What Farooq Sahab Means By Autonomy?

A resolution was passed by J&K Assembly in 2000 accepting the report of the Autonomy Committee constituted by the then Farooq Abdullah headed J&K Government. Now a union minister, Dr Farooq Abdullah has been quoted as having said on 29th March this year: “When we gave the document of Autonomy to the Centre, (then prime minister Atal Bihari) Vajpayee called me and said ‘We are not ready to accept it’. I asked him if he had read that. He replied he had not. Without reading the document, they had thrown it away…” 

I had made a request to Dr Farooq on 15 Dec 2007  for publicizing the Autonomy report in simple and plain words among the common masses of J&K. But I got no answer. 

With 2014 Lok Sabha elections underway, Dr. Farooq Abdullah has again shown a “very very serious” concern for the 2000 Autonomy Resolution.

The report (23 Dec 2009) of the 5th Working Group (Center State Relations ) constituted (May 2006) by  Prime Minister Manmohan Singh  and headed by Justice Saghir Ahmed  was submitted by the secretary of the Working Group to J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. The report had made just passing references to  “Greater Autonomy” of NC, Autonomy Resolution 2000 of J&K Assembly, Self Rule of PDP and  Article 370 .There is nothing specific in the report about these subjects. But the way Congress lead UPA government has been sitting on the report even after more than four years of its submission has given  enough opportunity to  National Conference  and PDP  to use some passing references to keep the people of Kashmir region in illusions regarding future of center state  relations.

As is commonly understood by people (particularly outside Kashmir Valley) the NC’s Greater Autonomy would in a way  take Jammu and Kashmir State back to political and administrative order of local governance as it was in 1953. And the opposition from Jammu and Ladakh regions to suggestions for returning pre-1953 position is obvious as they instead want  even  repeal / modification of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution so that there is near uniformity with other Indian states as regards the legislative operations.

Dr Farooq Abdullah has repeated in 2014 also that it is only the Greater Autonomy that can provide a workable solution to undo the wrongs done in J&K. 

Benefits of Greater Autonomy need to be spelled out to those who oppose it.  Let Dr. Farooq Abdullah spell out in simple words : 

1.How will acceptance of 2000 Autonomy Resolution by Union put an end to the present turmoil  and neutralise separatist elements in J&K in general and Kashmir Valley in particular? 

2. Will it make PDP to abandon  Self Rule demand? It has been claimed by NC that Greater Autonomy is within the provisions of Indian Constitution,if it is so  how will the state address Huriyat Conference demands? 

3.How does National Conference’s Greater Autonomy (NCGA) differ from return to pre 1953 days? 

4. How have the democratic/ economic rights of common man / J&K state been unfairly encroached upon by the Government of India /Indian Parliament after 1953?  

5. What socio- economic damage has been caused after 1953? 

6. To National Conference what are the aspirations of Kashmiries in particular and people of J&K in general and how will NC’s autonomy fulfill the aspirations of people? 

7. How will autonomy economically and administratively benefit people of Kashmir Valley?  

8. How will  J&K benefit after moving out of financial integration with Union of India .

9. If views of some ‘experts’ on J&K affairs are taken as valid,  then the turning J&K time clock back means redrawing of J&K constitution. Not to talk of August 1953, even moving to times near November 1956 will strip J&K of her own constitution. The State will not be able to transact even the normal local business democratically without a Constitution. Who will head the local government in that scenario? 

Answers to these questions would also benefit  those who are in favour of moving to pre 1953 days administratively as well as politically. Otherwise one day J&K State may  have to be re organized under its own Constitution into smaller units. 

National Conference had nearly shelved the issue of ‘Greater Autonomy’ during the times of Indira Gandhi (1975). National Conference only revived the issue of through a political resolution in 1994. Thereafter a resolution was passed (unanimity as claimed ) in the Legislative Assembly (26 June 2000) adopting the report of State Autonomy Committee  (State Autonomy Committee was earlier headed by Dr. Karan Singh and was later headed by Mohiudin Shah ).The Union Cabinet had out rightly rejected resolution and the SAC report that was claimed by its authors for being in line with the behind the scene commitment made in 1950s by the Government headed by Jawahar Lal Nehru. 

It was on 15 July 2002 that Dr. Farooq Abdullah had said that GOI had agreed to retain a senior leader for discussing the Autonomy Resolution of 2000 with the State Government. Mr. L.K.Advani announced on the floor of Lok Sabha on 16th July 2002 that former Law Minister Arun Jaitley will be Center’s point man to discuss with JK Government and political parties there the issue of devolution of more powers to the State.

Mr. Advani had said that J&K was a Special State and the Government of India has no objection to giving it more powers. It was on 25 July 2002 that Jaitley and J&K Government representative Shri Ghulam Mohiudin Shah held their first meeting. They fixed the date for next meeting as 9th August 2002. People kept on guessing on agenda for the first meeting while  the first meeting appeared to give to the subject of Autonomy Resolution a 1953 face lift. In April 2003 Mr. N. N. Vohra, took over from Arun Jatelay as Centre’s official pointman on Kashmir.

Mr. Vohra’s proceedings too remained in a shell and then came the Sagir Ahmed Working Group in May 2006 that too fell on its knees on 23 December 2009. 

In this backdrop let me reiterate that the Government of India needs to spell out very clearly its position viz a viz  Greater Autonomy Resolution. And simultaneously the National Conference must also come clear and elaborate  party’s autonomy for the common man J&K to understand.   

Daya Sagar – a social activist and a columnist based in Jammu. Feedback:  [email protected]

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