It is hard to believe that any reasonable person could make such irresponsible and impractical 'demands' as did Jamaat-e-Islami chief, Senator Sirajul Haq, while speaking at the rally his party had organised in Karachi on Sunday to show solidarity with the besieged people of occupied Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). "It is high time", he said, "to wage jihad and send groups of jihadis" there. Such involvement in the initial phases of Kashmiri uprising against Indian rule that erupted in 1989 only damaged the freedom movement, with grievous consequences this country is still trying to grapple with. Yet there are some otherwise sensible people, too, who contend that the Kashmiri armed struggle is legally justified if it being fought for the rights protected by the UNSC resolutions. In the event the Kashmiris seek assistance from any country for their rightful resistance, goes the argument, the move would be justified under the international law. And that it won't hurt Pakistan or Azad Jammu and Kashmir, even if people from there go to assist the Kashmiris in their legitimate struggle for freedom - an unrealistic expectation in the prevailing circumstances.
Others recall that when India trained and armed Mukti Bahini militants on its soil to fight for secession from Pakistan many liberal commentators, including the eminent philosopher and linguist Noam Chomsky, had supported it as humanitarian intervention. By the same token, there should be no objection to a similar intervention from this side in the present grave human rights situation in occupied J&K. Such arguments have little value outside academic discussions. They don't work in the real world, especially where big players' geo-strategic interests come in. Unsurprisingly, Western powers have remained silent spectators even as the UN Office of Human Rights Council and independent international human rights organisations have been expressing concern over the situation in occupied J&K. The international environment being what it is, good sense suggests Pakistan should maintain maximum restraint. It must not hand India any excuse to lend credibility to its claims of Pakistan's involvement that it uses to discredit the indigenous freedom movement. The JI chief though did not stop at the call for jihad; he asked for starting an all-out war. "It is high time", he said, "for our army to be present in Srinagar," adding "if we hesitated now to wage this war then we will have to fight battles in Islamabad and Muzaffarabad." To say the least, this is insane. The JI chief must stop roiling public sentiments with his reckless statements.
Haq also urged the government to tear up the Simla agreement, and make efforts to dismantle the fence on the Line of Control (LoC). He should know better than that. The agreement is not workable anymore. It became irrelevant when Indian troops marched up the Siachen Glacier in 1984, in violation of its provision that said neither side would seek to alter the recognised positions of either side, "irrespective of mutual differences and legal interpretations." As regard the fence, it is on the other side of the LoC. There is little Pakistan can do to have it removed under the present situation.