Of the few governor’s who have had game-changing stints in Kashmir, SK Sinha was among the toppers. A few days after his demise, Khursheed Wani reintroduces Sinha to Kashmir

Lt Gen (retd) S K Sinha
Lt Gen (retd) S K Sinha

Two former Indian army generals—a chief and a deputy chief—who were appointed as Governors of the embattled J&K at crucial times post-1989 passed away in 2016 . Their death coincided with the army engaged in a tough battle along the Line of Control (LoC) and simultaneously grappling with a rebellion of sorts in the hinterland. Gen (retd) KV Krishna Rao died on January 30 and Lt Gen (retd) SK Sinha passed away on November 17, 2016 in New Delhi.

Lt Gen (retd) Srinivas Kumar Sinha took over the gubernatorial post in the summer of 2003 barely seven months after Mufti Muhammad Sayeed had started his first innings as the chief minister to lead his “healing touch” coalition. Mufti was not in favour of getting a former general or a retired intelligence head (like former R&AW chief Amarjit Singh Dulat) as his Governor. That time Mufti wanted serious political engagement in J&K. He wanted a political message from Delhi through the appointment of Governor that the region was no longer seen through the security prism.

However, to Mufti’s chagrin, AB Vajpayee led central government appointed Sinha to head the state, apparently for his previous experience as the Governor of Assam and to compensate for his lost opportunity to become the army chief in the past. Gen Sinha had a great desire to serve in Jammu and Kashmir. As a young captain of the Indian army he was involved in logistics of the first landing of the Indian army in Srinagar on October 26, 1947. He wanted to complete the circle and play a role in the process to completely integrate the state with the union. The events in Kashmir during the four months before his death, which unfolded after the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen leader Burhan Wani, must have been painful for him.

I vividly remember when Gen Sinha took oath at Raj Bhawan in Srinagar, he was helped by escorts to climb up a staircase and podium. The sense of accomplishment and the paradise-like environment at Raj Bhawan, a former feudal property, situated in the lap of Zabarwan hills overlooking the famed Dal Lake, rejuvenated him. Within a shortest period, he began activities like no other Governor did in the past. He wanted to serve beyond the traditional role of giving ascent to laws passed by the legislature, speaking to public on national days, summoning and proroguing the sessions of the state legislature and addressing its joint sessions.

On his first interaction with media, he sought the role of the Governor in the Unified Headquarters, a counterinsurgency grid comprising all security and intelligence agencies. Though an extra-constitutional structure, chief minister heads it with corps commander in Srinagar and Jammu as security advisors to the CM. Sinha’s idea drew flak and could not be pursued.

But he did not wait for the state government to get him work. He found his role within the rules and tried to make it big.

As head of all the Hindu boards, Sinha found apt platforms to assert his position and to accomplish his cherished goal of integrating Kashmir with India. As the ex-officio chairman of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB), he initiated the ground breaking changes in its structure, gradually distancing and delinking it from the natives, in practice, tradition and stake-holding. He successfully prolonged the pilgrimage duration from a month to two months to ensure huge influx of pilgrims every summer. Mufti Sayeed was opposed to the idea. He boycotted a lunch hosted by Sinha for the then home minister Shivraj Patil, in 2005 summer, as a mark of protest but that did not deter Delhi from pursuing Sinha’s new-found path.

In a bid to keep the ice-stalagmite, the Lingham, live for the year, Sinha hired the best scientists to get him a solution. One year when scorching heat had melted away the Lingham well before the start of the yatra, he transplanted a fake one. Though a probe was ordered, Sinha survived unscathed.

Sinha was shrewd and eloquent. His accented English was charismatic. At the drop of hat, he would revisit the events of 1947 and tell his native visitors how he rescued them from brute tribals who raided Kashmir. At a press conference, I once asked him about his RSS affiliation. He smiled and parried the answer by referring to his previous explanations. The then director Information told me later that the Governor was curious to know about me.

By the time Mufti was replaced by a Congressman in November 2005, Sinha had firmed up his position at Raj Bhawan. During Ghulam Nabi Azad’s tenure, he began serious interventions at different levels. He played a key role in establishing Institute of Kashmir Studies (IKS) at the University of Kashmir, with a purpose to reconnect Kashmir with its Hindu past and encourage research that strengthens the relationship between India and Kashmir.

Simultaneously, the Raj Bhawan began organizing events even without taking the state government on board. In one such event, former Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga was invited. It was embarrassing for the state government to know about her arrival half an hour after she was “stranded” at the airport. Subsequently, the protocol was dispensed.

It is difficult to analyze whether Sinha knew the consequences of his assertions at Raj Bhawan especially in the matters of SASB, but the fact is that his decision-making completely changed J&K  politics. Given his actions, Sinha acted as a Hindu Governor and during his tenure, the Raj Bhawan became a state within the state. He was so fond of flying that Raj Bhawan would requisition a chopper at the last moment, sometimes, pushing the chief minister or his cabinet colleagues to undo their schedule.

Cleverly, Sinha negotiated with the state government to create a new development authority exclusively for Amarnath that would have its own territory and a developmental bible – inbetween Sonamarg and Pahalgam. Senior PDP leader and the then forest minister in Azad’s regime Qazi Afzal passed the transfer order. That decision created history. It led to unmaking of Sinha’s plans, became the sole reason for his humiliating transfer, fall of Azad government and, what is being talked about in whispers, the transition of Kashmir from violence to non-violent mode of agitation. Besides, the anti-India revolt that ensue, later in led to PDP’s estrangement with Congress and diametric split between Kashmir and Jammu regions on regional and communal lines. The transfer of land to SASB created a sense of insecurity among the Kashmiri Muslims and the dispassion for India became more assertive. The people began looking towards separatists again, an engagement that had almost been written off over the years.

Amarnath land row completely changed the political landscape in the state. The dispassion in Kashmir took unimaginable turn. The population revolted again in 2009, 2010 and 2016 and there are no signs of rapprochement in sight. The leaders who emerged during the 2008 agitation in Jammu region are now in the PMO and the state cabinet.

Sinha left an indelible mark on J&K’s history. He did not leave the state at a pleasant note but his appointment as Governor proved to be a game-changer. Kashmir never remained the same after his departure. His multi-faceted role must always be a curious case of the students of contemporary history.

(The author is senior journalist with The Pioneer)

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