Mindless massacres

Be persuasive across the table and firm on the ground

WHATEVER they may choose to call themselves, the armed men who have been killing innocent civilians in J&K will be known by the world as what they really are, terrorists. Nothing, no cause, can justify shooting down ordinary men, women and children disembarking from a train at Jammu railway station. Or the killing of poor shepherds before that at Sarhoti Dhar in Doda district or of pilgrims travelling to Amarnath. These are vile acts and all civilised people must condemn them strongly. As the prime minister pointed out in Parliament on Tuesday, under no circumstances can killing innocent people be called a freedom struggle or jehad. He also said Pakistan can put a stop to cross-border terrorism and must do so before relations between India and Pakistan improve. The groups believed to be behind the recent spurt in violence in J&K, including the Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish Mohammed and Hizbul Mujahideen, all receive cross-border support. Evidently the day when Pakistan will begin to act responsibly is still a long way off. Violence in J&K causes outrage and tests India’s patience. But acting under provocation would be unwise. A measured response is called for. India must continue to explore political and diplomatic approaches even as the security forces take firm action on the ground.

That seems to be Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s intention. His closing statement on the debate in Parliament on the Agra summit struck a good balance. It was not as hawkish as might have been expected in the aftermath of the Doda killings and criticism from the RSS and BJP elements of his ‘‘soft approach’’ to Pakistan. Nor was there any pretence that Agra had gone well. Speaking with greater clarity and revealing more than he has hitherto on the subject, he indicated that General Musharraf betrayed a lack of understanding of the full complexity of India-Pakistan relations and of history and diplomacy. That is an accurate assessment. Design and calculation are as apparent in Musharraf’s approach as is a rather exaggerated notion of his own abilities and role. Just as he wants to build democracy in Pakistan de novo, so he wants to write India-Pakistan relations on a tabula rasa. Hence both his eagerness to talk to India and when he did come to Agra his unsustainable one-point agenda. Even though his foreign office would have advised that sovereign agreements cannot be abandoned at whim, he is attempting to jettison Shimla and Lahore.

Why? One reason, as Vajpayee hints, is that he wants to step back from condemning terrorism. Another could be that he is persuaded he alone can get Pakistan a better deal. All this makes the general sound like someone Vajpayee will find as hard to talk to in the future as he did in Agra. However, Musharraf is ensconced as Pakistan’s president and possibly remain there for some time. So it is as well Vajpayee recognises he has to go on trying to move the diplomatic process forward. Cross-border terrorism worsens the conditions under which the people of Kashmir have to live. All those who claim to champion their cause should be made to realise that through persuasion across the table and firmness on the ground.