Fact-Finding teams of GIA present reports to the Union Minister
Kashmiris want to punish the politician looters. No sympathy for jailed separatists.

Three teams under the banner of Group of Intellectuals and Academicians (GIA) visited Kashmir, Jammu and Ladakh regions of the erstwhile state of J&K, to know the ground realities and understand the aspirations of the people. The teams found that people have high hopes from the Centre particularly after the UT status was granted. They want to punish the politicians who looted the state for seven decades and have no sympathy for jailed separatists. The Report was presented to Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh in Delhi on October 23, 2019.

"The objective of visiting the state was to observe the daily lives of people in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh regions and to catalogue conditions in their entirety. Therefore we spoke to the people in streets of Kashmir, sought appointments with members of civil society and Government, and met people from across all political and economic streams,” Smt Arora said.

The team met random persons on the streets across rural and urban Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh. The teams also met the minority groups in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh—Shias, Sikhs, Kashmiri Hindus. They also met the marginalised groups in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh including members of SC/ST communities. The groups meet the political party activists belonging to mainstream political parties as well as terrorist groups. The discussions were held with the representatives of the Armed forces, state agencies and government officials in all three regions.

The Jammu fact-finding team visited Jammu, Akhnoor, Sundarbani, Nowshera and Rajouri areas and covered both rural and urban areas. The Ladakh team spent time in Leh and visited several villages. They visited Government offices, Colleges, schools, people's homes, market places and spoke to men, women, youth and children in urban and rural areas.

The Kashmir fact-finding team looked at issues such as those impacting women, nationalist Kashmiris and minorities, to help develop a framework for furthering the aspirations of people in the State. The report states there is no lockdown. It noted that shops are open, there is usual traffic on roads, there is no scarcity of doctors and medicines, and there is no evidence of any kidnaping by security forces or other brutalities.

People of the region are happy that corrupt politicians have been detained. “Kashmiris across the board seek healing from a corrupt, oppressive, social and political culture that has emerged over the past 70 years and become embedded in the last 30 years. They want the UT model to work particularly in Kashmir, and are looking towards Centre to reach out to them with real change. The report recommended that any group, nationally or internationally that tries to derail the healing or normalisation process should be effectively countered.

The Situation in Kashmir

The fact-finding team observed the intense petitioning and activity in the media for the release of jailed Kashmiri leaders in Kashmir, and loud proclamations to establish that Kashmir is under ‘Lockdown’ and there is ‘genocide’. There are reports that 1300 children have been picked up and lodged in jails outside Jammu & Kashmir. There have been calls for restoration of mobile and internet connectivity. On the contrary, there is no sympathy for jailed Kashmiri leaders amongst the common people of Kashmir. People want the Government of India to take the leaders to Court and convict them for corruption. There is no Genocide in Kashmir. The only Genocide observed was that of Kashmiri Hindus in 1990. At present Kashmiris are not under any kind of lockdown or genocide.

The team found that there is a large section of people who credit the amendment in Article 370 and the removal of Article 35A with saving many lives. “Women are safe in Kashmir. We saw women on the roads driving cars. We saw them actively working in the Panchayats. They are not being harassed due to their religious identity. Sarpanches are looking forward to BDC elections. However, they need urgent security and reassurances from the government. The minorities of Kashmir seek closer interaction directly with the GoI. They want that Kashmiri Hindu Genocide must be recognised by the GoI. The experiences of the victims cannot be equated with the brutalisation of Kashmiri Muslims in the State by non-State actors. The Kashmiri Hindus were targeted for their religious identity. There is a silent constituency of wisdom amongst Kashmiri Muslims. They seek closer interaction with the government,” the report said.

The team found no evidence of children being picked up by security forces and randomly arrested. Media persons are freely travelling and reporting in Kashmir. No one stopped the team during the extensive travel through Kashmir. The brutalisation of people by terrorists still exists in rural areas. They are not allowing people to resume daily lives, the report added.

The Situation in Jammu Region

The team that visited the Jammu region found everything normal. Markets, shops, transportation services, schools, colleges, universities, hospitals, mobile and landline phones were working as usual. Internet services are available on Wi-Fi at homes, Internet Cafes and all government institutions. Only mobile phone internet was withheld till date. All the people interacted during the visit welcomed the decision to set aside Article 370 and 35A. Many people shared their apprehensions regarding the loss of lands and jobs as they fear influx of outsiders. A few students also were enthusiastic about expected increase in competition and their own possibility of skill development. “The team felt the prolonged pain and suffering of the victims of 35A. No compensation can reverse the years of their mental agony and all kinds of loss. There is dire need for development of the neglected and discriminated areas and communities in the region. The government needs to identify and prioritise its tasks on immediate and long term basis,” the team said in its report.

The Situation in Ladakh & Kargil

The team that visited Ladakh observed that in both Leh and Kargil people are engaged in deriving benefits from the UT status and are looking at ways in which their regions will develop mechanisms for empowerment through BDC elections and the like. There is a demand for greater focus on the preservation of the Bhoti. They also want greater participation of local populace in the decision making process. People want a greater focus on land connectivity because large parts of South Ladakh are even now accessible only on foot. Similarly, air connectivity, communication connectivity etc. also need to be strengthened. Education infrastructure is required to be strengthened in local area, as it has been a dominant concern of the local population since long.

Since lot of focus is on creating the economic opportunities, concerted focus is required on local value addition, development of local resources with adequate documentation and adoption of technology, suitable distribution of the surpluses generated and active participation of the community in the process. Focus is also required in a concerted manner on local skill formation in the locally relevant sectors and then creating economic and entrepreneurial opportunities to absorb these skilled people. Tourism has been a contributing factor to social unrest in this strategically important region; the government has strong incentives to pay closer attention to the effects of tourism as well as tourist facilitation. Since Ladakh’s main attraction is its culture and natural environment, the government needs to be open to initiatives aimed at protecting these. In this context grant of Union Territory status to Ladakh makes perfect sense. People from Leh and Kargil have been brought closer and are now able to resolve mutual differences with greater attention.

People in Kargil are very delighted with setting aside of Article 370. However, some people are not aware of the outcomes and therefore they are a little confused. K Hassan Pasha, a politically active resident of Kargil, said that educated people of Kargil are very happy with the removal of Article 370. They feel that now onwards the Kashmir centric policies will stop and they have finally got independence in the right sense of the word. The future is bright and now we will get our rights.

“Ladakh is a place where the Ladakhi and Indian identity is bigger than the religious identity, all groups coexist harmoniously. While the developmental concerns remain, those are endemic to the place and concern all. What does emerge is that for the isolated geographical places and distinct cultural and linguistic groups living therein administrative political and developmental dimensions need to be seen beyond the constraints of a larger administrative mechanism like a state where these identities get marginalised. In this context grant of the Union Territory status to Ladakh makes perfect sense,” the report of the Fact-Finding Team added.

Survey: Kashmiris for punishing the looters and No sympathy for jailed separatists