructure and energy projects, and includes the establishment of special economic zones. In 2016, CPEC became partly operational when Chinese cargo was transported overland to Gwadar Port for onward maritime shipment to Africa and West Asia.

The CPEC passes through Skardu in Pakistan administered Kashmir. Skardu is a border town in Kashmir’s Gilgit-Baltistan region and serves as the capital of Skardu district.

Skardu is located in an area of 10 kilometres (6 miles) wide by 40 kilometres (25 miles) long Skardu Valley, at the confluence of the Indus and Shigar Rivers at an altitude of nearly 2,500 metres (8,202 feet).

The town is considered a gateway to the eight-thousanders of the nearby Karakoram Mountain range. The town is located on the Indus river, which separates the Karakoram Range from the Himalayas.

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