REGIONAL ASPIRATIONS

Q1.Write about India’s approach to the question of diversity. (What is the basic principle
of the Indian approach to diversity) OR Regional demands from different parts of India
exemplify the principle of unity with diversity. Do you agree?
A1.India adopted a democratic approach to the question of diversity:
1.Democracy allows the political expressions of regional aspirations and does not look upon
them as anti-national.
2.Democratic politics allows parties and groups to address the people on the basis of their
regional identity, aspirations and specific regional problems.
3.Democratic politics also means that regional issues and problems will receive adequate
attention and accommodation in the policy making process.
4.Political conflicts over issues of power of the regions, their rights and their separate
existence are common to Indian nation that want to respect diversity while trying to retain
unity.
Q2.What do regional movements involve?
A2.Regional movements involve:
1.armed assertions by the people
2.their repression by the government
3.a collapse of the political and electoral processes
Q3.List the areas of tensions immediately after Independence.
A3.Immediately after Independence our nation had to cope with many different issues like
partition, displacement, integration of Princely States, reorganization of states etc.
1.Soon after Independence, the issue of JK came up. It was a question of political
aspirations of the people of Kashmir valley.
2.Some parts of the north-east did not want to be a part of India. First Nagaland and then
Mizoram saw strong movements demanding separation form India.
3.In the south, some groups from the Dravid movement had an idea of a separate country.
4.In some parts of southern India, particularly Tamil Nadu, there were protests against
making Hindi the official language of the country.
5.In the north, there were strong pro-Hindi agitations demanding that Hindi be made the
official language immediately.
6.From the late 1950s, people speaking the Punjabi language started agitating for a
separate State for themselves. This demand was finally accepted and the States of Punjab
and Haryana were created in 1966.
Q4.Where does the root of the problem to the Kashmir issue lie?
A4.
1.Before 1947, JK was a Princely state and its Hindu ruler, Hari Singh, did not want to
merge with India and tried to negotiate with India and Pakistan to have an independent
status for his state.
2.The Pakistani leaders thought the Kashmir region belonged to Pakistan, since majority
population of the State was Muslim. But this was not how the people saw it- they thought of
themselves as Kashmiris only.
3.In October 1947, Pakistan sent tribal infiltrators from its side to capture Kashmir which
forced the Maharaja to ask for Indian military help.
4.India gave military help and drove back the infiltrators, but only after the Maharaja had
signed an Instrument of Accession with the Government of India.
5.It was also agreed that once the situation normalized, the views of the people of JK will be
ascertained about their future and India agreed to maintain the autonomy of JK.
6.Externally, Pakistan has always claimed that Kashmir valley should be a part of Pakistan
but India claims that this area is under illegal occupation which Pakistan describes as Azad
Kashmir.
7.Internally, there is a dispute about the status of Kashmir within the Indian Union.
Q5.Explain the internal divisions of the State of JK and describe how these lead to multiple
regional aspirations in that state.
A5.JK comprises 3 social and political regions-Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh:
1.The heart of the Kashmir region is the Kashmir valley: the people are Kashmiri speaking
and mostly Muslims with a small Kashmiri speaking Hindu minority.
2.Jammu region is a mix of foothills and plains, of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs and
speakers of various languages.
3.The Ladakh region is mountainous, has very little population which is equally divided
b/w Buddhists and Muslims.
4.The Kashmir issue involves the issue of Kahmiri identity known as Kashmiriyat and the
aspirations of the people of JK.
Q6.Discuss the external and internal disputes regarding Kashmir.
A6.
1.Externally, Pakistan has always claimed that Kashmir valley should be part of Pakistan
but India claims that this area is under illegal occupation which Pakistan describes as Azad
Kashmir.
2.Internally, there is a dispute about the status of Kashmir within the Indian Union.
Q7.What are the various positions on the issue of regional autonomy for Kashmir?
A7. Kashmir was given a special status by Article 370 in our Constitution which gives
greater autonomy to JK compared to other states of India. The State has its own
Constitution. All the provisions of the Indian Constitution are not applicable to the State.
Laws passed by the Parliament apply to JK only if the State agrees.The special status has
provoked 2 opposite reactions:
a)There is a section of people outside JK that believes that the special status of the State
conferred by Article 370 does not allow full integration of the State with India. This section
feels that Article 370 should be revoked and JK should be like any other state of India.
b)Another section, mostly Kashmiris, believe that the autonomy conferred by the Article
370 is not enough and have expressed 3 grievances- first that the promise that Accession
would be referred to the people of the State after the situation created by the tribal
invasion was normalized in JK, has not been fulfilled. This has generated the demand for a
Plebiscite. Secondly, there is a feeling that the special federal status guaranteed by Article
370, has been eroded in practice. This has led to the demand for restoration of autonomy or
‘Greater State Autonomy’. Thirdly, it is felt that the democracy which is practiced in the
rest of India has not been similarly institutionalized in JK.
Q8.Discuss the role of Congress in the politics of JK after Independence.
A8.During most of the period b/w 1953-74, the Congress exercised a lot of influence on the
politics of JK:
1.A truncated National Conference (minus Sheikh Abdullah) remained in power with the
active support of the Congress for some time but later it merged with the Congress.
2.The Congress gained direct control over the government in the State.
3.There were many attempts to reach agreement b/w Sheikh Abdullah and the
Government of India.
4.Finally in 1974 Indira Gandhi reached an agreement with him and he became the Chief
Minister of the State. He revived the National Conference which was elected with a
majority in the assembly elections held in 1977.
Q9.What are the different forms of separate politics of Kashmir?
A9.Separatist politics surfaced in Kashmir from 1989 and is made up of various strands:
1.There is one strand of separatists who want a separate Kashmir nation, independent of
India and Pakistan.
2.There are groups that want Kashmir to merge with Pakistan.
3.Besides these, there is a third strand which wants greater autonomy for the people of the
State within the Indian Union.
Therefore, the demand for intra-State autonomy is as strong as the demand for the State
Autonomy.
Q10.In what context did a section of Akalis demand political autonomy for Punjab?
A10.The Akalis discovered that despite the redrawing of boundaries, their political position
was not good:
1.Firsly-their government was dismissed by the Centre mid-way through its term.
2.Secondly-they did not enjoy strong support among the Hindus.
3.Thirdly-the Sikh community was internally differentiated on caste and class lines. The
Congress got more support among the Dalits, whether Hindu or Sikhs, than the Akalis.
4.It was in this context that during the 1970s a section of Akalis began to demand political
autonomy for Punjab.
Q11.What was the Anandpur Sahab resolution? Why did it become controversial?
A11.
1.The Anandpur Sahab Resolution, passed in 1973, asserted regional autonomy and
wanted to redefine centre-state relationship in the country.
2.It also spoke of the aspirations of the Sikh qaum and declared its goal as attaining the
bolbala of the Sikhs.
3.A section of the religious leaders raised the question of autonomous Sikh identity &
demanded a separate Sikh nation-the creation of Khalistan.
4.Soon, the leadership of the movement passed from the moderate Akalis to the extremist
elements and took the form of armed insurgency.
5.So, the Anandpur Sahab Resolution became controversial as it was held responsible for
insurgent activities in Punjab.
Q12.What was Operation Blue Star?
A12.
1.The leadership of the Akali movement passed from the moderates Akalis to extremist
elements and took the form of armed insurgency.
2.These militants made their headquarters inside the Golden Temple, and turned it into an
armed fortress.
3.In June 1984, the Government of India carried out Operation Blue Star, code name for
army action in the Golden Temple.
4.In this operation, the government successfully flushed out the militants, but it also
damaged the temple and deeply hurt the sentiments of the Sikhs.
5.Sikhs in India and abroad saw this operation as an attack on their faith and this further
increased militant and extremist groups.
Q13. What tragic event further complicated the Punjab problem after Operation Blue
Star?
A13.
1. PM Indira Gandhi was assassinated on 31st October 1984 outside her residence by her
bodyguards who were both Sikhs and wanted to take revenge for the Blue Star Operation.
2.Violence broke out in Delhi and many other parts of the country against the Sikh
community which continued for almost a week.
3.More than 2000 Sikhs were killed in Delhi and hundreds in other parts of the country.
4.What hurt the Sikhs most was that the government took a long time to restore normalcy
and the people responsible for this violence were not effectively punished.
Q14.What were the main provisions of the Punjab Accord? In what way can they be the
basis for further tensions b/w Punjab and its neighbouring states?
A14.The Punjab Accord was an agreement b/w the new PM Rajiv Gandhi and Harchand
Singh Longowal, President of the Akali Dal. It is also known as Rajiv Gandhi- Longowal
Accord and a step towards bringing normalcy to Punjab. The main provisions were:
1.Chandigarh would be transferred to Punjab.
2.A separate commission would be appointed to resolve the border dispute b/w Punjab and
Haryana.
3.A tribunal would be set up to decide the sharing of Ravi-Beas river among Punjab,
Haryana and Rajasthan.
4.It also provided for compensation to and better treatment of those affected by the
militancy in Punjab.
5.It also provided for the withdrawal of Armed Forces Special Powers Act in Punjab.
Q15.What do you mean by the 7 sisters?
A15.
1.The north-east region now consists of 7 states, also referred to as the seven sisters.
2.The region has only 4% of the country’s population but about twice as much share of its
area.
3.A small corridor of about 22Km connects the region to the rest of the country.
4.The region shares boundaries with China, Myanmar and Bangladesh and serves as
India’s gateway to South East Asia.
Q16.What were the reasons for the rise of a complicated set of demands for different states
of north east? What issues dominated the politics of N.E.?
A16.The reasons for the demands are:
1.The Partition of India in 1947 had reduced North East to a land locked region and
affected its economy.
2.Cut off from the rest of India, the region suffered neglect in developmental terms.
3.Its politics too remained insulated- ie leaders not accountable to voters as they were not
properly elected.
4.At the same time, most of the States in this region underwent major demographic
changes due to influx of migrants from neighbouring States and countries.
5The vast international border and weak communication b/w the North East and the rest
of India have further added to the delicate nature of politics there.
6.Three issues dominated the politics of the N.E.- demands for autonomy, movements for
succession and opposition to outsiders.
Q17.What gave rise to the demands for autonomy in the N.E.?
A17.At independence, the entire region except Manipur and Tripura comprised the state of
Assam. Demands for political autonomy arose when:
1.The non-Assamese felt that the Assam government was imposing Assamese language on
them.
2.Leader of the major tribal communities wanted to separate from Assam and they formed
the Eastern India Tribal Union which later transformed into All Party Hill Leaders
Conference in 1960.
3.They demanded a tribal state to be carved out of Assam.
4.Finally, instead of one tribal State, several States got carved out of Assam. At different
point of time the Central government had to create Meghalaya, Mizoram and Arunachal
Pradesh out of Assam. Tripura and Manipur were upgraded into States too.
Q18.List the communities who wanted separate states in the north east.
A18.The reorganization of the North East was completed by 1972, but this was not the end
of autonomy demands in this region:
1.In Assam, for example, communities like the Bodos, Karbis and Dimasas wanted separate
states.
2.They worked for this demand by mobilizing public opinion and popular movements
through insurgency.
3.Often the same area was claimed by more than one community.
4.So some provisions of our federal setup were used to satisfy their demands while
remaining in Assam. Karbis and Dimasas have been granted autonomy under District
Councils while Bodos were recently granted Autonomous Council.
Q19.Describe the secessionist movement in the Mizo Hills. What was the outcome?
A19.
1.After Independence, the Mizo Hills area was made autonomous district within Assam but
some Mizos believed that they were never a part of British India and so did not belong to
the Indian Union.
2.The movement for secession gained popular support after the Assam government failed
to respond adequately to the great famine of 1959 in Mizo Hills and the Mizo anger led to
the formation of the Mizo National Front under the leadership of Laldenga.
3.In 1966 the MNF started an armed campaign for independence and so started a 2 decade
long battle b/w Mizo insurgents and the Indian army.
4.The MNF fought a guerilla war, got support from the Pakistan government and found
shelter in the then East Pakistan.
5.The Indian security forced countered it with a series of repressive measures of which the
common people were the victims.
6.At the end of 2 decades of insurgency everyone was the loser. Laldenga came back from
exile in Pakistan and started negotiations with the Indian government.
7.In 1986 a peace agreement was signed b/w Rajiv Gandhi and Laldenga and as per this
accord Mizoram was granted full-fledged statehood with special powers and the MNF
agreed to give up secessionist struggle.
8.This accord proved a turning point in the history of Mizoram. Today Mizoram is one of
the most peaceful places in the region and has taken big steps in literacy and development.
Q20.The Assam movement was a combination of cultural pride and economic
backwardness. Explain.
A20.The Assam movement from 1979-85 was against outsiders:
1.The Assamese suspected that there were huge numbers of illegal Bengali Muslim settlers
from Bangladesh.
2.They felt that unless these foreign nationals are detected and deported they would reduce
the indigenous Assamese into a minority.
3.There were other economic issues also. There was wide spread poverty and
unemployment in Assam despite the existence of natural resources like oil, tea and coal.
4.It was felt that these were drained out of the state without any benefit to the people.
Q21.Briefly discuss the Assam Accord.
A21.
1.In 1979, the All Assam Students Union led an anti-foreigner movement against illegal
immigrants, against domination of Bengalis and other outsiders, against faulty voters’
register that included names of lakhs of immigrants.
2.The movement demanded that all outsiders who had entered the state after 1951 should
be sent back.
3.The agitation mobilized all sections of Assamese people, involved many tragic and violent
incidences leading to loss of life and property and blocking the movements of trains and the
supply of oil from Assam to refineries in Bihar.
4.Eventually after 6 yrs, the Rajiv Gandhi led government entered into negotiations with
the AASU leaders, leading to the signing of the Assam Accord in 1985.
5.According to this agreement those foreigners who migrated into Assam during and after
Bangladesh war were to be identified and deported.
Q22.In what ways the issue of outsiders continued to be a live issue in Assam?
A22.Assam accord brought peace and changed the face of politics in Assam, but it did not
solve the problem of immigration:
1.The issue of outsiders continued to be a live issue in the politics of Assam and many other
places in north-east.
2This problem is particularly acute, for eg in Tripura as the original inhabitants have been
reduced to a minority in their own land.
3.The same feeling is felt by the local population for the Chakma refugees in Mizoram and
Arunachal Pradesh.
Q23.What lessons do you draw from regional aspirations? OR “Regional demands from
different parts of India exemplify the principle of unity with diversity.” Support the
statement with examples:
A23. The lessons we draw from this are:
1.Regional aspirations are very much a part of democratic politics. Expression of regional
issues is not an abnormal phenomenon. Even in smaller countries, like the UK, there are
regional aspirations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, secessionist movements in
Spain from Basques and from Tamils in Sri Lanka.
2.The 2nd lesson is that the best way to respond to regional aspirations is through
democratic negotiations rather than through suppression. Militancy had erupted in
Punjab, problems were persistent in the North-East, students in Assam were agitating,
Kashmir valley was on the boil. Instead of treating these as simple law and order problems,
the government of India reached negotiated settlements with regional movements.
3.The 3rd lesson is about the significance of power sharing. Groups and parties from the
region need to be given share in power at the State level. The regions must have a share in
deciding the destiny of the nation.
4.The 4th lesson is that regional imbalance in economic development contributes to the
feeling of regional discrimination. The backward state or the backward regions in some
states feel that their backwardness should be addressed on priority basis and that the
politics of the Indian government have caused this imbalance. If some states remain poor
and others develop rapidly, it leads to regional imbalances and inter-regional migrations
for eg the North Eastern region of India.
5.Finally, the flexibility of the federal system adopted by India. While most of the states
have equal powers, there are special provisions for some states like JK, and the North-East
states. The Sixth Schedule of the Constitution allows different tribes complete autonomy of
preserving their practices and customary laws.
Q24.’Movements & protests strengthen democracy.’ Do you agree with the statement?
Support your answer with any 3 suitable examples.
A24.If agree:
1.The movement against outsiders in Assam by AASU was successfully accommodated by
the Rajiv Gandhi led Indian government by the signing of an accord in 1985. This
movement tried to fulfill their aspirations within the constitutional framework.
2.Narmada Bachao Andolan made the government think about the relation between
natural resources |& local inhabitants. It forced the government to work for the demands
& rehabilitation of the displaced population under the Rehabilitation Policy formed in
2003.
3.Bharitya Kisan Union made the government aware about the problems faced by the
farmers. They managed to get some of their economic demands accepted.
A24,I do not agree because movements & protests get violent & place demands on a weak
democracy. For eg:
1.DEMAND FOR KHALISTAN: One section of the Akali Dal raised the question of
autonomous Sikh identity & the more extreme elements started the demand for Khalistan.
This took the form of armed insurgency. This led to Operation Bluestar & finally the
assassination of Indira Gandhi by two Sikhs. Violence broke out everywhere & more than
2000 Sikhs were killed in Delhi. Hundreds of Sikhs were killed in other parts of the
country.
2.THE KASHMIR ISSUE: This is not just a dispute b/w India & Pakistan. It has internal
& external dimensions also. It involves the issue of Kashmiri identity known as
Kashmiriyat & the aspirations of the people of J&K for political autonomy.
3.NAXALITES: This peasant uprising took place in Darjeeling. It argued that democracy
in India was a sham & decided to adopt a strategy of protracted guerrilla warfare in order
to lead a revolution. It used force to snatch land from the rich to give to the poor &
landless. They used violent means to achieve their goals.
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Q25.Describe the nature of the Dravidian movement.
A25.The Dravidian movement was one of the 1st regional movement in Indian politics.
Some sections of this movement had ambitions of creating a Dravid nation:
1.This movement did not take to arms but used democratic means like public debates and
the electoral platform to achieve its goal.
2.This strategy paid off as the movement got political power in the state and also became
influential at the national level.
3.The Dravidian movement led to the formation of DK (Dravida Kazhagam) under the
leadership of E.V. Ramaswami Periyar.

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