In the Kashmir Valley, those aghast at the arson and deaths over the past week describe the street protests and consequent police action as the 'cycle of violence' and lament the Government's failure to break this vicious circle. In theory, this sounds perfectly sensible: If there are no killing of law-breakers by the security forces (whether the State police or the CRPF) then there will be no attempt to break the law to register protest; if there are no protests then the law will not be broken; and if the law is not broken, then there will be no counter-offensive by the security forces. There is a problem, though. And this relates to another exalted theory, which involves a chicken and an egg: Which comes first, the chicken or the egg? Or, what should precede the other in the Kashmir Valley: Cessation of strict enforcement of curfew to stop arsonists from running riot or a halt to the violent protests which are part of a dangerous campaign by separatists sitting in the safety of their hideouts and who have no qualms about using innocent youngsters and women as their foot soldiers. If those who have died in the past week are young men and women, some barely out of their teens, it is not because the police have been targeting the youth but the cynicism of those who chant 'Azadi' the loudest. Ironically, the futility of such mindless violence — setting police stations and Government buildings on fire, attacking policemen on duty — has been underscored by none else than Syed Ali Shah Geelani, who heads the hardline faction of the All-Party Hurriyat Conference and has been relentless in demanding Kashmir's separation from India and merger with Pakistan. There is no reason to believe that Mr Geelani has had a change of heart and decided to eschew separatism as a political creed. What is more than likely is that he and his ilk are alarmed that the leadership of the separatist movement in the Valley is fast slipping into hands other than theirs. It would help understand the sudden surge in the violence if the identity of those pulling the strings — apart from the ISI which mentors separatists of all hues — were to be revealed.
Till such time that happens, the Jammu & Kashmir Government must focus on getting a grip over the situation and the Union Government should concentrate on forging an all-party consensus on how best to deal with the crisis. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah may have the right intentions, but he has clearly failed to exercise his authority as well as engage the masses politically. That violence should have erupted in those areas where the National Conference performed the best in the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections tells its own story of political disengagement. Toning up the administration Mr Abdullah heads is no doubt required, but more importantly his — as well as his party's — presence in the streets is urgently called for. As for the UPA regime, having failed abysmally to capitalise on the advantage that accrued after two successive elections in Jammu & Kashmir, it should not seek the advice of others. This would be best done through an all-party consultative mechanism, which cannot wait any longer. This is not about the Congress's sense of false prestige and the UPA regime's bogus pride, but about India's national interest. The Congress and the Government it leads cannot be trusted to handle the situation on its own.
