Take Away From Modi’s Kashmir Visit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Kashmir visit that culminated with the celebration of the International Yoga Day on 21st June at SKICC amid heavy rains must be analysed in the context.He started his visit on 20th June by inaugurating the development projects and laid his main focus on the youth.This visit was scheduled after the culmination of the Lok Sabha Elections.It must be kept in mind that the Lok Sabha Elections have given a mandate that indicates churning in the minds of the electorates.Though the BJP led NDA had predicted to cross the tally of 400 seats but it felt short of that mark.Even BJP on its own didn’t reach the simple majority mark.But NDA as a whole managed to safely form the government crossing the simple majority mark.As far as Jammu and Kashmir is concerned, the  BJP didn’t field any candidate from Kashmir for the Lok Sabha though it fielded the candidates from Jammu and they made it to the Lok Sabha.It means that the party is still introspecting as far as its hold in the valley is concerned.It is in the public domain now that it had given indirect support to the parties and the individuals for contesting the elections.It can be termed as the pilot testing to to gauge the mood of the people.It can mean another thing also.By not contesting the Lok Sabha Elections,BJP has kept its doors open for the future alliances in Kashmir as and when Assembly Elections are held.We have witnessed the coming together of two extreme political poles together when BJP came to power in 2014.It is an another story that the coalition of BJP and PDP drifted apart. Politics is the art of possible. Remember, it was the time when the Article 370 and 35A existed. But still it enabled the coming together of two parties that have diametrically opposite views as far as political ideology is concerned. After the neutralisation of Article 370, the situation is different. It can lead to many impossibles taking place on the political front that could not have imagined earlier.Narendra Modi has sounded the bugle for the Assembly Elections in Jammu and Kashmir.It can have multiple meanings. One, he conveyed that he is here to stay.So any government formation in Jammu and Kashmir now will have different implications as far as the national opinion is concerned. Two, he conveyed to his party BJP to gear up and start from the ground zero and build the electoral base.Modi knows it well any government formation in Jammu and Kashmir will have the upper hand from Kashmir as it has more seats than Jammu even after the delimitation.No doubt the BJP won the seats for Lok Sabha from Jammu.But the electoral politics in Jammu and Kashmir has different strands.It also has the strains of the inter regional disparities and  the question of political preferences when it comes to the regional strain between Jammu and Kashmir regions.He is aware of these issues and  as such wants to address the same. Only time will tell as to what is in future for Jammu and Kashmir when it comes Assembly Elections.He asked the people to choose the government of their liking when electoral process begins.He was conscious about the international opinion on Jammu and Kashmir.His message was clear that Kashmir has shown its willingness to participate in the democracy and address its issues by the democratic path.That was visible by record voter turn out in the Lok Sabha Elections.He gave a message that Kashmir is politically normalised.In the coming months it will be clear what is going to unfold in Kashmir.