The two incidents have no apparent connection but they clearly suggest that the silent majority, driven by desperation, is beginning to assert itself. This may well signify a shift in the Valley, where the situation is once again getting fraught. The UPA government at the Centre has not done anything tangible to sustain the tempo of the few confidence-building measures on the ground, like the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus or direct talks with Kashmiri separatist groups. As for Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, he is clearly feeling the pressure of losing out to the hawks and has started drifting towards hardline posturing as well. Meanwhile, the Peoples Conference leader, Sajjad Lone, has exploded something of a political bombshell by talking about the “opt out option” — making the district a unit for the internal reorganisation of the state. This new formula has come as a direct response to the demand for a separate state of Jammu, raised by the Jammu Mukti Morcha, a group which has the overt and covert support of the BJP and Congress. Lone’s salvo is popular in the Valley and other Muslim-dominated regions of the state where people constantly complain of discrimination in development projects and in getting administrative jobs.

In fact, the Centre’s dialogue process with Srinagar does not include a single separatist leader. The only direct measure the Centre has taken to push its peace process forward was to hold a few working group meetings. Not only was the political representation in these meetings inadequate, the government is being extremely tardy in implementing its recommendations.

... contd.