By Afshain Afzal

The Indian President Ram Nath Kovind reached Srinagar on 25 July a four-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. The India President would visit Kargil War Memorial on anniversary of the Kargil Vijay Diwas on 26 July while he would make an important announcement on 27 July 2021. As per the close circles of Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant-Governor Manoj Sinha, New Delhi has agreed to merge Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. Indian Army’s 15 Corps headquarters in Badamibagh in Srinagar has made all preparation for the Presidential briefing.

The one month deadline expired today on 25 July as 24 June 2021 conference of Kashmiri leaders at New Delhi in which Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured that he would do something about the restoration of statehood ended without any consensus. Marred by what Farooq Abdullah said, “there has been 'no follow-up results' on the ground”. Wrong assurance to the Kashmiri masses by National Conference president Farooq Abdullah, his son Omar Abdullah, Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti was time gaining tactics and nothing more. These leaders could say only, “'Trust is something that has been missing between Indian authorities at New Delhi and Kashmiri leadership at Srinagar.

Meanwhile, the Hurryiat leaders criticised the Kashmiri leaders who attended the 24 June conference and said, “we are yet to see any results even after the passage of a month… a move towards boycott of forthcoming elections. He added that these Kashmiri leaders have time to restore the trust of Kashmiri masses, what they must honour their assuarance for complete statehood.”

Although, Farooq Abdullah has given an ultimatum on the behalf of the People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), a conglomerate of six mainstream political parties and all Kashmiri leaders that restoration of 'full, undiluted' statehood to Jammu and Kashmir should precede the elections to its Assembly. All major parties have expressed thir consensuss on the point that they would not participate in elections unless the Centre would restore unconditional statehood.

The current mismanagement and deprivation of rights of Kashmiris of Jammu and Kashmir has brought the people of Jammu and Kashmir on the streets. They have vowed not to participate in the elections unless the statehood is restored and plebiscite is held on the basis of United Nations Security Council Resolutions. In addition, the Kashmiris are fed up of the powers of Indian Armed Forces iunder Armed Forces (Special powers) Act (AFSPA) which is to be done away with as per Supreme Court of India’s order. It is high time that Prime Minister Modi should extend right of self-determination to the Kashmiris including Kashmiri Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs for sustainable peace.