Simrit Kahlon The summer of 2010 was a turbulent one for Jammu and Kashmir. The Amarnath Yatra had been marked by controversy which had a violent spill over in Kashmir as well and Jammu regions. In this scenario, after taking initial punitive steps to restore a semblance of normalcy, the government at the Centre appointed a team of three interlocutors on October, 13, 2010, to … [Read more...] about The interlocutors caught the essence but lost the script
Politics of the dumb and the visionless
Simrit Kahlon The Indian Parliament is celebrating sixty years of its coming into being. On the occasion, the country’s parliamentarians are reiterating their faith in democracy, not to speak of having evolved into the largest democracy of the world. At the same time, there are those with a strong sense of propriety who admit to ideological lapses and shortcomings. All in all, … [Read more...] about Politics of the dumb and the visionless
JK Police versus Taliban: The contest of the future
Simrit Kahlon General Kayani, on a visit to Skardu to oversee the relief and rescue work being conducted in the wake of the avalanche in Pakistan Occupied Siachen, advocated the withdrawal of forces from the glacier by both India and Pakistan. The good General, much concerned about the plight of the poor masses of the two countries, opined that this would help cut down defence … [Read more...] about JK Police versus Taliban: The contest of the future
AFSPA: A tool for political populism
Simrit Kahlon The last year passed off relatively peacefully in Jammu and Kashmir, particularly so, in the valley of Kashmir. For quite some time now, terrorist strikes have gone down, separatist leaders have been exposed for the pretenders that they are, tourists are back and business is thriving. The Union Home Minister, Mr. P.C. Chidambaram recently visited the state to … [Read more...] about AFSPA: A tool for political populism
Engineered agitations and yellow journalism in Kashmir
Simrit Kahlon Ten days ago, in the afternoon of Saturday, March, 10, seventeen year old Yasir Ahmed Wani lost his life in an unfortunate accident in the Anantnag region of the Kashmir valley. He came under the front and rear wheels of a military truck and died on the spot. Almost instantly, a crowd gathered and resorted to violence before setting the truck on fire. The driver … [Read more...] about Engineered agitations and yellow journalism in Kashmir