With the daily killings and bloodshed we witness, tragedy, death and destruction have become symbols of life in Kashmir. Day in and day out we hear about loss of precious human lives in gunfights and encounters. Indian State should, as a democracy, deeply introspect its failures in Kashmir that have pushed the youths in Kashmir to the wall, leaving them with no option but to put their lives on the line and resort to militant methods.
India must know it has miserably failed in Kashmir. Kashmir conflict has to be resolved democratically if this bloodbath has to end and the onus lies on India, it has to take the first step and initiate the process. A referendum and meaningful dialogue is the only way forward.
No doubt, there are number of humane hearts in India and Pakistan that are sensitive to the pain and sufferings of Kashmiris and support the just cause of people but they are still failing to make any impact. Suffering, it seems, has entered into a constant and unending marriage with the conflict-ridden Kashmir with the state paying no heed to end or at least address it.
The saga of human tragedy in Kashmir is brutally unprecedented in nature. Every form of brutal human rights violation has been committed against the Kashmiris to quell their sentiments for the just resolution of Kashmir issue. Time is ripe for India and Pakistan to sit down and hammer out a solution for permanent peace in the subcontinent.