The withdrawal of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir is snowballing into a demand to take Pakistan Occupied Kashmir back from Islamabad which has the potential of creating a diplomatic embarrassment for the Modi government. Apparently, top government leaders are worried about the unexpected turn to the debate because it introduces new pressures vis-à-vis China and Pakistan.

It seems that the POK demand has come from a vocal section of the RSS. This section feels that having achieved the near impossible by removing Article 370, the Modi government should now take the next step of getting back all territory which once belonged to the state of J&K but is now occupied by other countries. So far, the demand is limited to POK but what is worrying the government is that next on the list could be Aksai Chin which is controlled by China. This would land India into unnecessary confrontation with a powerful neighbur.

Union defence minister Rajnath Singh was the first to put the POK issue on the table. He said that talks with Pakistan will only be on the return of POK, not on Kashmir. His statement rang alarm bells because the government has its hands full trying to cope with the fallout of the removal of Article 370, both in Kashmir as well in the international community. BJP circles believe that Singh made this statement at the behest of certain jingoistic leaders of the RSS who seem to have decided to escalate matters.

Actually, the removal of Article 370 is just a small part of the Sangh’s agenda. The larger vision is the revival of Akhand Bharat which includes merging Pakistan back into India. Interestingly, controversial RSS leader Indresh Kumar referred to Akhand Bharat just a few months ago during the 2019 Lok Sabha election campaign. At a function in Mumbai, he said Indians would be able to buy property and settle in Lahore, Rawalpindi and Karachi by the year 2025 when Pakistan would become part of “Hindustan” again.

Touching tribute

Late former finance minister Arun Jaitley’s family ensured that he was cremated with all his favourite items. He had on his glasses. His favourite Mont Blanc pen was in his pocket. (Jaitley was an avid collector of pens.) His favourite high-end branded watch was on his wrist. But these items were not visible to the mourners who filed past his body to pay their last respects. What was visible was a beautiful red jamavar shawl draped on his body. Although it was a bright colour, Jaitley loved the shawl and wore it often. Because he loved it so much, his family decided to drape it on him for his final journey.

And at the crematorium, they expressed a wish that the shawl and other items should not be removed. He should be cremated wearing his favourite things. It was a touching tribute from a loving family that knew how much Jaitley enjoyed the good things of life.

Sonia’s headaches

Although she’s an interim Congress president, Sonia Gandhi is back in the thick of action. She has to be, with three state assembly elections due later this year and a fourth early next year. All four are important for the Congress because it will be pitted against the BJP and hopes to make a comeback in states it ruled till the Modi juggernaut rolled through India. Her most crucial meeting of late was with rebel Congress leader from Haryana, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who seems set to split and form his own party.

After his recent rally, at which he criticized the Congress for having lost its way, Sonia called him for discussions. Trusted aide Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is in charge of Haryana, was also present. Congress circles are buzzing with speculation that Hooda has set terms to remain with the party. His terms are that he be appointed Haryana unit chief in place of Ashok Tanwar who quit after a major row with Azad. Kumari Selja’s name is also doing the rounds as Tanwar’s replacement. It’s not clear what Sonia has decided but she will have to make up her mind soon because elections are due in October.

She has a tricky problem on her hands in Delhi as well. After Sheila Dikshit’s death, post of the state president is lying vacant. Apparently, former Delhi president Ajay Maken is not keen to take up the job. In fact, he has indicated that he doesn’t even want to fight an election. Delhi is a real headache for Sonia because the Congress is not only up against a resurgent BJP led by Modi but also Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP which has already started campaigning for next year’s assembly polls.

Effective communicator

US president Donald Trump had media persons in splits of laughter during his joint press briefing with Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G-7 Summit in Biarritz, France. When Modi started speaking in Hindi, Trump interrupted with a smile. He said he knows that Modi speaks very good English because they talked the night before without interpreters. Modi and Trump had a pull aside meeting at the Summit dinner. They discussed Kashmir at that meeting. No interpreters were present. Modi spoke in English and judging by media reports, he did a convincing job of getting Trump to accept India’s position on Kashmir.