NC Saga of Betrayals

NC patron Farooq Abdullah alleges that under a conspiracy discrimination is meted out and some vested interests are trying to destabilize integrity of J&K. While addressing a public gathering he said, “They are dividing people in the name of Paharis and Gujjars, Jammuties and Kashmiries and Hindus and Muslims, which is not only unfortunate but even fatal for the composite culture of State”. (GK, 16 May 2008). Kashmiris are discriminated in every sphere of life, be it mobile companies who have large customer base in Kashmir and earn more here but still they are shifting from here to Jammu leaving employees in lurch. Everywhere the story is the same. In power sector nothing is hidden. India has stretched claws over this sector and robbed us of this main resource, and in development works Kashmir is far behind due to the biased bureaucracy. All this is done with full command and patronage from Delhi darbar, to which NC and particularly its Patron Dr. Farooq has been so loyal. This man known for contradicting himself, doublespeak and blowing hot and cold in same breath now says these things just to gain credibility among masses which has suffered heavily due to the anti-People and pro-Delhi policies followed by him and his party to keep Delhi in good humour. Firstly his father made blunders. He parted away from Muslim Conference at the behest of Indian National Congress in 1938 and when Kashmir was about to be free from Dogra rule, Kashmiris were thrown straight into frying pan of Indian chokehold. After the launching of plebiscite Front the biggest mistake Sheikh Abdullah made was that he broke the fountain of resistance i.e. plebiscite front to which every one was associated. That is why we see today number of parties and more leaders than followers. If he was tired of struggle, he should have bidden adieu to politics and led normal life without breaking the front. The nature of Kashmir dispute would have itself forced India to address this dispute. Had it been so, people of Kashmir would have still high regard and respect for him, but he left the ship midway and took complete U turn and betrayed the movement. Even his opponents felt disgraced for the post for which he left everything behind. He was downsized, as CM from PM of Kashmir and got nothing from Delhi to sell to people for surrendering his two decade struggle for Plebiscite. His son Farooq Abdullah, who publicly declared his commitment to the cause of independent Kashmir once, ditched the movement. Still when he struck a deal with Rajeev Gandhi in 1986, before joining office, he along with his full cabinet went straight to Delhi to get their master’s ‘ashirwaad’ and the praised same Jagmohan who destabilized his government in 1984. So it was a mere show to quit the chair in 1990 on the pretext that he can’t work with a person who destabilized his government in 1984. He quit as he was not feeling comfortable with the chair, which he got through massive rigging, by which he became so unpopular that he was not allowed even to offer Nimaz at eidgah because armed struggle was in full boom then and NC workers and leaders were feeling threatened here as they had received ultimatum of leaving this party or face dire consequences. Dr. Farooq tried his level best to frighten people and advised people not to support armed struggle. On 7th may 1989 while addressing people he said, “police would raze your houses, ransack your homes, break open your shops and even subject your womenfolk to molestation if you are found assisting terrorists”. But it didn’t work as sentiment of freedom is deep rooted in the hearts and minds of people. Still his son Omer Abdullah believes it was ‘enforced mass uprising’. After the ruthless aggression of Indian security forces, which had launched many brutal operations against armed guerrillas and local people here such as Operation Eagle, Operation Tiger, Operation Catch and Kill, which they are still following, real face of Indian democracy got exposed and New Delhi was thinking of some face saving mechanism and they needed someone to participate in their bogus elections. Again NC betrayed trust of people in 1996 and joined election chorus to provide much needed relief to Delhi and threw their demand of autonomy before joining elections to winds. Human rights abuses by Indian Security Forces have reached to alarming proportions. Who advocated bombarding of neighbouring country to ‘finish training camps’? Who revolted against Hizb’s dialogue with centre? Who was first to implement draconian act POTA when it was still an ordinance? It was he who used to call Hurriyat Conference as- “bunch of seven jokers”. Now in order to gain public sympathy, the party is doing all these tricks. The revelations made by L.K.Advani in his auto-biography ‘My Country My Life’ that Abdullahs preferred power over autonomy was already known to people of Kashmir. And now their utterance that ‘centre has no option but to restore states autonomy’ is sheer rhetoric and nothing else. Whom Farooq Abdullah tries to fool, perhaps to himself as people’s memory is not that short.