Bordering On The Half-Hearted? Rahul’s LoC Visit Might Fall Flat

Rahul’s visit to J&K may be nothing but fluff as it would do nothing good to Congress except for some photo op.

Is Rahul Serious?

• Neither Rahul nor his party will accrue any tangible political mileage out of his visit to J&K
• Not many would have objected if the PM wanted to visit the LoC
• The BJP need not worry since the Congress vice-president has a track record of not following up with his noble pronouncements

During Parliament’s budget session, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi rattled the Modi government by coining the word “suit-boot ki sarkar” and stalled the Land Acquisition Bill. On the pretext of Lalitgate and the Vyapam scam, he ensured that the July-August monsoon session was a washout. He also piqued the government and the BJP by his support to FTII students and ex-servicemen agitating for One-Rank-One Pension.

However, his three-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir from today, which includes a trip to Balakote, Poonch district, which was convulsed by ceasefire violations and heavy shelling from by Pakistan on Independence Day, is unlikely to set the Jhelum on fire.

It is yet another photo-op for the Gandhi scion. Nonetheless, by making it a big controversy, the BJP and a section of the media are betraying their nervousness, giving Rahul prime time publicity.

No Tangible Gains

Neither Rahul nor his party will accrue any tangible political mileage out of his visit, purportedly to interact with civilians and commiserate with the victims of families of Pak shelling. Even some of his own partymen privately admit that at the end of the day these gimmicks are worth only fleeting media attention and nothing more.

Rahul has come under severe criticism from BJP spokepersons and a few analysts for what may be called “politicisation” of the LoC and embarrassing the government. The critics say such visits could rupture nuanced civil-military relations and it is better to keep the political class out of border conflict zones.

Being the first politician in recent times to visit the LoC, is Rahul setting a new trend or trying to score political points over Modi, a proclaimed nationalist? Questions are being asked why he did not display similar sensitivity for the affected people when ceasefire violations occurred during the UPA’s tenure.

Are Objectives Apolitical?

A visit per se, as long as it is confined to understanding the problems faced by the local people and victims of Pak aggression, should not be ridiculed as long as the objectives are apolitical and do not compromise national interest.

The political vocabulary is fast-changing and timing is of the essence. Should Prime Minister Narendra Modi, or the defence minister or home minister set a new bench mark by visiting the LoC to meet the affected people and redress their grievances?  Not many would have objected if the PM wanted to visit the LoC.

According to media, the affected people are upset with the Centre and state government for not offering them any succour.

Rahul’s visit to the hot-spot, indubitably, will let him grab media headlines as ceasefire violations have set a new record since last year.

Despite the BJP’s cultivated jingoism vis-a-vis Pakistan, Islamabad violated the ceasefire in J&K on 685 occasions between June 2014 and January 2015, according to Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. Parrikar said 126 ceasefire violations took place along the LoC and international border while 559 violations took place along the IB under the BSF’s “operational” control.

Attacking the PDP-BJP Alliance

The Congress, which has been flagging the issue vigorously over the last few months, claims that more than 800 ceasefire violations have taken place in the past one year. It has also slammed the PDP-BJP coalition government in Srinagar for the spurt in terror attacks and border violations and the Centre’s failure to stop such incidents.

On many occasions, Rahul, (whose grandmother and former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had Kashmiri roots), has tried to strike a chord with the people of Kashmir. During a visit to the state in 2011, while addressing university students, he had said: “I am a Kashmiri as a lot of you must be aware...so the pain and suffering of this place is my pain and suffering as well.”

Rahul’s Track Record

The BJP need not worry about the heaven’s falling after Rahul’s LoC visit. For the Congress vice-president has a track record of not following up with his noble pronouncements. In March 2012, a well-meaning Rahul had facilitated the visit of a high-profile business delegation to the Kashmir Valley to create an investment climate in the militancy-ridden border state, as part of his promise to the students of Kashmir University seeking more jobs.

The India Inc team comprised, among others, Ratan Tata, Azim Premji, Deepak Parekh, Aditya Birla and Rajiv Bajaj. Rahul’s take was that the lack of development and employment opportunities was pushing the youth towards militancy.

But, alas, no follow-up action was taken and the state continues to be the hunting ground of devils from across the border.

(The writer is a Delhi-based senior journalist)