Dangerous Divide

The feud between the Congress and the PDP over the demilitarisation issue portends ill for the state, making governance suffer

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DIVIDED WE STAND: Mehbooba Mufti (left) and Ghulam Nabi Azad

It all started as if on queue, after Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's media diplomacy brought the issue into the centrestage of political discourse.

In the process of re-inventing itself, PDP has again fallen back on the most popular separatist demand: that of withdrawal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA). But this time these demands have not found the expected resonance from either New Delhi or its major coalition partner, the Congress. Intended to unleash an election-oriented political dynamic in the state, the issue seems to be setting the stage for the next assembly elections, due in 2008.

The brewing discontent between the ruling partners has now virtually put the ruling alliance in a state of limbo. Both the coalition partners have intensified their attacks on each other and toughened their stance as speculation on the government being on the verge of collapse grows.

However, Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad seems confident about the coalition's survival even as he rules out troop reduction in Kashmir. Though he refuses to comment on the threats by PDP, Azad clearly conveys his party's stand: "Security-related issues should never be used as a political weapon." Despite facing opposition from all the sides, PDP, in an apparent attempt to force a discussion on the issue, resorted to staying away from the last three cabinet meetings. Their non-participation has led to inertia in the state administration. But that's not all. PDP is quite unhappy with the Congress's unwillingness to even discuss the issue.

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MEN AT WORK: Military personnel risk their lives to maintain peace.

The divide in the ruling coalition came to the fore when PDP patriarch Mufti Mohammad Sayeed reluctantly resigned from the post of chief minister two years back, a consequence of power-sharing agreement between the coalition partners. Musharraf's demilitarisation proposal and its subsequent adoption by PDP further pushed the coalition into a corner, forcing varying acknowledgements of the existing situation in Kashmir.

To counter the situation, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has called the PDP patron to Delhi for talks to avert the crisis in the coalition. "His (Sayeed's) meeting with the prime minister is crucial. Even if it fails, PDP will stick to its stand," says finance minister and PDP general secretary Tariq Hameed Kara.

Even as the PDP has scheduled a crucial meeting of its political affairs committee on March 25 to take a final decision on the issue, sources say that Sayeed's meeting with prime minister is expected to recommend the formation of a "high level" committee to discuss the issue. "This will serve a dual purpose. One, it will give a safe exit to the already embarrassed PDP and secondly, will dissipate the current crisis in the coalition Government," explained the sources.

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"We won't support either party. We would prefer fresh elections." OMAR ABDULLAH, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL CONFERENCE

Political observers are of the view that PDP is determined to keep its political pot boiling and the issue of demilitarisation is just a part of a political stratagem to consolidate its pro-Kashmir base. It is an attempt to appropriate what is believed to have been agreed upon by Delhi and Islamabad, through back channel diplomacy over the issue.

The National Conference (NC), voted out of power by the Congress-PDP coalition after the last assembly elections in 2002, has already tried to turn the tables on PDP. Party chief Omar Abdullah declared that his party would seek a fresh mandate rather than support any other political party. "I am not hungry for power and it would not be in our interest to support Congress," said Abdullah.

So far, the debate on demilitarisation and its political contours reveals the same old axis. The main players are aligning to take on pro-Kashmir or centrist lines. The separatist camp has already moved to deny mainstream parties opportunities to translate these demands into poll slogans.

Delhi may succeed in ensuring the longevity of the coalition in the state but the issues of good governance and development that both Congress and PDP have sworn by have been relegated to the background.

This again lends credence to the often repeated assertion that Kashmir is beyond governance till a radical political change is brought about.

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