Govt organizations and devotees must learn to work together, not confront each other.
The annual Amarnath Yatra is a pilgrimage for the devotees who converge in Jammu and Kashmir, fired
up with religious fervour. The last thing that they desire is the politicisation of the yatra and roadblocks in their mission. Yet, over the last 10 years, politics has been playing a major role in this annual affair, resulting
in avoidable confrontations and allowing divisive tendencies to come into play. Sadly, the State Government has been playing into the hands of those elements which want the yatra to be steeped in controversies.
For instance, instead of focussing on the arrangements to ensure the smooth conduct of the annual pilgrimage
to the holy cave shrine in south Kashmir this year, the Government is gearing up its machinery to bulldoze plans of agitated Shiva devotees to defy the yatra calendar fixed by Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board on the recommendations of the subcommittee headed by spiritual leader, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. Rather than discuss the issue with the leaders who have given a call for the yatra calendar to be challenged, the Government wants to confront them. According to the schedule okayed by the shrine board, headed by Governor NN Vohra, the first batch of pilgrims would be flagged off from the Jammu base camp on June 25, twenty one days after Jaistha Purnima, the auspicious day deemed fit by the religious gurus to begin the yatra. Traditionally, the pilgrimage culminates on the day of Raksha Bandhan (Shravan Purnima). This year, that date falls on August 2. That means the duration of the yatra would be automatically curtailed from the last year’s 45 days to 38 days this time around. But, various religious groups and socio-political organisations see a hidden agenda in the curtailment of the yatra. They have accused the shrine board authorities of buckling under pressure from the separatist camp that has been campaigning hard to curtail the yatra period to a mere 15 days. These organizations have also expressed fear that, if things continue the way they are going, the yatra itself could well taper off to a complete end in mthe coming years. To put pressure on the shrine board, which is yet to begin the snow-clearing operations along the yatra track, the agitated religious groups have decided to go
ahead with their plan from Jaistha Purnima, which falls on June 4. On its part, the shrine board authorities are trying their level best to explain their position to the organisations and attempting to convince them that they should not begin the trip on June 4, as the route would not be ready for the pilgrims by then. The problem is
that there is so much distrust between the shrine board and the agitating organizations that a solution is difficult, if not impossible, to come by. The State Government cannot be unaware of the fact that the yatra has been drawing more and more pilgrims every year. This event has turned into a major tourist attraction as people from all over the country flock to Jammu and Kashmir during this period. The Amarnath Yatra, there fore, needs to be promoted more aggressively by the Government. Yet, there is a lack of coordination among the various Government departments in hosting the annual event. In 2011, more than six lakh pilgrims performed darshan inside the Amarnath shrine cave that houses the snow Shiva lingam. Local businessmen, tour operators, pony-wallahs and various small businesses receive a major boost during the pilgrimage. Given that in 2003, around just 1.5 lakh pilgrims performed the yatra, the increase in footfall over the decade has been phenomenal.Unfortunately, 2003 also saw the arrival of petty politics into the yatra. Former Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed voiced his opposition to the two month long yatra calendar on the pretext
that it was difficult to extend security cover to the pilgrims over such an extended period
of time. He then curtailed the duration to just one month, despite facing criticism over the decision. The then Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Lt Gen (Rtd) SK Sinha, who has contributed immensely to
facilitating a smooth pilgrimage and the building of infrastructure, confronted Mr Sayeed openly on the issue. But that only hardened the resolve of the Chief Minister. The separatists were naturally pleased with the decision. But, once State leaders of other parties stood up in protest against the decision to shorten the period of the yatra, the State Government had to hastily be at a retreat. That year the pilgrimage period was extended to 45 days. For a fewyears since then, the yatra proceeded peacefully and without much controversy, despite the efforts of separatist leaders and their sympathisers within mainstream political parties to raise contentious issues to derail the pilgrimage. The flashpoint came in 2008. The Amarnath land row took an ugly turn leading to the fall of the Ghulam Nabi Azad-led coalition Government. The alliance partners passionately fought for
their core constituencies over a piece of 39.88 hectares of land originally meant for raising temporary infrastructure to facilitate the smooth pilgrimage. The Jammu region stood against the State Government
as the regime did a flip-flop after allotting the land to the Amarnathji Shrine Board. Pent-up anger of the people against the capitulation of the Government to hard line elements came on to the streets and the region witnessed a complete shutdown for over a two-month period. The Government was forced to call a truce and
sign an agreement to allow the shrine board authorities to create infrastructure for pilgrims during the yatra period. The hardliners had then maintained that the creation of the infrastructure in the name of the pilgrimage was to permanently settle people and change the demographic profile of the region. This time around, the dilemma of the authorities is how best to prevent the assembly of unregistered pilgrims at Lakhanpur— the gateway to the yatra. These pilgrims will be coming on the call of the religious and social organisations that are determined to begin the pilgrimage on June 4. In view of the police deployment to handle the heavy rush of people to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Jammu, it would be difficult for the State authorities to have enough personnel to screen every visitor to identify the Amarnath-bound pilgrims and halt them in a bid to avoid the showdown. To end the stalemate, the shrine board authorities are still hoping to fruitfully engage the socio-political organizations that have raised the banner of revolt They will want to convince the protesters to give
up their stand, because the yatra route is still covered in deep snow and it would not be possible to clear the way for the yatra to begin on June 4. As a way out, the board authorities may offer an option: A special puja could be organised on Jaishtha Purnima, which falls on June 4, at the shrine cave or some other suitable location depending on the weather, to mark the auspicious occasion, while the yatra itself could begin scheduled on June 25.
No comments:
Post a Comment