Reported By:
| Edited By: DNA |Source: DNA |Updated: Aug 13, 2019, 07:00 AM IST
In all the heat generated since the abrogation of Article 370 and the developments in Kashmir, the focus has kept away, remarkably, from the man on the spot, Governor Satyapal Malik. His role has been crucial in the run-up to the developments in Jammu and Kashmir.
Ever since the BJP and Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) split, Malik is the man who has managed the state, in the midst of heightened activities by separatists. From the benefit of hindsight, his appointment as J&K governor in August 2018 was the turning point.
Unlike a career bureaucrat, Malik is the quintessential politician. He went out of his way to meet all stakeholders, irrespective of affiliation, and that made all the difference in the final run. By building bridges, a dicey situation had been turned into an even one.
In a wide-ranging interview to this paper, Malik reveals why he was Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pick for one of the trickiest jobs in Indian politics. As Governor, he has demanded an inquiry into the illegal properties held by state’s political leaders, who he alleged, have houses in Delhi, Mumbai, London and Dubai.
A few of them have stunted the growth of the common man by conveniently using Article 370 as an excuse. In particular, he picked out former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, for spreading propaganda against the removal of Article 370, asserting that this was the road to development in J&K and Ladakh.
Malik has refuted the charge that there was any protest anywhere in the state and that no bullet nor tear gas shells were used to disperse protestors. He has assured residents that all preparations for Eid were in place. Providing employment is the top priority for this governor, who has sanctioned 52 degree colleges. His administration is recruiting special police officers (SPO) and general recruitment orders have been given to fill up all vacant posts.
Fact is that the state now has an anti-corruption bureau for the first time in its history, which is digging dirt and there is a lot of it, like the ongoing malpractice of appointments in Jammu and Kashmir Bank have revealed. Malik has no doubt that if central agencies begin a thorough probe into the wealth and properties of Kashmir’s top families, all hell is going to break loose.
The governor has come down heavily on Congress, which he believes is doomed, particularly after the statements issued by its Lok Sabha chief Adhir Ranjan Chaudhary. “If I want to campaign against Rahul Gandhi, all I have to say is that he is supporting Article 370, and the congress will not get anywhere,” he asserted. Malik has plans for Kashmiri Pandits as well. About 6,000 houses in the state are ready for them, which will be given to them for free.
That Malik should have been appointed in the first place itself is interesting. He does not come from an RSS background but is a western UP Socialist from the Charan Singh era, who was moved from Bihar to J&K. It is precisely such an eclectic mix that is delivering the results.
