Mukul Kesavan in The Telegraph, Calcutta:
“The controversy over Tibet is a controversy about pluralism. The main allegations against China — that it has tried to alter the demographic balance of Tibet by settling Han Chinese there, that it wishes to assimilate the religious and cultural distinctiveness of Tibetan identity into a larger Chinese identity — seek to highlight the Chinese State’s intolerance of difference.
“The main difference between the Indian attitude towards its borderlands and the Chinese State’s attitude towards Tibet is that India has made no attempt to change the demographic composition of its troubled peripheries through forced settlement. The reverse, in fact, is true.
“The argument, long made by sections of the Hindu Right, that the Kashmir problem ought to be solved by changing the demographic facts on the ground, is not a monstrous argument in purely democratic terms. There’s a reasonable justification for it: in a democratic republic, every citizen ought to have the right to buy land and settle in any part of that state.
“To limit that right on account of local sensibilities or grievances is, it can be argued, to pander to parochial prejudice…. The reason the Indian State is willing to weight its laws to accommodate particular sensibilities is because Indian democracy, from its inception, has been leavened by pluralism.
Read the full article: Pluralism and Tibet
Unlike Tibet, Kashmir has also been part of the Indian mainstream in far more tangible ways, as has Punjab for that matter. The Northeast, I suppose, would be in a similar position as Tibet, in that the culture of the Northeastern tribes was never part of the mainstream Hindu, Muslim or later, cosmpolitan Anglo-Indian culture.
As to Mukul Kesavan’s second point, watch the Manchurian Candidate. The movie ceases to be fiction if one were to replace the “manchurian candidate” with a random member of the CPIM politburo, oh say, Prakash Karat.
Long after every reality-ridden Commie has given up the goal of Global Communism, Karat & Co. continue to believe in the utterly self-defeating maxim that it is more important to support a Commie country than one’s own. Chinese leaders, after enjoying a hearty chuckle over that one, continue to use the CPIM and its ilk to weaken and threaten India.
Three reasons for the Indian presence in Kashmir:
Defending the country against Pakistan is easier.
Hindu temples
Nehru’s sentimental attachment to the land of his ancestors
Nice thought. However, this is only a ‘what if’ scenario that will never materialize because….it would jeopardize the ‘vote banks’ our political parties are desperately counting on!
Chinese population has gone up in Tibet. But, the Hindu population went down in Kashmir. Yup – free society, democracy, pluralism and all the …
Abolition of Article 370 would be the only solution to resolve Kashmir issue. As long as the mosies in kashmir know that they can subsist on largesse(kashmir is the only state in the union which is given grants instead of loans, meaning they need not repay any money given by the central government) handed out by the Indian Union, for which there need not be any reciprocation or thankfulness (notice the statement made by Mufti Mohammed Sayeed few days back about allowing pakistani currency in kashmir), the problem in Kashmir will fester. If outsiders are allowed to settle in kashmir, especially retired army personnel, this problem will vanish overnight.
India did not have to do what China has done – i.e. pushing people from other part of the country to occupy Tibet. India just had to create an atmosphere for Kashmiri Hindus to live in safety. That would have made sure that Hindus in Kashmir is not tiny negligible minority as we see today. Which would in turn curb terrorism automatically. There is nothing immoral about it, infact this is the minimum morality one can hold – to protect an indigenous culture.
There is one more distinct difference between Tibet and Kashmir. i.e. the nature of religions practiced in each of them, one moderate, tolerant; other aggressive and hostile. I may not be politically correct, but this is the reality. So what China NEED NOT have done in Tibet SHOULD have been done in Kashmir. Unfortunately, Nehru being a Pandit himself did not understand their plight. But one can not entirely blame it on him, for not realising what would happen 30 years later. We should have realised it atleast by early 90’s.
People in Kashmir who speak against India and openly support Pakistan (like Hurriyat leaders) should be shot in the head. And people like Mufti Mohammed who come up with anti national ideas like allowing Pak currency in Kashmir with hidden agendas, should be air dropped to Pakistan.
Someone forward this to the Jihadi retard aka Aamir Khan, who thinks that Indian policy on Kashmir is the same as Chinas policy on Kashmir.
Abhi and sumne neeve,
Very well said. What is Supreme Courts position on 370? It cannot be allowed to continue for ever and let the jihadists purge the land of native kafirs. now that a popular(?) govt has been installed in jinnahland, we could be staring at increased insurgency. We cant expect any of our political parties to stand up to the islamists and abolish 370..they pee in their pants at the sound of fatwas
“The reason the Indian State is willing to weight its laws to accommodate particular sensibilities is because Indian democracy, from its inception, has been leavened by pluralism.”
Above statement is a wishful thinking. The reason Indian state has let the oppression on Pandits in Kashmir go unchecked has nothing to do with pluralism but has everything to do with Nehruvian islam-pandering psuedo-secularism.
When Hindu ‘right-wing’ groups demand Kashmir should be treated just as any other state, they are not trying fix the problem by demographic change but trying reverse the problem of genocide that is stemmed from the demographic change by the invaders who now openly plan to use Pakistani currency in kashmir.
Dhimmi manmohan losing no sleep at all
http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=eac340dc-0c34-4c7f-a496-1c92a834be08&&Headline=%e2%80%98Indifferent%e2%80%99+govt+angers+victim%e2%80%99s+family
Wake up people! There are no HIndus left in Kashmir. The Pandits have been kicked out by insurgents supported by Pakistan and India still thinks it a part of India!
Pluralism may be understood as live and let live. It is when “live” becomes a social re-engineering tool and when “let live” is interpreted as an “exclusivity” that there is friction. If the choice of an “asylum” existence has already been made, then why harp over autonomy? Why create Little Tibets all over the world, if you can’t leave Tibet behind?
what is pakistan’s view on tibet?
i have been trying to find out but nobody seems to know.
Settle Hindus in kashmir? you must be kidding, the true face of kashmiris is the one doing protests in kashmir right now. after kicking out all hindus from kashmir, now these ppl are trying to again start bloodshed because govt gave land to amarnath board to build toilets. they claim this changes ‘ demographics’. but of course, killing and ethnic cleansing of hindu pundits is only justice as ordered by their god.
The Spanish dealt with the Muslim problem in the following way when they drove them out:
The pointed a gun and said Convert to Christianity or Leave. This is the ultimatum that must be given to Muslims: stop bringing down the country or leave. With some kinds of people, there is no other solution.
India is coward country.You people are scared to do any thing.If article 370 is revoked,Pakistan will bombared you.China has always been with pakistan that means bombardment from other side.Bangladesh has always had issues with India ,they will also take advantage of that situation.America wouldnt miss a chance to eliminate India coz Indians consume most of the food and oil.If by chance you survive all this,God Forbid dat,Saudi and other mid east countries will cut your oil supply,then u people go to banvas..
http://www.wular.co.cc
India is coward country. for India it is too late to retaliate and it become compulsive to suffer the terrorism as our neighbor got nuke.
situation can be reversed by proactive cold war (Arm race and battle of military intelligence and political conspiracies).
i believe it is never too, if one has will to start. success will come to truth, what matter is degree of relentless effort.
Yes! till know intentionlly and unintentionlly cowardliness has been show through resilience.