Dr. Syed Nazir Gilani
Indian State has scattered the ashes of
its constitution in Ganga after BJP came
to power. It believes that it could play monkey with the UN Charter and the two cats losing their bread would not chase it to the cliff. Good meaning secular minded Indians, the Muslim world and the world represented by United Nations failed to realise that the forced cum paid mass conversion of Muslims and Christians to Hinduism named “GHAR WAPSI”, was the beginning of a sinister agenda – the Hindutva.
BJP has trashed the secular soul of Indian constitution. Senior BJP leader Subramanian Swamy told a long-form documentary correspondent Isobel Young, that “Muslims are a different category”, “they are not equal to Hindus”, “they are not equal among equals in Indian constitution”and “any country that has 30% Muslims is in trouble.” Swamy was challenged that it constituted hatred and discrimination against 200 million Muslims and a violation of article 14 of Indian constitution. Subramanian Swamy answered that equality was among equals and Muslims were not equal to Hindus. According to him article 14 of Indian constitution was in line with the Citizenship Bill and the majority in the country supported BJP. In fact BJP had fulfilled one of its election promises.
India is a member nation of United Nations and aspires to be a permanent member of the Security Council. The State may get away with its interpretation of article 14 of the Indian constitution, but it can’t do so with the ‘principle of equality of peoples’ and right of ‘self-determination’ which forms the basis of UN Charter. India has to co-exist with 57 Muslims countries in the world, represented at the United Nations and endure the Muslims living almost in every non-Muslim country around the world. Hindus have to live alongside 2.3 billion Christians and 1.8 billion Muslims.
United Nations represents the ‘peoples of the world’ as equal people. It has to take cognizance of this erring behaviour of Indian State. Muslims countries and Muslims living in the world shall have to seek audience with the United Nations Security Council and General Assembly, for a determination whether Indian State is run by peoplewho are unmindful of their Charter obligations and its membership of UN needs to be suspended.
Muslim countries and other members of the UN may have gambled in the past and turned away from holding India accountable for her non-compliance of the UN resolutions on Kashmir, calling Muslim as a different category and not equal amongst Hindus in India, is a litmus test for every member of the United Nations. Would the world entertain Narendra Damodardas Modias another Hitler of Germany and Frederik Willem de Klerk of South Africa or step forward and halt his sinister fascist political ideology? It is a test for the world in the days ahead.
Prime Minister of Pakistan has taken a lead in taking notice of the erring behaviour of Indian state. Pakistan has accepted duties and obligation towards the Muslims left behind in India and towards the right of self-determination of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. It has bilateral agreements with India and both remain obliged to discharge Charter obligations and obligations accepted under UN resolutions. Without being a racist and disrespectful to human equality and dignity, BJP leadership, in particular Subramanian Swamy needs to be reminded that the superior category of Hindus ‘sweeps’ and ‘cleans’ in almost all Arab countries. They are not treated as a different category but like any other worker in the habitat.
The statement of Subramanian Swamycould be a new template of Indian policy in Kashmir. On 5 August 2019, Government of India has acted savagely in its administered Part of Jammu and Kashmir. It violated UN Security Council Resolution of 21 April 1948, by deploying 900,000 soldiers and enforced a lockdown of people from 5 August 2019. It is a violation of 3 restraints placed on the number, behaviour and location of Indian forces.
India did not stop here. On 31 October 2019 India violated the UN SC resolution of 30 March 1951. It disturbed the territorial integrity of the State and re-occupied it, as part of Indian Union. The action is unlawful and has no merit. India rightfully seems to have been encouraged by its performance at WION Conference on 5 March 2020 in Dubai.
It discussed Kashmir as its ‘internal matter’ and on 31 March 2020 under the cover of Covid-19 lockdown Government of India issued a notification designed to change the demography of the State to influence Plebiscite in future.
It has disabled the State Legislature on the question of 92 year State Subject Law and brought in new domicile laws to allow non State Subjects into Kashmir and settle down with citizenship rights. This will infringe upon the rights of displaced Kashmiris guaranteed in Para 12 and 14 of UN SC resolution of 21 April 1948.
On 3 April 2020 Government has issued a notification and has suspended Telecommunication Services to a population under a lockdown from 5 August 2019 and now faced with a new lockdown due to threat of Covid-19. Indian Government has started behaving as a soulless state and is punishing Kashmiris with no holds barred. Kashmir needs urgent world and UN attention.
The most important thing to point out is that The Gazette notification has changed the KashmirState’s own Ranbir Penal Code into The Indian Penal Code, for the first time in the history of the State. Even so, Section 18 in The Indian Penal Code reads as “India”.—“India” means the territory of India excluding the State of Jammu and Kashmir.”
Whatever the BJP may conjure up in Kashmir, it will not work. State is fractured into three administrations and there is a vibrant Kashmiri Diaspora. India cannot hold on to its re-occupation and annexation of a part of Kashmir. UN resolutions, the valiant people of Kashmir and Pakistan as a party to the Kashmir dispute would not let India to colonize people living on Indian side of cease fire line.
[The author is President of London based Jammu and Kashmir Council for Human Rights – NGO in Special Consultative Status with the United Nations.]
