"If Govt decides to send a recommendation on Bihar again, it can do it"

One of the principal touchstones whereby the Government would come to the conclusion that normalcy has returned is the rehabilitation of the Kashmiri Pandits who have been thrown out of their hearths and homes. We propose to have a session with Kashmiri Pandits and their representatives, along with Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah. A measure of risk would be there for everyone (including thePandits). We would like to provide the Kashmiri Pandits with the best possible safety measures, but I can say that those who belong to the countryside would be more willing to return than those from the urban areas. In these few years, many of them have found a job and they would not be very ready to go…land jinki hai woh jane to tayyar honge, but risk land walon ke liye jyada hai…The state Government would have to contribute, even to those whose property has been destroyed. We will hold the talks soon.

Can you foresee a time-frame in which the Kashmir problem could be solved?

It is not possible. We have lost valuable time. After all, at one stage, hot pursuit would have yielded immediate results. The deterioration in the situation began in 1984 when when they (Pakistan) started implementing their strategy through Punjab. We succumbed to the campaign they unleashed against Jagmohan in which Pakistan was a principal party and Indian political parties joined hands…I still regard hotpursuit as a legitimate right of a country that is subjected to this kind of attack. But I do not do regard it appropriate at this point of time. Because of the present situation, I would like to take steps which do not enlarge the conflict. But one gratifying aspect certainly is that tourists have returned to the Valley and most of the militants apprehended or killed these days are foreign mercenaries, sent from Pakistan, Afghanistan and other Islamic countries. Not many of them are the residents of Kashmir. We have already unearthed 18 modules run by ISI in the country. We will make more progress in this direction.

Is the Bihar chapter as good as closed?

Bihar is certainly not a closed chapter. It may be that the particular recommendation being sent second time is closed. But if at all the Government decides to send a recommendation again, it can certainly do it…The view that it’s a fit case was expressed by the whole Cabinet, even while saying that in deference to the wishes of the Presidentwe are not pursuing the matter for the moment. One constraint on the Govt action was the interpretation put by the President on the Bommai judgment whereby no Government could recommend dissolution of a State Assembly until first Parliament had first adopted the proclamation. There are different legal views which say this is not correct. They hold that the judgment is not binding on the Government. In any case, we are calling a Chief Ministers’ meeting of the Inter-State Council to resume the debate on Article 356.

Why did the Government go for a desperate gamble in changing the Delhi Chief Minister just before the state elections? Isn’t it a direct admission of failure in governing the capital?

I don’t think it is a gamble; in fact, we had been thinking of it for some time. When the Prime Minister planned a Cabinet expansion in early October, it became logical move to have a changeover in Delhi. We wanted to induct Sahib Singh into the Central Government and send someone like Sushma (Swaraj), or(Madan Lal) Khurana or whosoever we think would be the best card for us. But the problem occurred when the Cabinet expansion was deferred.

Changing a Chief Minister at this point is not an admission of failure. Sushma Swaraj’s statements and pronouncements have consciously sought to erase this feeling and we are going to the people on the basis of achievements of both the Khurana and the Sahib Singh governments. However, these comments would be there. Any radical steps a party takes are bound to evoke comments. We should be willing to accept those things.

The issue of deportation of illegal Bangladeshis is due for revival, considering the Maharashtra Government’s statement that it would resume the process after Diwali. There are also talks of giving work permits to illegal settlers from Bangladesh.

I have not talked about permits as such, but I have said that about implementing a scheme of drawing up a national register of citizens and providing all Indian citizens with multi-purpose identitycards. In that process, we would also like to register all non-citizens who are residents in India. In case of groups like that of Bangladeshis, this non-citizen identity card will for all practical purpose become a work permit. In that case also, according to the international law and convention, it is not only our right but our duty to see that they go back. But the Government has been remit in discharging its duty. Over the years, we have allowed this problem to grow to a dimension in which deportation of more than one crore people becomes impossible, purely for logistic reasons. Maharashtra govt tried to send back 92 persons, and see the hue and cry that has been raised.

The Home Ministry is trying to view the problem in a holistic way and contain the negative consequences of such a large number of illegal immigrants. If they have formal non-citizen identity papers, they would be less of a threat to security, to the polity of the country. The issue of these 92 deportees (sent by Maharashtra Government)is before the Calcutta High Court. There is no stay on their deportation but we would like to wait for the verdict.

The North-East insurgency situation, though presently overshadowed by Kashmir, could blow on the Government’s face any time. How exactly does the Home Ministry view the problem?

North-East is a matter of concern. All the North-eastern states have been interacting with us, including those which are afflicted by militancy. The Central Government has been giving all necessary assistance and support. but I have been trying to impress upon them that in Punjab we were ultimately able to overcome militancy. Apart from the contributions of the Army and the para-military forces, the principal factor which contributed to our success were the administration and the police on one hand and the ability of the leadership to isolate the people from the militants on the other. We have to ensure there is no sympathy of any kind for the militants.