Thread by @Saaf_Baat

As with ANY step he takes, Modi's Kashmir Gambit is being hailed as a "masterstroke" by the Godi media & bhakts.

We have seen this before with demonetisation & GST.

Screaming Godi media anchors, Hashtags & memes on social media that are being enthusiastically shared. (1/n)

The constitutional impropriety in the way this has been done is an obvious issue for Indian Federal structure - can you decide the fate of a state without consulting its elected representatitves? (2/n)

Tomorrow, any state can be put under president's rule, & its boundaries changed. This precedence opens a can of worms, creates mistrust & undermines any peace negotiation with any separatists in any other part of the country. (3/n)

https://twitter.com/pbmehta/status/1158453016288059392

The necessity of Article 370 for the validity of instrument of accession, messing with the boundaries of erstwhile Kingdom of J&K, so as to give up our claims on PoK, or as our commitment to Shimla Agreement, are all other questions to ponder (4/n)

https://twitter.com/svaradarajan/status/1158277622129807360

Sheikh Abdullah was Nehru's close friend, & did not want to join Pakistan, preferred Secular India over it

Sardar Patel, initially not so keen on Kashmir, got his deputy Menon to work out a deal with Maharaja's Diwan & that became Article 370. (5/n)

https://twitter.com/ThePrintIndia/status/1158255819072266243

Initially only Article 1 & Article 370 were application to J&K, but Article 370 was drafted by Sardar Patel's team, in such as way, that it also allowed the president of India to issue notifications for J&K. (6/n)

And, using this route, many more articles of Indian constitution have been applied to J&K over a period of time.

In effect this was already weakened significantly, just giving a pro-India elite of Kashmir some reason for remaining pro-India. (7/n)

firstpost.com/india/be-warne…

Things blew up in 1990. Local factors-disillusionment from 1987 elections (widely considered to be rigged) combined with an ISI - recently triumphant in driving the Soviets out of Afghanistan, & sitting with ready cannon fodder in form of brainwashed Jihadi youth. (8/n)

Since then, the only somewhat pro-India voice of any influence left in Kashmir have been the PDP & the NC.
@OmarAbdullah @MehboobaMufti
(9/n)

@OmarAbdullah @MehboobaMufti Dislike them all that you may, but the other voices are
ISIS who want to make Kashmir a part of a Islamic Caliphate; Pro Pak guys would like it to become a Pakistani state &Kashmiri Nationalist dreaming of an Independent Country.

Take your pick (10/n)

indianexpress.com/article/india/…

@OmarAbdullah @MehboobaMufti What Mr Modi's step has done is to weaken the pro India PDP/NC, & stab them in the back. This will only help Pakistan, this will unite Kashmiris against India.

(11/n)
caravanmagazine.in/politics/makin…

@OmarAbdullah @MehboobaMufti What for? we are being told that somehow this will help investments, & that will solve the problem. (12/n)

@OmarAbdullah @MehboobaMufti Really? none of the data, be it per capita income, or HDI parameters, suggest that Kashmir was lagging behind that much. Other states (even UAE) have limits on non domiciled people buying l&, & have managed to thrive. (13/n)

https://twitter.com/AisiTaisiDemo/status/1158981143418458112

@OmarAbdullah @MehboobaMufti Besides, no bank is able to lend for projects in Mumbai today, factories are shutting down in main industrial towns of India, & we are hoping they would lend for something in the troubled valley? (14/n)

@OmarAbdullah @MehboobaMufti The other long held sanghi pipe-dream is- now we shall be able to alter the demography of the valley.
(15/n)

@OmarAbdullah @MehboobaMufti Really?

For 29 years, we have been unable to even get the few hundred thousand Kashmiri Pandits resettled back in the valley, who already owned property there.

Even when situation was far more "normal" than today.

(16/n)

@OmarAbdullah @MehboobaMufti And, even if we agree that we shall some day change the demography somehow, is that how we really want to rule the valley? (17/n)

https://twitter.com/DilliDurAst/status/1158599848825896960

@OmarAbdullah @MehboobaMufti So, don't fall for the sarkari propaganda. Analyse yourself. Ask Questions. Think who benefits from this step. Is Pakistan glad that this happened? Has this helped any remaining pro-India Kashmiri?

Is it really good for the country? How?
(18/18)

theprint.in/opinion/narend…