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Pakistan was responsible for exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from Valley

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The 1971 India-Pakistan war was a watershed moment in the ties between the two nations. On June 27, 1972, on the eve of his departure for then Simla for talks with Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, Pakistan President Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto in a broadcast on Radio Pakistan said: “The war we have lost was not of our making. I had warned against it but my warning fell on deaf ears of a power drunk Junta. They recklessly plunged our people into the war and involved us in an intolerable surrender which lost us half our country.”

It took seven years and a coup d’etat for the Pakistani army to reassert itself; and with its recapture of power began a policy of trying to avenge 1971, not by war, but by chipping away at India with a proxy war.

In 1983, the National Conference in Jammu & Kashmir won a second landslide in state elections. But their leader and Chief Minister, Farooq Abdullah, fell out with Indira Gandhi, who used her constitutional levers to dismiss his government the following year.

When Abdullah subsequently patched up with Indira Gandhi, many of his supporters disapproved of the reconciliation. Thus, when fresh elections took place in Jammu & Kashmir in 1987, a significant segment of the National Conference’s traditional voters turned against them.

The outcome, though, did not reflect this. In others words, it is widely believed the results were rigged. The parties that suffered went on to constitute the separatist All Party Hurriyat Conference.

In February 1989, Soviet troops withdrew from Afghanistan. People in India-controlled Kashmir were pummelled with the propaganda that if Pakistan could have defeated the Soviet Union, Indian soldiers would be no match for their Pakistani counterparts in the event of an invasion by the Pakistan army.

Thus, even pro-India Kashmiris became nervous and felt it was better to be on the right side of such a war than the wrong one. It is in this fertile atmosphere of alienation and fear that an uprising occurred in August 1989 in Indian-controlled Kashmir.

During the 1988 to 1992 presidency of George Bush Senior, the US administration placed Pakistan on a watch list of countries potentially sponsoring terrorism, without definitively designating it as a state sponsor of terrorism.

I asked a senior American diplomat posted in Islamabad what persuaded Bush to issue such a caution. He replied, the President had “credible evidence” to do so.

I probed the diplomatist further. He revealed US satellites had picked up movement of Pakistani army trucks delivering weapons close to the Line of Control with India in Kashmir. The weapons had been supplied by western countries to Pakistan for distribution to the Afghan Mujahideen. Instead, they were diverted to Kashmir.

That was the genesis of a proxy war, which included intimidating Kashmiri Pandits and effectively triggering their exodus from the Valley.

During negotiations at the Simla summit, Bhutto floated the idea of the Line of Control in Kashmir being converted into a “Line of Peace”.

General Pervez Musharraf’s formula in 2006 was broadly along similar lines. But then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s government ultimately found it difficult to trust a man who was instrumental for the Kargil intrusion in 1999.

It has been the belief in the power structure in Pakistan that militancy in India-controlled Kashmir is justified. However, as the European Union has laid down, where there’s an opportunity to enter office through the ballot box – as there was up to 2019 – violence is unjustified.

The Election Commission of India has largely ensured fair elections in Jammu & Kashmir since the 1990s. In India’s northeastern states, separatist parties have fought elections and formed governments.

The Scottish National Party has achieved the same in Britain. Sinn Fein, which believes in Northern Ireland breaking away from Britain and merging with the Republic of Ireland, has been a constituent in the ruling coalition in Northern Ireland.

The legitimacy of fissiparous forces in Jammu & Kashmir can only be established by them, proving that they indeed enjoy majority support.

In the one and only opinion survey carried out on both sides of the Line of Control in Kashmir — by King’s College London and Chatham House in 2010 — 44 per cent of people in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir wanted independence as opposed to 43 per cent in India-controlled Jammu and Kashmir. Two per cent of people in India-controlled Jammu & Kashmir wanted to join Pakistan, compared to 1 per cent of people in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir.

Such figures may have changed. But India and Pakistan are obliged to sort out their disputes under the Simla Agreement, which states, “The two countries are resolved to settle their differences by peaceful means through bilateral negotiations.”

This Agreement is registered as a Treaty with the United Nations under Article 102 of the UN Charter. Therefore, it is binding on both nations.

National News

Congress MP Imran Masood calls for banning liquor during Navratri

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Saharanpur, March 29: Congress lawmaker Imran Masood said on Saturday that not just meat shops, liquor establishments should be shut during the nine-day festival of Navratri and called for embracing and promoting the spirit of brotherhood and communal harmony.

“Everybody is demanding a ban on meat shops during Navratri. Why is no one asking for a ban on liquor shops? Why is there no outpouring on the free flow of liquor during Navratri? Will this not spoil the purity and sanctity of the festival?” Saharanpur MP said in a special interaction with media.

The Congress Parliamentarian said that peaceful celebration supersedes everything, and it is incumbent upon all communities to maintain decorum during festivities and also make certain sacrifices, be it Eid or Navratri.

Notably, Eid-ul-Fitr and Navratri are coinciding on the same day this year. Both festivals are set to fall on Monday, with little possibility of change in the Eid schedule on account of moon sighting.

Days ago, the Congress MP also extended support to the demands of a meat ban during Navratri celebrations. In an apparent message to the Muslim community, he said that nothing would change if one did not eat meat for ten days.

“What matters above everything is the peaceful co-existence of communities. At no point in time, the differences over food preferences lead to communal strife,” Masood told newspersons.

Congress MP, when asked questions on the party’s strategy for the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, said that the Opposition is fully prepared to take on the Centre on “partisan legislation”.

“We opposed the amendments in the JPC meeting, tooth and nail. We will strongly voice our dissent in Parliament too,” he said.

Notably, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Friday that the Waqf Bill will not be delayed any further and will be reintroduced in the ongoing session of Parliament.

Only four working days of the Budget Session are left, as it concludes on April 4.

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National News

‘PM Narendra Modi Relies On Crutches Of Nitish Kumar And Chandrababu Naidu To Pass Waqf Bill”: AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi

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Hyderabad: All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi spoke on the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024 and said that the BJP does not have a majority in the Lok Sabha, and if Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar oppose it, it won’t be passed.

While speaking to media, Asaduddin Owaisi said that PM Narendra Modi is relying on the crutches of Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar. He stated that Union Home Minister Amit Shah is spreading lies in the country regarding the Waqf Bill.

“Amit Shah is the Home Minister of the Government of India and his statement is proof of the fact that you trying to make an unconstitutional law which can be challenged in the court. This is a violation of the articles of the Constitution and the Waqf of the entire country will suffer because of it. You are removing the section of the Waqf property, who will benefit from it. You are omitting the revenue of lakhs of rupees. Amit Shah is lying to the country that you can challenge the Waqf Tribunal in the court. Prime Minister Narendra Modi relies on the crutches of Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu and if they do not support this unconstitutional bill, then this law will not be made”, Asaduddin Owaisi said.

Earlier on Friday, Owaisi supported the ‘black band’ protest against the Waqf (Amendment) Bill. Owaisi, who is also part of the JPC on the Waqf bill, joined in the symbolic protest on Friday by wearing a black armband as he offered prayers.

Meanwhile, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Friday that Waqf Amendment Bill, on which JPC has given its report, will be tabled in the Budget session of Parliament. The Budget session is slated to conclude on April 4.

“Nobody needs to get afraid of the Waqf Bill. In 2013, the Congress-led government passed the Waqf Bill and made several provisions that are not aligned with our Constitution. We are now trying to align the bill with constitutional principles,” he said.

Asked about Asaduddin Owaisi’s black arm band protest, Amit Shah said people have a right to do so. “Some do it through their clothes, some through their words. In Parliament, one opposes through logic,” he said.

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Crime

Accused in Saif Ali Khan stabbing case files bail plea, claims innocence

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Mumbai, March 29: Mohammad Shariful Islam Shahzad, the accused in the stabbing of Bollywood superstar Saif Ali Khan, has filed a bail petition in the Mumbai Sessions Court, asserting that he is innocent and the case against him is fabricated.

The attack took place in the early hours of January 16 when the accused allegedly entered Saif’s Bandra residence through his youngest son Jeh’s room.

The actor, who was reportedly trying to fend off the assailant, suffered multiple stab wounds. Despite his injuries, Saif managed to go to the hospital on his own, accompanied by his son Taimur.

Shariful Islam Shahzad’s petition, filed through his lawyer, claims that the FIR was wrongly registered and that he has fully cooperated with the police investigation.

His legal team argues that since all evidence is already in police custody, there is no risk of tampering, and therefore, he should be granted bail.

Currently, the case is being handled by the Bandra Magistrate Court, but it falls under the jurisdiction of the Mumbai Sessions Court. Once the police file a charge sheet, the case will be transferred to the Sessions Court. However, the charge sheet is yet to be filed.

According to media reports, doctors removed a 2.5-inch knife from Saif’s wound. The actor sustained six stab injuries, two of which were serious as they were near his spine.

The incident reportedly occurred around 2:15 am on January 16 when the accused broke into the house, attacked the house help, and then stabbed Saif when he intervened.

Saif was alerted by noises from Jeh’s room, where he found the accused in an altercation with the house help. Attempting to protect the staff, Saif fought off the intruder with his bare hands before being stabbed multiple times.

Investigations have revealed that the accused, a Bangladeshi national, intended to rob a wealthy individual to finance his mother’s medical treatment in his home country. He has a history of petty theft and was previously dismissed from restaurants in Worli and Thane for stealing.

It is also reported that the attacker was unaware of Saif Ali Khan’s celebrity status and targeted the residence purely because it was located in an upscale apartment complex.

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