Musharraf's formula for Kashmir: Not feasible then, impossible now

Congress leader Saifuddin Soz on Tuesday had advocated the four point formula suggested by former Pakistan president, Pervez Musharraf as a solution to the Kashmir issue.

He suggested that it could be fine tuned to the present needs of the stakeholders. The statement comes in the wake of Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh deciding to lead an all party delegation to Jammu and Kashmir on September 4.

The experts are of the view that this is not the time to speak about the four point formula. Instead everyone should focus on the restoration of peace in the Valley. The four point formula was never considered seriously when it was proposed and in today's context it is impossible to even implement it says C D Sahay, former Chief of the Research and Analysis Wing.

The four points proposed by Musharaff were

• Borders to remain as it is (on Maps) and people on either side of the Line of Control (LoC) to be allowed to move freely.

• Self-Governance or autonomous status (not independence) to Jammu and Kashmir along with Pakistan Occupied Kashmir for internal management in all areas like trade, tourism, waters etc to maximize socio-economic development of the region through cooperation.

• Troops to be withdrawn from the region in a phased manner.

• A joint supervising mechanism to supervise the implementation of such a road-map for Kashmir. This comprises of Indian, Pakistani and Kashmiri representatives.

Not feasible then, not possible now

Sahay tells OneIndia that whether it was feasible or not was never seriously examined for various considerations.

In the present scenario, I do not think one can be thinking of the ultimate resolution to the Kashmir conflict. At this point the focus should be on restoring normalcy in Kashmir.

Addressing the problems which the Kashmiris are going through should be the priority now. The all party delegation and Soz should focus on these issues. The ultimate solution to the Kashmir problem is very far away, says Sahay.

Pakistan, on the other hand, must realise that if they continue to walk down the path to stir up problems in Kashmir and force India into a dialogue it is not going to work. They should realise that this government is not going to yield to such pressure tactics. "I am very sure that the bilateral will resume the day Pakistan turns off the terror tap," Sahay said.

"Coming back to the Musharaff formula, one must realise that he is a bad name in Pakistan politics today. Anything with a Musharaff brand will not find any takers in Pakistan as well. The stakeholders have changed. Moreover it is not the same India that used to be during 2002 and 2003," says Sahay.

If at all anyone wants to even think of this formula it would need to be re-worked and re-branded and presented as a different package. I recollect that when the Musharaff formula was announced there were many in Kashmir and PoK who were willing to look at it seriously. But that is of no relevance, Sahay adds.

"The Musharaff formula will not work at all. Any concept of a joint mechanism with Pakistan will not work. If at all his suggestion of withdrawing troops is being considered then Pakistan will have to terminate its terrorists.

At the most what can be done is maintaining a sovereign border. The amount of deployment that there is along the International Border and the Line of Control is well in excess on both sides," Sahay added.

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