Yaswant Sinha says abrogation deepened injustice in IIOJK
Srinagar: Former Indian Finance and External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha has said that the August 2019 actions of the BJP government have multiplied “injustice” in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, warning that New Delhi will eventually be forced to restore the territory’s statehood.
According to Kashmir Media Service, in a media interview, Sinha—who has become a full-time Kashmir activist—recalled that the conversion of occupied Jammu and Kashmir into a Union Territory was “unprecedented” and left people with a profound “loss of identity” in addition to ongoing political and administrative repression.
Sinha said that despite being out of power, he continues to visit IIOJK to listen to people who feel unheard under New Delhi’s rule. He stated that “real decisions still lie in Delhi,” with the unelected administration in the territory functioning without accountability.
Reflecting on the period before 2019, Sinha said that former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s approach of Insaniyat, Jamhooriyat, Kashmiriyat remains the only credible framework for resolving the Kashmir dispute. He noted that Vajpayee pushed both internal engagement with Kashmiris and dialogue with Pakistan, which resulted in major confidence-building steps such as the 2004 ceasefire, cross-LoC movement, and resumption of composite dialogue.
The former minister criticised the BJP for abandoning Vajpayee’s policy, saying India’s current approach is driven by “majoritarian impulses” rather than consensus. He lamented that decisions on Jammu and Kashmir are being taken without meaningful debate, consultation, or all-party discussions.
Sinha also recounted his earlier engagements with veteran Kashmiri leader Syed Ali Gilani, noting that during the 2016 uprising he led a civil society delegation that successfully persuaded the leadership to allow the reopening of schools amid mass shutdowns.
Expressing hope for the future, Sinha said that statehood must be restored and that only an elected government with full authority can address the deep political, social, and economic crises facing IIOJK. “Statehood is only the beginning,” he said, emphasising that true reconciliation and resolution will require reversing the series of injustices inflicted on the territory
