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www.GOALias.blogspot.comRegional Aspirations 155Kashmir has remained a major issue ofconflict between India and Pakistan.Internally, there is a dispute aboutthe status of Kashmir within the Indianunion. You know that Kashmir was givena special status by Article 370 in ourConstitution. You have studied about thespecial provisions under Articles 370 and371 last year in Indian Constitution atWork. Article 370 gives greater autonomyto Jammu and Kashmir compared toother States of India. The State has itsown Constitution. All provisions of theIndian Constitution are not applicable tothe State. Laws passed by the Parliamentapply to J&K only if the State agrees.This special status has provoked twoopposite reactions. There is a sectionof people outside of J&K that believesthat the special status of the Stateconferred by Article 370 does not allowfull integration of the State with India.This section feels that Article 370 shouldtherefore be revoked and J&K should belike any other State in India.Another section, mostly Kashmiris,believe that the autonomy conferred byArticle 370 is not enough. A section ofKashmiris have expressed at least threemajor grievances. First, the promise thatAccession would be referred to the peopleof the State after the situation createdby tribal invasion was normalised, hasnot been fulfilled. This has generatedthe demand for a ‘Plebiscite’. Secondly,there is a feeling that the special federalstatus guaranteed by Article 370, hasbeen eroded in practice. This has led tothe demand for restoration of autonomyor ‘Greater State Autonomy’. Thirdly, itis felt that democracy which is practicedin the rest of India has not been similarlyinstitutionalised in the State of Jammuand Kashmir.Let’s watch a FilmROJATamil film depicting the travailsof Roja, a newly wed and dotingwife when her husband, Rishi, isabducted by militants. Rishi is acryptologist who is assigned dutyin Kashmir to decode the enemymessages. As love blossomsbetween the husband and thewife, the husband is kidnapped.The kidnappers demand thattheir jailed leader, be set free inexchange of Rishi.Roja’s world is shattered and sheis seen knocking at the doors ofofficials and politicians. Since thefilm has the background of Indo-Pakistan dispute, it made instantappeal. The film was dubbedin Hindi and many other Indianlanguages.Year: 1992Director: ManiratnamScreenplay: ManiratnamCast (Hindi version): Madhu,Arvind Swamy, Pankaj Kapoor,Janagaraj