We have been grappling with this question for more than 35 years, What next for Jammu and Kashmir? It is often coupled with another one, what’s the way forward? We are not tired of doing this exercise every hour, not that we want to revisit these questions every now and then but because of the imperatives of the situation; a situation that keeps on shifting with new challenges in its wake.

As we have stepped into 2025, the question still hangs whether we have mentally travelled into the new year of the new era. It is still our past that is keeping our clocks frozen in a particular time frame. The definition of the past, in the modern context, is drawn from pre-1947 era when the princely state had a shape of a country. And, the 1947 also serves as a chilling reminder when the majestic state broke into two parts with one part falling to the aggression launched by Pakistan. Then there is, 1953-the year of arrest of Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, followed by 1975 when he returned to power after being in “political wilderness” for 22 years, and the start of armed militancy in 1990. A new chapter to the history was added on August 5, 2019 – the day Article 370 got removed after about 70 years of its controversial existence in the Constitution of India. The state was also reorganized into two union territories. The spell of August 5, 2019 is getting thicker by every passing day while all other narratives about J&K are fading fast.

But we have not........

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