Briefly discusses Aug.5, 2019's revocation of Art. 370 by the Govt. of India

1. Is Revocation of Art. 370 an end in itself?
Shantanu Basu
The sordid saga of select politicians pillaging public funds and bankrolling their re-election
and paying mercenaries to hold our terror and violence as an instrument of state policy for
common citizens is the hallmark in Kashmir, NE India, indeed behind nearly all insurgency
(remember the mercenaries of Purnea that was made into a successful movie in Bombay?).
These mercenaries are also funded from overseas sources (not always palefaces, though),
much of which is illegal (drug, arms, human trafficking, etc. called proceeds of crime). In
simple terms, these mercenaries are a convenient conduit for foreign intervention in our
domestic affairs.
There is no ideological backing of any of these groupings that alternate in running
governments across India. There is ample evidence available to nail the likes of several
politicians only if our investigative agencies had the expertise to deal with financial
documents. The Kashmir Valley is one of these areas. None of the politicians presently under
house arrest have any honest commitment to their home state. Each one has amassed giant
financial assets, nearly all of it public funds siphoned off. In fact, the amount of siphoned
public funds may account for a conservative 50% or more of grey cash and assets these
politicians have collected. When things get hot, these politicians change 'sides'. Such change
of course, comes for a giant price, a share of the booty. Yet these charlatans rise to be leaders
of national eminence.
The British realized that Indian politicians were the 'chavanni' (four annas) type, with not
much expectations; even a 2% commission would be enough for them to sell out their states.
Wherever the British have gone, before leaving they created fault lines, e.g. the creation of
Israel on legitimate Palestinian land. The same happened in Kashmir.
The debauch Maharaja, Hari Singh, was hardly in any position to bargain when his lands
were being overrun by Pak irregulars and he would have probably died at their hands, unless
he capitulated to India. So why the one-sided Instrument of Accession that laid the
foundation of a private zamindari, in perpetuity, at the expense of all other Indian territories?
The Tibet issue is another outstanding example of a British-made fault line. Tibet was the
buffer for India against China. Why was this delicate balance disturbed? The finger points to
the British and their loyal Indian subject politicians in 1947-56, the formative years of the
Indian Union. Of course, there were many exceptions like Rafi Ahmed Kidwai who, against
Nehru's opinion, ordered the arrest of Sheikh Abdullah in the early 1950s.
The current crop of Kashmiri politicians must be brought to book and most severely punished
without any demur. Not just that, the account books of this state must be thoroughly
scrutinized to find siphoning of public funds and their transfer within/outside India. What was
the role of the J&K Bank in all this (today this bank faces huge frauds)? Why are no
questions asked?
For the uninitiated here are some stats, dated today (2011-15), but enough to buttress my
point:
a. Area under Indian occupation (sq. km) 106567
b. Population (Census 2011) 12.50 million
c. No. of districts 16

2. d. Total expenditure via State Budget Rs. 155785.36 crore
e. Avg. expenditure per sq. km @ 75% of total land area of State Rs. 190-195 crore
f. Avg. expenditure/district/annum for 16 districts Rs. 1947 crore
g. Avg. expenditure/head/annum of population Rs. 2.50 lakh
h. Total own revenue earned by state Rs. 55821.66 crore
i. Avg. own revenue earned by the state/head of population (incl. state’s share of central
taxes) Rs. 44657
j. Total grants received by State from Govt. of India Rs. 73478 crore
k. Avg. grants-in-aid/head of population received by J&K from Govt. of India Rs.
587824
l. Avg. annual ratio between State’s own revenue and grants-in-aid from Govt. of India
1: 1.31
And these are figures from the State's audited Annual Accounts, not ones that I created. And
the above figures do not include special grants (disaster relief), NHAI, MoD, CPWD and
other central agency work funded directly by GOI. With probably triple figure lakh crore
Rupees having been released by GOI, why is it that Kashmiri children have no access to good
quality education while all Kashmiris suffer from lack of access to health facilities,
commercial-scale sports entertainment arenas, communication amenities, and much more?
Unless exemplary action against a dozen or two prominent politicians is taken, Mr. Modi's
'naa khaoonga, naa khaane doonga' slogan will be consigned to the footnotes of history while
corruption will eat away the remaining innards of our economy, leaving us eternally poor.
I must credit BJP-led govts for three major milestones, viz. the convergence of telecom and I-
T, the Golden Quadrilateral and today, the revocation of Art. 370, the balance being mostly
footnotes in history. Now that the Art. 370 excitement is over, may I also request the Hon'ble
PM to look for a better FM, constitute a bipartisan Economic Advisory Council, select far
more competent officers for the economic ministries, stop chasing the ghost of tax evasion by
small fry and concentrate on making GST a truly national tax, rationalize his Ministries and
bring in bipartisan professionals as junior Ministers? The country needs economic solace and
prosperity far more than the transient excitement over Art. 370. Likewise, the Uniform Civil
Code is another top priority as is placing a second charge on personal assets of company
promoters as collateral for future bank borrowing and creating well-paying jobs..
Last, but not the least, GOI and its defense services in J&K must not only be fair to common
people but also seen to be fair. They have rendered stellar service in preserving the integrity
of our land but have frequently been accused of use of excessive force. The average Kashmiri
aam aadmi is an Indian and deserves compassion, not retaliatory brutality. If the latter were to
happen too frequently after today, GOI would lose much of the goodwill it has garnered
today. Besides, that could mean the defense services remain on war alert (at giant daily cost),
a contingency that GOI's tattered finances may not be able to sustain for more than a month
or two. BJP motor mouths too need to be severely warned not to utter rubbish on this
sensitive issue that is their wont. It is time for healing, not for settling past scores or sub-class
trolling. Kashmir is an integral part of the Indian union, not a conquered territory as our
media would have us believe. Nor must the army be viewed as one of occupation/liberation.
Please tread cautiously, GOI. Thin ice is treacherous. (1092 words)
The author is a senior public policy analyst and commentator