The Parivar is satisfied with the way the Modi-Shah duo has handled this contentious issue

ARUN ANAND

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has decided to underplay its response to Kashmir-related developments. Here are ten reasons why.

1. The RSS does not want it to be projected as a victory of any particular political party or a community. The organisation feels that this should be projected as a victory of nationalists.
2. The organisation is cautious that the RSS-baiters may seize this moment to build a counter-narrative based on Hindu-Muslim conflict. But the RSS is quite clear that this opportunity shouldn’t be hijacked.
3. The RSS feels that major benefits would accrue to Ladakh. The decision to not have an Assembly there is to ensure that the there is no clash between ethnic groups from Kargil and Leh. Ladakh is strategically important, especially with China’s presence at the border. This could bring much-awaited development to the region.
4. The RSS is quite satisfied with the way the Modi-Shah duo has handled this contentious issue. The government ensured there were no major hiccups at internal or external fronts.
5. The RSS feels this is a victory of the national thought process. Now an outreach effort should be made to get all stakeholders to come together. The beginning has been satisfactory as a number of political parties which were supposed to be on the other side of the fence have come around.

6 The RSS feels that the Modi government’s Kashmir-related initiatives are more of the completion of an unfinished task. The task was to establish full sovereignty of the Constitution in the state.

7. The RSS is confident that the new proposed set-up would remove malgovernance, corruption and patronising of radical elements by a section of the political establishment. The organisation is hopeful that now affirmative action can be taken for the welfare of women and the marginalised sections of the society, who have not been able to get jobs, reservation and education opportunities.
8. Reorganisation would correct the regional imbalance.. The delimitation exercise—which is likely to take place soon—would ensure that the politics of the Valley doesn’t drive the agenda in the region. All stakeholders will have an equal stake in terms of electoral composition.
9. The problem of terrorism is largely confined to 3-4 districts in South Kashmir. With a display of a strong will by the government, terrorism can be tackled more effectively.
10. There is still a long way to go. A good beginning has been made, but there are sensibilities which shouldn’t be hurt unnecessarily.

The organisation is likely to come out with a detailed response once the changes come into effect. This itself shows that in this moment of glory, the RSS has decided to take a backseat. Its only attempt is to bring together the many sections of stakeholders.

www.newslaundry.com