Understanding the Ceasefire

There is a lot of debate going on about the timing of the India-Pak ceasefire, announced on May 10 evening, and the reasons that prompted it. The fact is that those who know the circumstances and what forced whose hands, will take time to reveal the truth. Those who know nothing are running wild.

Considered from all angles, it is an opportunity to give peace a chance, which the people of J&K understand more than anyone else. This new ceasefire can bring relief to the people, their guests and boost confidence of Kashmir in itself.

Some facts need to be understood: Pahalgam massacre of April 22^nd was followed by strikes at the terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir in the small hours of May 7 morning. Then there was escalation from both sides, with each accusing the other for doing so. The spectre on the morning of May 10, when the airbases in Pakistan were struck with devastating effect and Pakistan mulled crossing the red line. India threatened retaliation in the same measure. The spectre of the mushroom clouds was too clear to be ignored. Who blinked first is not the issue, what matters is what this ceasefire has saved for all of us.

Has anyone thought, had this happened or something close to it, Kashmir would have been blamed for everything, because it all started with the carnage in Pahalgam last month. That triggered the whole sequence of strikes and counter-strikes. Pahalgam, one of the most beautiful places on earth tagged Kashmir with a stigma – the murder of 25 tourists and one Kashmiri pony ride operator took place here. And, at the end of the four-day long war, it is Jammu and Kashmir that has suffered the most, from Kupwara, Uri, Poonch, Rajouri, to Akhnoor and Jammu.

First, tourists fled from the Valley after order April 22nd massacre, and after May 7 strikes and counter action, migrant labourers/workers fled in hordes in regular and special trains from Jammu. Now, there is challenge of rehabilitating displaced border population, many of whom have lost their homes. These border people have lost something more. Their livestock has perished. It will take years for them to rebuild their lives.

War, even if it lasts for less than a day, leaves a devastating effect. The refugees of 1947-48, 1965 and 1971 wars bear a testimony to that. They are yet to settle in their lives though decades have passed since their displacement.

The brass-tacks of the current situation must be understood. This ceasefire should be strengthened. It is a fragile at the moment. The TV anchors and the analysts, most of who think they alone can deliver a last word on the conflict and the way it should be tackled, have no better knowledge than a nursery class kid about the geopolitics.

There is an undeniable truth about Jammu and Kashmir that this state, now UT, suffered a lot in the past 5 years. The Narendra Modi government brought it out of the morass. It delivered to the people of this Himalayan region, a sense of peace – both palpable and palatable. Indeed, it resorted to some of the harsh measures, as these were viewed by some, while undertaking counter terrorism operations, but all these came with some dividends. The calendar of the past three-four years, shows that while diverse political narratives were crisscrossing the airwaves , broadcast on social media, there was a general sense of relief among the people. The sight of school children heading to their schools, and the arrival of the tourists, had engendered new hopes.

Terrorists did not want the hopes to grow into solid confidence. Kashmir had started having faith in itself. Only a Kashmiri can understand and explain this. Those who gunned down tourists in Pahalgam were working as per a design to shake confidence of the people in the Valley. Though they escaped, but they knew the trail of consequences of their heinous act. And that happened.

India had to respond. There was no other option but to strike at the terror infrastructure across the LoC and international border. The early May 7th strikes at terror infrastructure across the border had desired effect. The Indian Director General of Military Operations Rajiv Ghai presented a graphic account of that at his press briefing on Sunday. The basic message is that those who harbour such elements will have to face the consequences, the kind of which they faced last week

A 360 degree view of the strikes of the four days last week also show that it was in the interest of Jammu and Kashmir, the Valley, in particular, to save it from future Pahalgam-type incidents. Kashmiris know that Pahalgam attack brought multiple strikes deadlier than they had seen before. It took away with it their growing hope in normalcy and desire to live in peace.

Now, this ceasefire is an opportunity to rejuvenate those hopes, and search for life afresh. Again this opportunity has been delivered to them by the Government, first by taking action against the terror network across the border, and now after it accepted Pakistan’s offer for ceasefire.

A lot many lessons have been delivered; transforming situation on ground should always be given a chance to grow on its own, exaggeration has its own pitfalls. The fight against terrorism should be all inclusive, people are the biggest stake holders in normalcy and peace. Recognition of this fact will save Kashmir from external influences.

And all skeptics must understand the fundamental of the word and act of ceasefire – it is a sign of strength and victory, not weakness.