The Burning North

Today, exactly a year ago, Article 370 of the Indian Constitution was dissolved, sparking global controversy. Article 370 granted the state of Jammu and Kashmir special rights, allowing the local government more freedom to make their laws. The Narendra Modi led government claimed that doing so would be a way to deal with terrorism in the region. However, combined with numerous restrictions on movement and the Internet, some critics have called it one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world. There have been hotly contested reports of abductions of children, of torture, and of destruction of property by army officers, with no consequences. A fact that may be particularly humiliating is that Kashmir is not even a state, but a federally administered territory, effectively neutralising the vote of the people. Additionally, critics have also called the move a “land grab”, since Article 370 prevented outsiders from buying land in the region. The new government has allegedly marked over 55000 acres of land for infrastructure development and industrialisation, often around environmentally sensitive zones. Whatever one’s views on the matter are, there is no doubt that the Kashmiri people have suffered in some way, no matter how small. It would be in the best interests of everyone if the government worked towards making the region as stable and peaceful as possible.