MY SPEECH IN THE RAJYA SABHA ON JAMMU AND KASHMIR ON 10/8/2016

MR. DEPUTY CHAIRMAN: He will not stop in one minute. ...(Interruptions)...Naqvi ji, he will not stop. ...(Interruptions)... After disposing of all these names, if time is there, I will call you. ...(Interruptions)... Please sit down. ...(Interruptions)... Now, Shri Ram Jethmalani. Before that, let me request all the remaining Members to please take five minutes each. Please start.

SHRI RAM JETHMALANI (BIHAR): Mr. Deputy Chairman, Sir, apart from the fact that probably I am the oldest Member in this House

MR. DEPUTY CHAIRMAN: How can it be a maiden speech?...(Interruptions)... He is the oldest Member. ...(Interruptions)...

SHRI RAM JETHMALANI: Sir, it is my maiden speech so far as my representation of the State of Bihar is concerned. . I have been now elected from that State and I am entitled to the benefit of one maiden speech, and, that is the one which I am delivering just now. However, Sir, I leave it to you. When you want me to stop, give me three minutes' notice. Sir, I must start by paying a tribute to the only speech which I thoroughly enjoyed from the first word to the last word, and that is the speech of the BJP Member from Jammu. I am sorry, if I do not know your correct name but, I think, you are Gopal Yadav. Is it? ...(Interruptions)... No? What is his name? ...(Interruptions)... Okay. Mr. Jitendra Singh. My apologies but I must say that I was terribly impressed by the speech, which you delivered, and, I am much wiser with that.

SHRI RAM JETHMALANI (contd.): Sir, I don't wish to repeat the contents of any other Member's speech, not because I have not enjoyed them but because of lack of time, and, Sir, I hope I will not repeat a word which has already been spoken. I must tell you that I probably had no intention of coming and speaking on this subject in this House. But, yesterday, when I got up in the morning -- and I was in Mumbai, attending a very great festival in my home; I was celebrating the 60th birthday of my elder son -- and read the newspapers which contained the statement of the Hon. Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir. I have regarded that lady as a younger sister of mine, and I have treated her with respect and affection. But I must tell you that I cut short my stay in Bombay, came to Delhi, immediately wrote a very strong letter to her and saw to it that it was delivered to her on the e-mail and probably repeated in the morning by the normal mail. Sir, that letter of hers contained what I regard as some very, very mischievous suggestion. The mischievous suggestion was, “please now start a new dialogue, like the dialogue which Atalji had with Pakistan”. We shall have no dialogue with Pakistan but we are prepared to have every dialogue with the people of Jammu & Kashmir and we shall surrender to them many things which they may not even deserve . But that is our love and affection for them. So far as Pakistan is concerned, Sir, the Kashmir problem has been solved more than once. It has been settled at least four times in the political history of India. Sir, first of all, let me point out to you one great mistake which Pakistan committed. Fortunately, they did not get the benefit of it. You know that when India was finding its independence, question arose as to the sovereignty of the British Crown , the States, the multitudes of States we had. To whom shall it go? And I believe that the Congress Party took a very correct role. They said it shall revert to the people of India. Even many Muslim politicians in joined this except the strict one in the Muslim League. They said, "No; the sovereignty shall not go to the people, but it shall go to the ruler of the State." Now, there was a plan behind this. The plan behind it was that they thought, "Kashmir is a small State, we will be able to conquer it by force at any time". They said, therefore that; the sovereignty must go to the Princes because they had their eyes on the State of Hyderabad. It was a Non- Muslim majority State and His Highness, the Nizam of Hyderabad, was ruling the State by that great army of Razakars, like whom one has not seen so far as military ethics and character are concerned. However, the Indian Army, under the control of Sardar Patel, one of the greatest politicians and sensible people that India had produced, was marching into Hyderabad when Pandit Nehru got some qualm of conscience and he tried to stop it, and Sardar Patel had to tell him a lie that the Army had already entered Hyderabad. And, if Pandit Nehru had his way and Sardar Patel had failed, take it from me, we will today be facing the problem of Hyderabad and India ..(Interruptions)..

SHRI JAIRAM RAMESH: This is simply not true, Sir. ..(Interruptions).. This is simply not true.

SHRI JAIRAM RAMESH (CONTD.): This is falsifying history. ...(Interruptions)... This is a canard. ...(Interruptions)... This is a propaganda. This is simply not true. ...(Interruptions)... I have seen the archives. ...(Interruptions)... I have written a book on...(Interruptions).. He is misleading the House. ...(Interruptions).. He is misleading the House. ...(Interruptions)... He is a very senior Member. I respect him. I respect him as a human being, as a lawyer...(Interruptions)... But on this, he is completely, comprehensively wrong. ...(Interruptions)...

DR. K. KESHAVA RAO: Which part of it is wrong? ...(Interruptions)...

SHRI JAIRAM RAMESH: Don’t interfere...(Interruptions)...

MR. DEPUTY CHAIRMAN: Okay. All right. Keshava Raoji, both are on record. ...(Interruptions)... You sit down. ...(Interruptions)... No, no. Both are on record. ...(Interruptions)... What Mr. Ram Jethmalani said and what Mr. Jairam Ramesh said...(Interruptions)...

THE LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION (SHRI GHULAM NABI AZAD): Sir, today, we should not go into the history. All of us, the Congress Party, the BJP and all other parties, decided not to dig out the past. We should talk about the present.

SHRI RAM JETHMALANI: We are not digging out the past. We are talking about some historical ...(Interruptions)...truths

SHRI GHULAM NABI AZAD: We will have it when we will have discussion on archives. That time we will have this discussion. ...(Interruptions)...We are discussing the current problem. ...(Interruptions)...

MR. DEPUTY CHAIRMAN: Ram Jethmalaniji, the issue is that Kashmir is burning. We want some solution. We are racking our brains for a solution as to what to do. So, rather than going back to history, give suggestion for that. ...(Interruptions)...

SHRI RAM JETHMALANI: Yes, Sir. Sir, I personally wish to tell this House that the solution offered yesterday in the Press by the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir is not a solution to be considered at all. You must reject it. We must be careful about giving this kind of advice which the Chief Minister gave because this particular matter had been decided four times. As I told you, the sovereignty had to reside in the people. I wish to cite one incident. When Hyderabad was lost, the raiders, the armed military people of Pakistan in concealed identity and posing to be tribals to attack Kashmir and they had...(Time-bell)...

MR. DEPUTY CHAIRMAN: Now you have to conclude. Please conclude. You have already taken nine minutes.

SHRI RAM JETHMALANI: Sir, out of nine minutes, you deduct those seven minutes. ...(Interruptions)... All right, Sir. My appeal to this House is that the Kashmir problem has been solved with Pakistan more than three times. One point towards which I would particularly like to draw your attention is that in the 60s, Pakistan started a war of aggression believing full well that they are attacking us. While we were unarmed and weak . But the Indian Army completely mastered that aggressive attack and that led to another great action of one of the greatest Prime Ministers which India had and he was Lal Bahadur Shastri. What happened was that we got Tashkent Declaration. The Tashkent Declaration had two clauses. One was that neither party shall change the present status quo by force or by violence. And the second one was that neither party shall even carry on any propaganda for changing it. (Time-bell) If Pakistan wishes to go back on the Tashkent Declaration and other settlements that have taken place, be sure that you will tell Pakistan that it will lose its claim to half of Jammu and Kashmir which Indian generosity had given to it for good.

SHRI RAM JETHMALANI (CONTD.): But, we are prepared that we will take it back. (Time-bell) Sir, I want no talks with Pakistan on this issue. All that you must tell them is that if they want to fight that issue with us, let us go to the International Court of Justice or let us go to the Security Council; and, be sure that they will lose there. Tell them that if they succeed there, we will succumb to the decision of the international community. Today, Sir, please do not carry on with any kind of dialogue with Pakistan, but do carry on every kind of dialogue with the people of Jammu and Kashmir. (Time-bell) They are our kith and kin, and they are as dear to us as anybody else can be. Sir, so far as I am concerned, you may be pretty sure that I will give my life to keep the people of Jammu and Kashmir as friends of India and I will see to it that the Indian Union with that State is appreciated by everybody including the entire civilized world. I shall spend there a few years of my life that remain. I am running today the 93rd year of my life. I will devote the remaining part of my life to see that the people of Jammu and Kashmir are happy and that they remain happy, live long and be friends of this country. Thank you.

OPEN LETTER OF TO HON’BLE PRIME MINISTER NAWAZ SHARIF AND HIS FELLOW MINISTERS

Dear Prime Minister,

I don’t claim that you regard me as a friend but I claim that I am the friend of Pakistan including you. I have been born and brought up in Pakistan until I was compelled to become a refugee in India not because of any Muslims of Sindh but angry Muslims who reached Sindh from Outside India looking mainly for Hindu properties.

Sindh has been the land of Sufis and we had developed such a wonderful synthesis of Islam and Hinduism there. When I was young I used to get my new clothes on Eid day and Muslims children brought them on Deepawali.

From 1941 to 1948, I practiced law in Karachi in a firm called Brohi and Co. in which my only other partner was the Allah Bukhsh Brohi, a man whom I loved and whose memory I respect. People of Pakistan know him very well so do some people in India because he was the High Commissioner of Pakistan in Delhi for a couple of years. We were both products of the Bombay University and both of us had Masters Degree from that University. His degree was in Philosophy as Buddha and Kant as his special philosophers. I had constitution and International Law for my Masters degree in Law. Today I am running my 93rd year but throughout my long life which might come to an end any day I have not given up my love for Pakistan and affection for its people. Though a Hindu I believe that the Prophet of Islam was one of the greatest and unmatched in some ways. Pardon me for reminding you of the essence of his greatness. He is the one who told his followers that when you walk in search of Knowledge you walk in Path of God; the ink of a scholar is holier than the blood of a martyr. When Muslims followed this teaching they became the masters of the civilized world. In the 13th century, it is the misfortune of the Muslims that you produced a Khalifa who told you to burn all books except the holy Quran. Since then following this suicidal teaching you became the slaves of those whom you had educated to become civilized. I regret that tragedy persists and treat this as my dying declaration. 

Let me first cure you of your long suicidal path in the matter of acquiring political control of Jammu and Kashmir. While most Indian leaders including a small fraction of Muslim leaders were busy fighting for India’s independence majority of Muslims represented by the Muslim League was not interested in Indian independence but in the creation of Islamic State of Pakistan. India paid the heavy price and of course you got a truncated Pakistan but you rejoiced that you had at least got a new Islamic State. It is strange but significant that while the majority of Indian intellectuals talked of sovereignty reverting to the people of India the Muslim League insisted that sovereignty must descend to the rulers of Indian States. You thought that Kashmir will be no problem for Pakistan. You can capture it by force anytime. Your sights were trained at time on Hyderabad, a Hindu majority state but ruled by the Muslim Nizam and his ruthless army of Razakars . Your conquest of Hyderabad was frustrated by the timely action of Sardar Patel and in Kashmir whit its Hindu ruler you relied upon your army disguised as tribal raiders marching in with forcible occupation in view. They had almost succeeded in reaching the gates of Srinagar but fortunately they wasted sometime with raping some Christian Nuns on the way that gave time to the Maharaja to sign the instrument of accession with India. The Indian army got there in time drove back the raiders until you sued for peace and foolish Nehru with the kind Hindu in him was content to with half of Kashmir leaving the other half in the control of criminal gangsters. That was their status in law. You might respect them as patriots. 

This was the not the end of the problem. In the 1960’s you planned a war of aggression. Fortunately the brave Indian army frustrated this act of naked aggression on the part of Pakistan. You were lucky that India was ruled at that time by Lal Bahadur Shastri whom I regard as the best Prime Minister India has ever had. You should be grateful to his memory for he gave you a magnificent gift the Tashkent Declaration. It had two Clauses which produced a perennial peace and a liberal settlement from a victorious enemy to a defeated one. These Clauses were

1. Neither Party shall disturb the present status quo by force or war; and

2. Neither Party shall carry on any propaganda for changing it.

It is a matter of shame that you have forgotten this magnificent compromise and the Indian generosity which left half of Jammu and Kashmir under your control despite your act of criminal aggression. I hope you realize that your claim to what India call Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) is based on the generosity of the Tashkent Declaration .Unfortunately gratitude does not seem to be an ingredient in the character of Pakistan leaders.

After this Pakistan lost Bangladesh, a Muslim majority state which came to you at the time of partition of India in 1940’s. If you could not retain a Muslim majority province and you have permanently reconciled to that loss with what justification can you lay any claim to the half of Jammu and Kashmir which India retains as a result of a valid instrument of accession by Maharaja of Kashmir. 

I hope you recall that the Bangladesh disaster left 93000 Pakistani soldiers in Indian custody. Your Prime Minister Bhutto in words with their own significance was licking the feet of Indira Gandhi. He saved that army by signing the Simla Agreement of perpetual peace. 

I suggest if Pakistan is a self respecting country you should develop utmost love and affection for the generosity of Indians. Instead of that you have let loose a reign of terror in Jammu and Kashmir and the satanic organization ISIS is threatening the security of the whole world. Ask yourself Mr. Prime Minister are you not on the side of ISIS in this unholy war against the rest of the world.

You are endangering the existence of Islam on this planet. Of course there is going to be widespread destruction of millions on this planet and humanity might have to surrender the planet to the cockroaches. But you are not going to succeed in capturing Jammu and Kashmir. You should be ashamed that you are turning young boys from the age of 10-13 as terrorists and girls of a slightly longer age 15 years maximum. These youngsters don’t understand that you are using them to win some sympathy from the world but the world knows that it is the cowardice of the older people who want to sacrifice these innocent youngsters in your unholy war which is now being waged against Jammu and Kashmir and against the whole civilized world.

Lastly, Mr. Prime Minister when Musharaff ruled Pakistan he came with proposals for settlement. I regret that the then government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee rejected the proposals. After his return to Pakistan, Musharaff sent his proposals to me through his friend, the famous owners of a brewery in Pakistan. You know the name. I am suffering from a slight loss of memory. I will speak to you further about these proposals if you are in a mood to hear a little more.

Do I ask Mr. Prime Minister that you will consider this as an appeal from a genuine friend of Pakistan and admirer of the Prophet of Islam. 

You don’t mind this letter being published.

Yours Affectionately 

Ram Jethmalani