Kashmir Affairs - Security & Conflict Analysis of Kashmir

Politicizing the Gods
Dr. Mirza Ashraf Beg

31 May 2008

As a teenager while I was a student of Srinagar medical school I got an opportunity to visit Indian parliament in New Deli in 1962. Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru the then Prime Minister of India was convalescing from a serious illness. Seeing his staggering gait my grandfather immediately remarked, "secularism in India seems on its last legs. Gandhi Ji was shot dead and Maulana Azad is no more. India is a country of heterogeneous elements with Nehru closing his innings there will be no binding force."

Born and brought up in a Muslim secular atmosphere I was taught to worship one God and respect people of other faiths as a good human. As a physician I had to take an oath where I was not to discriminate people on behalf of their sect, religion, cast, creed or gender. I tried to do justice to all what I said despite that I am a human but surely I never politicized the Gods.

From the frying pan to fire I was transferred from Zachaldar to Pahagam on 22^nd December 1970 the day Chilay Kalan took the valley in its grip with knee deep snow. Having had the longest tenure of my J&K service in Pahalgam I had a close association with Amarnath and the cave. Looking after its pilgrims as a physician and taking care of their comforts etc; as chairman or city father of the town. I was told the forefathers of Maliks of Batkoot had discovered the cave some centuries ago and they continue to be its custodians till date. Maliks of Batkoot look different from their neighbours. They are robust, stout and healthier. The pink colours of their cheeks surely are not due to scarcity of oxygen content at high altitude. It is genetic of their Afghan origin.

As I said in one of my earlier write ups published in Greater Kashmir people of Pahalgam and neighbouring villages pay due respect to the pilgrims of Amarnath and are closely associated with the pilgrimage. During my long tenure as medical officer and ex-officio city father four heads of the state administered the government in J&K. Sadiq Sahib’s sad demise was followed by a brief and naive set up of Sayed Mir Qasim that was replaced through Kashmir accord by Shiekh Sahib a dauntless leader as Chief Minister and Mirza Afzal Beg a skilful political scientist as Deputy Chief Minster. All these governments used to be fully involved and would leave no stone unturned to see that the pilgrims are safe and comfortable. At the same time they would never tamper with the dates of the pilgrimage or fiddle with the lingum or the wholly cave. Dates of pilgrimage were fixed two weeks in the month of June as   "Har puran mashi yatra " and two weeks of "Shrawan pooran mashi" in August. That is because on the day of Darshan a pair of pigeons is said to come out of the cave. It coincides with the fourteenth moon and raksha bandhan when the ice lingam is at its zenith to shower its blessings on the devotees. Jesus Christ was born on 25^th of December so Christmas is celebrated accordingly and Id too has its fixed dates. Rest is politicizing the Gods and nothing else.

International community is rightly conscious of drastic decrease in the wild life and the main reason for the same is that we humans have disturbed their habitat. We have converted our mountains in to cities. Places like Chandanwari and Aadoo have become busy fish markets. Experts are of the opinion that with scores of helicopters having reservations for thousands of joy riders and innumerable automobiles carrying countless pilgrims flora and fauna is bound to suffer for its regeneration etc. Moreover air lifted pilgrims cannot have the required rituals of passing through their holy places like Matan to pay homage to Baba Bamudin at Bomzoa, historical temple at Bijbehara and Nagabal Anantnag, Sheshnag and Panjtarni etc en route Amarnath.

Due to an important Supreme Court judgment J&K government had lots of difficulties to construct the Mughal road because the said road was encroaching an area where endangered species of Markhor the rare deer has its pastures.

Incidentally Pahalgam one of the most famous tourist resorts in J&K falls on way to Amarnth cave. Thousands of pilgrims that pass through this small township definitely deprive the holiday makers of the tranquility in search of which they come from all over the world to this place of shepherds. On top of that the frequent security checks are an additional nuisance and inconvenience. Any sane person can easily see for himself as to how the tin shelter sheds for the pilgrims erected at the gateway to Pahalgam at Nunwan have converted the area in to a slum of jughis. On top of that loud speakers at the highest pitch are bent up on to bulldoze the natural serenity of the wilds.

Keeping all these issues in view it is surprising to note that here in J&K we have governments within the government. There should not have been two opinions on such vital issues concerning the state. The unfortunate infighting in our meek and weak coalition government has led to a multitude of these sad developments in the state.   It is tragic that the Governor’s house plays a different tune while the Chief Minster’s secretariat strikes a totally different node. Under the circumstances civil society of the state will be justified to request the Supreme Court of India to take cognizance of the situation. Restrict the number of pilgrims and demarcate the conventional pedestrian routs for the pilgrims so that our wild life and Himalayan Mountain ecosystem are secured, our tourist industry does not suffers any further and nobody is allowed to politicize the gods.