NEW DELHI, June 25: Kashmir’s spiritual leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq urged India on Saturday to declare a ceasefire within the troubled region and spelt out steps to resolve the 57-year old dispute with a vision for an equal space for its minorities.
In a signed article in the Hindustan Times, the Mirwaiz said he had returned from a recent visit to Pakistan with a “deeper realisation” that it was not good enough to seek a solution to the Kashmir dispute that divides its people “along lines that assert religious, ethnic or regional divisions”.
He said Jammu and Kashmir was not a homogenous state. “We are a state with different cultures, religions, languages and histories prior to 1846,” he said.
In that sense the state of Jammu and Kashmir is a picture of “Unity in Diversity”, he declared.
The Mirwaiz said this character of the region should be preserved at all costs. He said his reference in Pakistan to his homeland as the United States of Kashmir was an allusion to this diversity.
“We visualise a future for Kashmir where each unit has its own culture, language and way of governance within a given structure. This would also best accommodate the viewpoints of India and Pakistan,” the Mirwaiz wrote.
Three things are not acceptable to the people of Jammu and Kashmir, the Mirwaiz wrote. Firstly, any status quo is not acceptable. “The Line of Control not only cuts through the land of Kashmir, but also through the hearts of its people.”
Secondly, the conversion of the LoC into an international border would be a reprehensible move.
“Thirdly, I am convinced that there can be no division on religious and ethnic lines and we need a settlement that addresses the concerns of all the peoples of the state.”
In his vision of the talks ahead, the Mirwaiz said the Kashmiri leadership expected to continue the dialogue with Pakistani and Indian leadership on separate tracks.
“This will give Kashmiris a sense of genuine involvement, a must for any progress towards resolution.”
The Mirwaiz said the ceasefire being observed by Indian and Pakistan troops across the LoC was helpful for their armies.
“We want the people of Kashmir to breathe easy too. If the government of India takes a unilateral decision on a ceasefire within the state, the onus will be on the other party to respond. The withdrawal of troops has also not been effected. If the government of India moves on this, the attitude and minds of the people of Kashmir will also change.”
