REGIONAL ASPIRATIONS

1. Indian Approach 

• The Indian nation shall not deny the rights of different regions and linguistic groups to retain their own culture
• Indian nationalism sought to balance the principles of unity and diversity.
• India adopted a democratic approach to the question of diversity. Democracy allows the political expression of regional aspirations.
• At the same time, democratic politics also means that regional issues and problems will receive adequate attention and accommodation in the policy-making process.
• Such an arrangement may sometimes lead to tensions and problems. Sometimes, the concern for national unity may overshadow the regional needs and aspirations. At other times a concern for religion alone may blind us to the larger needs of the nation. Therefore, political conflicts over issues of power of the regions, their rights and their separate existence are common to nations that want to respect diversity while trying to forge and retain unity.

Areas of Tension

• Issue of Jammu and Kashmir, it was not only a conflict between India and Pakistan, more than that it was a question of political aspiration of the people of Kashmir valley.
• Similarly in some parts of the northeast, there was no consensus about being part of India. First Nagaland and then Mizoram witnessed strong movements demanding separation from India.
• In the south some groups from the Dravidian movement briefly toyed with the idea of a separate country.
• Formation of linguistic states, today Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat were among the regions affected by these agitations.
• In some parts of southern India particularly Tamil Nadu, there were protests against making Hindi the official national language of the country. In the north, there were strong pro–Hindi agitations demanding that Hindi be made the official language immediately.
• From the late 1950s, people speaking the Punjabi language started agitating for a separate state for themselves. These demands were finally accepted and the states of Punjab and Haryana were created in 1966
• Later, the states of Chattisgarh, Uttarakhand Jharkhand were created.

2. Jammu and Kashmir

• It comprises three political regions Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh.
• The heart of the Kashmir region is the Kashmir valley, the people are Kashmiri-speaking and mostly Muslim with a small Kashmiri-speaking Hindu minority
• Jammu region is a mix of foothills  and plains, of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs and speakers  of various languages
• The Ladakh region is mountainous and has a very small population which is equally divided between Buddhists and Muslims
• The Kasmir issue is not just a dispute between India and Pakistan. This issue has external and internal dimensions.
• It involves the issue of Kashmiriyat and the aspirations of the people of Jand K for political autonomy.

Roots of the Problem

• Before 1947, Jammu and Kashmir was a princely state. Its Hindu ruler Hari Singh, did not want to merge with India and tried to negotiate with India and Pakistan to have an independent status for his state.
• The Pakistani leaders thought that Kashmir belonged to Pakistan since the majority population of the state was Muslim.
• But this is not how the people themselves saw it-they thought of themselves as Kashmiris above all.
• The popular movement in the state, led by Sheikh Abdullah of the National Conference, wanted to get rid of the Maharaja but was against joining Pakistan.
• The National Conference was a secular organization and had a long association with the Congress
• In October 1947, Pakistan sent tribal infiltrators from its side to capture Kashmir. This forced the Maharaja to ask for Indian military help.
• India extended military support and drove back the infiltrators from Kashmir valley, but only after the Maharaja had signed an Instrument of Accession with the Government of India.
• It was also agreed that once the situation normalized, the views of the people of Jammu and Kashmir will be ascertained about their future.
• Sheikh Abdullah took over as the Prime Minister of the state of Jammu and Kashmir (the head of the government in the state was then called Prime Minister) in March 1948. India agreed to maintain the autonomy of J&K.

External and Internal Disputes

• Externally, Pakistan has always claimed that the Kashmir valley should be a part of Pakistan.
• Pakistan sponsored a tribal invasion of the state in 1947, as a consequence of which one part of the state came under Pakistani control.
• India claims that this area is under illegal occupation. Pakistan describes this area as Azad Kashmir.
• Internally, there is a dispute about the status of Kashmir within the Indian Union. Kashmir was given special status by Article 370 of our constitution. The state has its own constitution.
• All provisions of the Indian constitution do not apply to the state. Laws passed by the Parliament apply to J&K only if the state legislature agrees.
• Special status has provoked two opposite reactions, one who believes that article 370 does not allow full integration of the state with India, therefore it should be revoked and J& K should be like any other state

1. The promise that the accession would be referred to the people of the state after the situation created by tribal invasion was normalized, has not been fulfilled. This has generated the demand for Plebiscite.
2. There is a feeling that the special federal status guaranteed by Article 370 has been eroded in practice. This has led to the demand for the restoration of autonomy or Greater State Autonomy.
3. It is felt that the democracy which is practised in rest of the India has not been similarly institutionalised in the state of J& & K

2.1. Politics Since 1948

• After taking over as the Prime Minister, Sheikh Abdullah initiated major land reforms and other policies which benefited ordinary people.
• But there was a growing difference between him and the central government about his position on Kashmir status.
• He was dismissed in 1953 and kept in detention for several years.
• During most of the period between 1953 and 1974, the Congress party exercised a lot of influence on the politics of the state.
• A truncated National conference(minus Sheikh Abdullah) remained in power with the active support of Congress for some time but later it merged with the Congress.
• Thus congress gained direct control over the government in the state.
• In the meanwhile, there were several attempts to reach an agreement with Sheikh Abdullah and the Government of India.
• In 1974 Indira Gandhi reached an agreement with Sheikh Abdullah and he became the Chief Minister of the state.
• He revived the National Conference which was elected with a majority in the assembly elections held in 1977.
• Sheikh Abdullah died in 1982 and the leadership of the National Conference went to his son.
• Farooq Abdullah, who became the Chief Minister but was soon dismissed by the Governor.
• The dismissal of the Farooq Government due to the intervention of the centre generated a feeling of resentment in Kashmir.

2.2. Insurgency and After 

• 1987 Assembly election took place, official results showed a massive victory for the National conference-congress alliance and Farooq Abdullah returned as Chief Minister.
• However, it was widely believed that the results did not reflect the popular choice
• By 1989, the state had come into the grip of a militant movement mobilized around the cause of a separate Kashmiri nation.
• The insurgents got moral, material and military support from Pakistan.
• For several years the state was under the President's rule and effectively under the control of the armed forces
• Assembly elections held in the state were held only in 1996 in which the National Conference led by Farooq Abdullah came to power with a demand for regional autonomy for J& K.
• J & K  experienced a fair election in 2002. PDP and Congress coalition government was formed.

2.3. Separatism and Beyond

1. Separatists who want a separate Kashmir nation., independent of India and Pakistan
2. Group that wants Kashmir to merge with Pakistan.
3. Strand which wants greater autonomy for the people of the state within the Indian Union.

Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah-leader of J& K, a proponent of autonomy and secularism, led the popular struggle against princely rule, was leader of the National Conference, Prime Minister of J & K immediately after its accession with India in 1947, then dismissed and jailed by the government, became Chief Minister of the state after an agreement with Indira Gandhi in 1947.

3. Punjab

Political Context 

• It was during the 1970s that a section of Akalis began to demand political autonomy for the region.
• This was reflected in a resolution passed at their conference at Anandpur sahib in 1973.
• The Anandpur Sahib resolution asserted regional autonomy and wanted to redefine the centre-state relationship in the country.
• The resolution also spoke of the aspirations of the Sikh qaum (community or nation) and declared its goal as attaining the bolbala dominance or hegemony of the Sikhs.
• The resolution was a plea for strengthening federalism, but it could also be interpreted as a plea for a separate Sikh nation.
• A few years later, after the Akali government had been dismissed in 1980, the Akali Dal launched a movement on the question of the distribution of water between Punjab and its neighbouring states.
• A  section of the religious leaders raised the question of autonomous Sikh identity. The more extreme elements started advocating secession from India and the creation of Khalistan.

Cycle of Violence

Soon the leadership of the movement passed from the moderate Akalis to the extremist elements and took the form of armed insurgency.

• These militants made their headquarters inside the Sikh holy shrine, The Golden Temple in Amritsar, and turned it into an armed fortress. In June 1984, the Government of India carried out Operation Blue Star, the code name for army action in Golden Temple.
• This operation damaged the historic temple and deeply hurt the sentiments of the Sikhs.
• A large proportion of Sikhs in India and abroad saw the military operation as an attack on their faith and this gave further impetus to militant and extremist groups.
• Still more tragic turn of events complicated the Punjab problem further. Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated on 31 October 1984 outside her residence by her bodyguards.
• Both the assassins were Sikhs and wanted to take revenge for Operation Blue Star.
• While the entire country was shocked by this development in Delhi and many parts of northern India violence broke out against the Sikh community.
• The violence against the Sikhs continued for almost a week.

Road to Peace

• After coming to power following the election in 1984, the new Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi initiated a dialogue with moderate Akali leaders.
• In July 1985, he reached an agreement with Harchand Singh Longowal, then the President of the Akali Dal. This agreement known as the Rajiv Gandhi-Longowal Accord or the Punjab Accord, was a step toward bringing normalcy to Punjab.
• It was agreed that Chandigarh would be transferred to Punjab, a separate commission would be appointed to resolve the border dispute between Punjab and Haryana, and a tribunal would be set up to decide the sharing of Ravi- Beas river water among Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan.
• The agreement also provided for compensation to and better treatment of those affected by the militancy in Punjab and the withdrawal of the application of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act in Punjab.
• The cycle of violence continued nearly for a decade.

Master Tara Singh was one of the early leaders of the Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee, a leader of the Akali movement, and a senior advocate of the formation of a separate Punjab state. Sant Harchand Singh Longowal became president of Akali Dal in 1980. 

4. The Northeast

• In the North-East, regional aspiration reached a turning point in the 1980s.
• This region now consists of seven states, also referred to as the Seven Sisters.
• The region has only 4% of the country's population but about twice as much share of the area
• A small corridor of about 22 km connects the region to the rest of the country.
• The region shares boundaries with China, Myanmar and Bangladesh and serves as India's gateway to South East Asia.
• Tripura, Manipur and Khasi Hills of Meghalaya were erstwhile princely states which merged with India after independence.
• Nagaland was created in 1963, Manipur, Tripura, Meghalaya in 1972 while Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh became separate states only in 1987.
• The region suffered neglect in developmental terms, its politics remained insulated, and most states in this region underwent major demographic changes due to the influx of migrants from neighbouring states and countries.
• The vast international border and weak communication between the Northeast and the rest of India have further added to the delicate nature of the politics.

1. Demands for autonomy
2. Movements for secession
3. Opposition to outsiders

Demands for Autonomy

• At independence the entire region except Manipur and Tripura comprised the state of Assam.
• Demands for political autonomy arose when the non–Assamese felt that the Assam government was imposing the Assamese language on them.
• There were protests and riots. Leaders of major tribal communities wanted to separate from Assam.
• They formed the Eastern India Tribal Union which later transformed into a more comprehensive All Party Hill Leaders Conference in 1960. They demanded a tribal state to be carved out of Assam.
• Finally instead of one tribal state, several states got carved out of Assam.
• At different points in time, the Central Government had to create Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Arunachal Pradesh out of Assam.
• Tripura and Manipur upgraded into states too.
• The reorganization of the North –East was completed by 
• But this was not the end of autonomy demands in this region. In Assam for example, communities like the Bodos, Karbis and Dimasas wanted separate states.
• Karbis and Dimasas have been granted autonomy under District councils while Bodos were recently granted autonomous Council.

Secessionists Movements  

• After Independence, the Mizo Hills area was made an autonomous district with Assam. Some Mizos believed that they were never a part of the British Empire and therefore did not belong to the Indian Union.
• But the secession movement gained popular support after the Assam government failed to respond adequately to the great famine of 1959 in Mizo hills. The Mizo anger led to the formation of the Mizo National Front under the leadership of Laldenga.
• In 1966 the MNF started an armed campaign for independence. The MNF fought a guerilla war, got support from the Pakistani government and secured shelter in the then East Pakistan. The Indian security forces countered it with a series of repressive measures.
• Laldenga came back from exile in Pakistan and started negotiations with the Indian government. Rajiv Gandhi steered these negotiations to a positive conclusion.
• 1986 a peace agreement was signed between Rajiv Gandhi and Laldenga.
• As per this accord the Mizoram was granted full-fledged statehood with special powers and the MNF agreed to give up the secessionist struggle.
• Laldenga took over as Chief Minister.
• In Nagaland, a section of Nagas declared independence from India way back in 1951 led by Angami Zaphu  
• Phizo turned down many offers of a negotiated settlement.
• The Naga National Council launched an armed struggle for the sovereignty of Nagas.
• After a period of violent insurgency, a section of the Nagas signed an agreement with the Government of India but this was not acceptable to other rebels. The problem in Nagaland still awaits a final resolution.

Movements Against Outsiders

• The large-scale migration into the Northeast gave rise to a special kind of problem that pitted the local communities against people who were seen as outsiders or migrants.
• The Assam movement from 1979-1985 is an example of this. The Assamese suspected that there were huge numbers of illegal Bengali Muslim settlers from Bangladesh.
• They felt that unless these foreign nationals were detected and deported they would reduce the indigenous  Assamese into a minority.
• There were other economic issues too. There was widespread poverty and unemployment in Assam despite the existence of natural resources like oil, tea and coal.
• In 1979 the All Assam Students Union, a student group not affiliated with any party, led an anti-foreigner movement.
• The movement was against illegal migration, against domination of Bengalis and other outsiders, and faulty voter registers that included the names of lakhs of immigrants.
• The movement demanded that all outsiders who had entered the state after 1951 should be sent back.
• Eventually after six years of turmoil, the Rajiv Gandhi –led government entered into negotiations with the AASU leaders, leading to the signing of an accord in 1985.
• According to this agreement, those foreigners who migrated to Assam during and after the Bangladesh war were to be identified and deported.
• With the successful completion of the movement, the AASU and Asom Gana Sangram Parishad organized themselves as a regional political party called Asom Gana Parishad.
• It came to power in 1985 with the promise of resolving the foreign national problem as well as building a Golden Assam.
• The Assam Accord brought peace and changed the face of politics in Assam, but it did not solve the problem of immigration.

Sikkim Merger

• At the time of independence Sikkim was a protectorate of India, which means that while it was not a part of India, it was also not a fully Sovereign country.
• Sikkim's defence and foreign relations were looked after by India while the power of internal administration was with the Chogyal, Sikkim monarch.
• An overwhelming majority of Sikkim's population was Nepali. However, the Chogyal was seen as perpetuating the rule of a small elite from the minority Lepcha-Bhutia community.
• The anti-Chogyal leaders of both communities sought and got support from the Government of India.
• The first democratic elections to the Sikkim assembly in 1974 were swept by the Sikkim Congress which stood for greater integration with India.
• The assembly first sought the status of associate state and then in April 1975 passed a resolution asking for full integration with India.
• This was followed by a hurriedly organized referendum that put a stamp of popular approval on the assembly request.
• The Indian Parliament accepted this request immediately and Sikkim became the 22nd state of the Indian Union. Merger enjoyed popular support.

1. Laldenga, founder leader of the Mizo National Front, turned into a rebel, settled signed an agreement with Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1986, and became the Chief Minister of the newly created state of Mizoram.
2. Angami Zapu Phizo, leader of the movement for independent Nagaland and president of the Naga National Council, began an armed struggle against the Indian State.
3. Kazi Lhendup Dorji Khangsarpa-leader of the democracy movement in Sikkim, founder of Sikkim Praja Mandal and later leader of the Sikkim State Congress, 1962 founded the Sikkim National Congress, led the movement for integration of Sikkim with India after the integration Sikkim congress merged with the Indian National Congress

5. Goa Liberation

• Although the British empire in India came to an end in 1947, Portugal refused to withdraw from the territories of Goa, Diu, and Daman which had been under its colonial rule since the sixteenth century.
• The Portuguese suppressed the people of Goa, denied them civil rights, and carried out forced religious conversions.
• After India's Independence, the Indian government tried very patiently to persuade the Portuguese government to withdraw.
• There was also a strong movement within Goa for freedom. They were strengthened by Socialist satyagrahis from Maharashtra.
• In December 1961 the Government of India sent the army which liberated these territories after barely two days of action. Goa, Daman and Diu became Union territories.
• Another complication arose soon Led by the Maharashtrawadi  Gomanatak  Party one section desired Goa, as a Marathi-speaking area should merge with Maharashtra.
• However many Goans were keen to retain a separate Goan identity and culture, particularly the Konkani language.
• They were led by the United Goan Party, in January 1967 the Central Government held a special opinion poll in Goa asking people to decide if they wanted to be a part of Maharashtra or remain separate.
• A  referendum-like procedure was used to ascertain people's wishes, and the majority voted for remaining outside of Maharashtra. In 1987 Goa became a state.

6. Dravidian Movement 

• This was one of the first regional movements in Indian politics. It used democratic means like public debates and electoral platforms to achieve its ends.
• The Dravidian movement led to the formation of Dravidar Kazhagam under the leadership of Tamil Social reformer E.V Ramaswami Periyar.
• The organization strongly opposed the Brahmin's dominance and affirmed regional pride against the political, economic, and cultural domination of the north.
• Initially, the Dravidian movement spoke in terms of the whole of south India, however, lack of support from other states limited the movement to Tamil Nadu.

The Dk split and the political legacy of the movement was transferred to Dravida Munnetra Kazgham. The DMK made its entry into politics with a three-pronged agitation in 1953-54.

1. Demanded restoration of the original name of Kallakudi railway station which had been renamed  Dalmiapuram, after an industrial house from the north
2. Giving Tamil cultural history greater importance in school curricula
3. Agitation against the craft education scheme of the state government, which it alleged was linked to the Brahmanical social outlook.

• Sustained political agitations brought DMK to power in the Assembly elections of 1967.DMK split after its leader  C. Annadurai.
• After the split, there were two parties- The DMK and All India Anna DMK ( AIADMK) that claimed Dravidian legacy.
• All these parties have kept alive the issue of regional pride in Tamil Nadu politics.

7. Accommodation and National Integration 

Lessons drawn

1. Expression of regional issues is not an aberration or an abnormal phenomenon. Even in smaller countries like the UK, there are regional aspirations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Spain faces a secessionist movement from the Basques and so does Sri Lanka from the Tamils. A large and diverse country like India must deal with regional aspirations regularly.
2. The best way to respond to regional aspirations is through democratic negotiations rather than through suppression
3. The significance of power-sharing, the groups and parties from the region need to be given a share in power at the state level. If regions are not given a share in the national-level decision-making, the feeling of injustice and alienation can spread.
4. Regional imbalances in economic development contribute to the feeling of regional discrimination.
5. These cases make us appreciate the farsightedness of the makers of our constitution in dealing with questions of diversity. The federal system adopted by India is a flexible arrangement. while most states have equal powers, there are special provisions for some states like J& K and the states in the North-East. The sixth schedule of the constitution allows different tribes complete autonomy in preserving their practices and customary laws.