War and peace

It has been a long year since Kargil and it's a message carried by an unlikely courier: the dreaded leader of the compulsively violent Hiz...

It has been a long year since Kargil and it8217;s a message carried by an unlikely courier: the dreaded leader of the compulsively violent Hizbul Mujahideen. From worries voiced last year about another bloody summer on Kashmir8217;s icy slopes to the announcement on Monday of a unilateral ceasefire by the Hizbul8217;s de facto chief, Abdul Majid Dar, the twists and turns in the Valley occasion not just immense caution, but also a large dose of flexibility to appreciate possible sightings of a peaceful future.

As the nation commences celebrations to commemorate a hard-fought victory in India8217;s first television war in perhaps the most inhospitable arena possible, conflicting emotions are perceptible. The instinct to wallow in the warm comfort of memories of a challenge extremely well met jostles with the imperative to scan the ledger to list the lessons learnt and the precautions taken to ensure that precious lives are not sacrificed in another Kargil. But what exactly is meant by another Kargil? Three possible implications, all of them correct in some measure, present themselves.

For one, the defence forces simply cannot allow themselves to be taken by surprise by another virtual invasion of their territory under their very noses. The Indian Army8217;s response has been to increase the number of winter posts on the Line of Control and to meticulously decrease the unheld frontage. Whatever be the logistical and human challenges that this imposes, it is clear that the army had no other choice. But is just as clear that this Siachenisation of Kargil is not tenable in the long term. This leads one to the second implication: Kargil as a metaphor for an intelligence failure that could impact the nation8217;s morale. The Kargil Review Committee Report makes much of the lack of coordination that informs India8217;s intelligence establishment. The country has been informed of the procurement of electronic surveillance systems; these must be augmented with more focused and penetrative ground work.

In this context, the support of local residents in reporting the presence of infiltratrors in Pakistan8217;s vicious proxy war would be invaluable support that can only be obtained by addressing the alienation and distrust that prevails in Jammu and Kashmir.

Indeed, if another Kargil is to be avoided, the Kashmir problem must ultimately be solved. It is not known what backroom negotiations preceded Dar8217;s dramatic announcement, but the Hizbul8217;s ceasefire will demand a lot of maturity and guile from political leaders and the security agencies. The almost surreal vision of Dar advocating a dialogue with New Delhi can no doubt be linked to hardliner Abdul Ghani Bhat8217;s appointment as Hurriyat chief and his subsequent moderate and conciliatory interviews on talks with the Centre.

These are happy times when separatist groups in the Valley seek to attract attention by making friendly overtures by vociferously participating in the ongoing debate on autonomy. Peacemakers in Lutyen8217;s Delhi, in Srinagar and Jammu, among various counter-insurgency operatives will have to relentlessly keep up with the imponderables this debate will throw up. By trashing old mindsets while keeping in mind fundamental national interests. By extending olive branches while maintaining wide-eyed vigils. For the road from Kargil passes through Srinagar.