India strips disputed Kashmir of special status - Politics Forum.org | PoFo

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#15023675
BBC

India's government has revoked part of the constitution that gives Indian-administered Kashmir special status, prompting fears of unrest.

Article 370 is sensitive because it guarantees significant autonomy for the Muslim-majority state.

The measure was accompanied by a telecoms and media blackout which began on Sunday evening.

There is a long-running insurgency on the Indian side. India and Pakistan fought several conflicts over Kashmir.

For many Kashmiris, Article 370 was the main justification for being a part of India and by revoking it, the BJP has irrevocably changed Delhi's relationship with the region, the BBC's Geeta Pandey reports from Delhi.

Meanwhile India's parliament is expected to pass a bill splitting Indian-administered Kashmir into two territories governed directly by Delhi.

Pakistan condemned India's decision to revoke the special status of its part of Kashmir as illegal, saying it would "exercise all possible options" to counter it.

"India is playing a dangerous game which will have serious consequences for regional peace and stability," said Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi.

But an Indian government source said there was no external implication as the Line of Control, the de facto border, and boundaries of Kashmir had not been altered.
Why are there tensions over Kashmir?

During the partition of the Indian subcontinent in 1947, some expected Jammu and Kashmir, like other Muslim-majority regions, to go to Pakistan.

But the ruler of the princely state, who had initially wanted Jammu and Kashmir to become independent, joined India in return for help against an invasion of tribesmen from Pakistan.

War broke out between India and Pakistan, and Kashmir effectively became partitioned.

The region, which remains one of the most militarised zones in the world, has been a flashpoint between India and Pakistan for more than six decades.
Atmosphere of fear

By Aamir Peerzada, BBC News, Srinagar

By the time we woke up this morning, the internet was gone and we now have no mobile connectivity.

If people step out of their homes, they see paramilitary forces on every street. Almost every major road is shut - we are hearing that more troops are being deployed.

No-one knows what is happening in other parts of the state - we can't talk to anyone else.

People are concerned - they don't know what is happening, they don't know what is going to happen.

It's an atmosphere of fear. People are scared to come out, they have stockpiled food for months.

Kashmiris have always been willing to defend the state's special status. It looks like a long road ahead, and no-one knows what's next.
What is Article 370?

In 1949, a special provision was added to India's constitution providing autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir.

Article 370 allows the state to have its own constitution, a separate flag and independence over all matters except foreign affairs, defence and communications.

Another provision later added under Article 370 - 35A - gives special privileges to permanent residents, including state government jobs and the exclusive right to own property in the state.

It is seen as protecting the state's distinct demographic character as the only Muslim-majority state in India.
So why is India's move controversial?

The move by the Hindu nationalist BJP government prompted outrage in parliament, and some legal experts have called it an attack on the constitution.

Critics fear the move is designed to change the demographic make-up of India-administered Kashmir - by giving people from the rest of the country to right to acquire property and settle there permanently.

The state's former chief minister, Mehbooba Mufti, told the BBC she felt there was a "sinister design" to the decision.

"They just want to occupy our land and want to make this Muslim-majority state like any other state and reduce us to a minority and disempower us totally."
Why is the government doing this?

The ruling BJP made revoking Article 370 part of the party's 2019 election manifesto - and it won a landslide victory earlier this year.

It has argued that Article 370 has prevented the region's development and its integration with India.
Image copyright Reuters
Image caption Supporters of India's ruling BJP have been celebrating the move

An Indian government source told journalists the region's special status had discouraged outside investment and affected its economy, while terrorism and smuggling were rife.

"A set of anachronistic provisions were not allowing the progress of Kashmir," the source said. "The huge sum of money and resources which were going into the state were not being optimised."
How did the government make the change?

India's government announced a presidential order revoking all of Article 370 apart from one clause which says that the state is an integral part of India.

The order was met by massive protests from the opposition - but has now been signed into law by President Ram Nath Kovind.

Prior to the announcement, a telecoms and media blackout began on Sunday evening in the region. The government explained the move as being aimed at pre-empting any violence that the announcement might trigger.

Officials said the restrictions would not be in place for long.
Image copyright Reuters
Image caption Opponents of the move have also been out in the streets of Delhi

Parliament is also expected to approve a measure dividing the state into two regions ruled by the central government.

One region will combine Muslim-majority Kashmir and Hindu-majority Jammu. The other is Buddhist-majority Ladakh, which is culturally and historically close to Tibet.

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What has been happening in Kashmir?

Indian-administered Kashmir is in a state of lockdown.

Curfew-like conditions have been imposed, and orders preventing the assembly of more than four people have been introduced.

Tens of thousands of Indian troops were deployed to the region ahead of Monday's announcement and tourists were told to leave under warnings of a terror threat.
Media captionIn December Yogita Limaye examined why there had been a rise in violence in Kashmir

In the hours before Monday's announcement, two of the state's former chief ministers - Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti - were placed under house arrest.
#15023686
Fantastic news! India needs to really start civilising Kashmir and enforcing genuine rights for Infidels. Its funny how so many Cultural Marxist liars try and portray us as White Christian Supremacists, when we say to Indian Muslims, "Love her or leave her baby", even though India is in no way a White Christian country.
#15023773
The Kashmiris had their protected status for so many years yet they kept on causing mayhem.
Now the Indians can do what the Chinese have been doing since decades: flood recalcitrant provinces with the majority ethnicity and change the demographics.
Separating the Buddhist part Ladakh from the Muslim part of Kashmir is also a good decision.
#15023783
@Ter

Opposing totalitarianism is mayhem that is justified.

Kashmir has always been under totalitarian rule. First, under a Hindu king ruling over the Muslim majority who organized a massacre that murdered 100,000 of them after they peacefully protested. Then under India, China, and Pakistan. And now under India's totalitarian party.

Mayhem and chaos is the only way they can fight back. I would if I were in their shoes and you would too.
#15023792
Ter wrote:@Palmyrene
India is a democracy.
That BJP is in power is the result of elections.
The world is going through a populist phase now, with Trump, Brexit, BJP, Salvini and so on.
All of those phenomena came about through elections.


So? Tyranny of the majority is still tyranny. Israelis support the murder and rape of Palestinians and using their children as human shields. That doesn't make it right.

I'm struggling to even call this the "tyranny of the majority" given how many loopholes and lobbying that goes on in liberal democracies.
#15023796
Palmyrene wrote:So? Tyranny of the majority is still tyranny. Israelis support the murder and rape of Palestinians and using their children as human shields. That doesn't make it right.

I'm struggling to even call this the "tyranny of the majority" given how many loopholes and lobbying that goes on in liberal democracies.


Democracy is basically tyranny of the majority. The only limiting factor here is what other laws we create on top of that. Modern day populists challenge the situation by trying to govern specific aspects that are not defined in law. And it is their right to do so by the way. This is in no way a defence of their actions but it is both legal and moral to do irrelevant of your, mine or @Ter's ideology. If there is no law specifically prohibiting something and its a democratic decision then either create a law to stop it with obvious approval of everyone or don't complain.(That it is illegal. You can complain that you don't like it) This can be regarding great many things( Chinas "Unfair" trade practices, immigration, emigration, cultural issues, educational issues etc)

P.S edit. This is not about Israel-Palesteine. It is about Kashmir and populists that Ter mentioned. Since i am pretty sure that you will think the above post is somehow related to Israel which is not part of the topic at hand.
Last edited by JohnRawls on 06 Aug 2019 02:55, edited 2 times in total.
#15023801
JohnRawls wrote:P.S edit. This is not about Israel-Palesteine. It is about Kashmir and populists that Ter mentioned. Since i am pretty sure that you will think the above post is somehow related to Israel which is not part of the topic at hand.


What gave you that idea?

Regardless my criticisn still stands. Tyranny is tyranny. Thus I will oppose it and it will crushed under my heel. No one will have the capacity to justify their tyranny on the basis of something are ridiculous as numbers anyways. People will deal with each other on an equitable basis via discussion and consensus.
#15023805
Palmyrene wrote:What gave you that idea?

Regardless my criticisn still stands. Tyranny is tyranny. Thus I will oppose it and it will crushed under my heel. No one will have the capacity to justify their tyranny on the basis of something are ridiculous as numbers anyways. People will deal with each other on an equitable basis via discussion and consensus.


None of us are interested in war but war is interested in all of us.

Nobody wanted WW2 but it happened.
Nobody wanted WW1 but it happened.
Nobody wanted the great recession or the great depression but they still happened.
Most of Syria didn't want a civil war but it happened anyways.

Some things are outside of our ability to control.
#15023808
JohnRawls wrote:None of us are interested in war but war is interested in all of us.

Nobody wanted WW2 but it happened.
Nobody wanted WW1 but it happened.
Nobody wanted the great recession or the great depression but they still happened.
Most of Syria didn't want a civil war but it happened anyways.

Some things are outside of our ability to control.


I don't see how this has to do with what I said. War will happen regardless yes. The property owners and upper class will always use violence to defend their property and fight for their interests. We should not refrain from using violence to fight back.
#15023809
Palmyrene wrote:Thus I will oppose it and it will crushed under my heel.


:lol: you better start crushing fast and relentlessly because there are more than a billion people in India.

Question : Why do you sympathise with the Kashmiris?
You claimed to have left the Muslim religion.
If it is not about Islam then you should also sympathise with the Tibetans and many other minorities.
So far not a peep from you.
#15023813
Palmyrene wrote:The fighting tyranny is not the same as enforcing it. I'm sure you're smart enough to figure out why.


No kidding.

I was laughing at the "Thus I will oppose it and it will crushed under my heel" part.

That made me laugh...
#15023819
Ter wrote::lol: you better start crushing fast and relentlessly because there are more than a billion people in India.


I will help dismantle the governmental apparatuses of democracies, not kill people. That's stupid.

And only on the consent of people.

Question : Why do you sympathise with the Kashmiris?


I sympathize with oppressed groups. I support working class Copts, Maronites, Muwahidden, Yazidis, Assyrians, Bahais, Kurds, etc. all of them.

You claimed to have left the Muslim religion.


That doesn't mean I hate Muslims. I don't hate any group of people.

If it is not about Islam then you should also sympathise with the Tibetans and many other minorities.
So far not a peep from you.


Who said I didn't. Simply because you haven't seen me do so doesn't mean I don't.

I've argued several times on this forum that Tibeteans should revolt against China despite the wishes of Dalai Lama because such oppression cannot stand.

I've discussed my support for a united Ireland several times as well.

Your ignorance does not inform my beliefs.
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