The US-thinktank the ‘Hudson Institute’ has released a report “Pakistan’s Destabilization Playbook: Khalistan separatist activism within the USA” (https://s3.amazonaws.com/media.hudson.org/Pande_Pakistan’s%20Destabilization%20Playbook%20-%20Khalistan%20Separatist%20Activism%20Within%20the%20US.pdf ) . This report is out of legitimate & laudable motives of protecting the interests of the USA and its ally India as mentioned in the report that – “[ India is now a critical US ally in the Indo-Pacific. As a member of the US-Australia-Japan-India Quad and a major defense partner, India deserves to be heard, understood, and supported by the US on a wide range of issues, including its concerns regarding violent and potentially violent secessionist movements covertly supported by China and Pakistan. Ignoring India’s concerns about threats to its integrity could undermine its resolve to act as America’s ally in confronting the aggressive intentions of Communist-led China, and this would constitute a significant and dangerous loss to the US]”. But this report will not succeed in these objectives unless the ‘Hudson Institute’ releases another (this time impartial & professional) report about Khalistan, Kashmir and Pakistan and also about Afghanistan as explained below:-
(1)- The ‘Hudson Institute’ should understand that territory depends on military power which is evident from the example of the USA itself where:-
(i)- The siege of Yorktown with the help of France ending on October 19, 1781, was a decisive victory by the USA over Britain. During American Independence war, which began in 1776, France shipped supplies also to the Continental Army of the thirteen colonies of the USA
(ii)- The South was not granted territory / independence and Prez Lincoln went to war in 1861 in which huge lives, blood and properties of the South were also lost due to the reason that not other country came to help the South.
(2)- This leads to the conclusion that the people who desire independence succeed mostly when they get help from other countries and such help is legitimate. The USA does not become illegitimate simply because it got military and other help from France. Similarly if Khalistan is trying to get help from other countries for its independence (whether such independence is desirable or not is a different matter), then it is perfectly a legitimate exercise. But it should be with some caveats:-
(i)- Khalistan should seek this help (if Khalistanis are operating from the soil of the USA) as per the laws of the USA.
(ii)- Khalistanis should not indulge in terrorist activities which should be called so only when they kill civilians especially the children, women and elders. On the contrary whenever security forces are killed by separatists then it should not be termed as terrorism but India erroneously do so even when the Indian security forces are killed by separatists.
(3)- The ‘Hudson Institute’ should release another report which is professional and based on international laws and after keeping the following in view about partition of India and recent developments in Afghanistan :-
(i)- Due to forced & illegal population transfer (illegal because there was no provision of population transfer in ‘Indian Independence Act 1947’) on the basis of religion, the partition of India is a legal fraud (which has thoroughly communalized Indian region and has caused many wars in the past and will cause many more in future, if not reversed). India got further communalized due to the fact that Muslims remain same rather increased a little to about 15 % in India (if Muslim illegal immigrants are also counted) whereas about 20 % Hindu & Sikh population from each of Pakistan and Bangladesh were forced out. This illegal partition happened when India was a member of the UN since 1945. Hence India is under no legal obligation (under international laws of the UN) to accept its partition of 1947. Therefore the USA should demand through the UN the ‘dual citizenship’ from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh to about 160 million Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims who were forcibly & illegally displaced due to partition of India (along with proper law & order in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh for these dual-citizenship holders).
(ii)- Though Khalistanis are not formulating in this way but they get support from a substantial part of Sikh population because about the area from Delhi up-to Kabul the Sikhs have different emotions. The Sikhs conquered or ruled (during the period of Banda Singh Bahadur and Maharaja Ranjeet Singh during 18th and 19th centuries) the territories north of Delhi up to some part of Afghanistan (including Haryana, Western U.P, Himachal Pradesh, united-J&K). Only Britishers could remove them from power hence Sikhs in their hearts of heart believe that they should again rule this area when Britishers are gone. On the contrary they are not even allowed to live in this area.
(iii)- The USA through the UN should ensure plebiscite in united J&K (as mandated by IoA of J&K to India and also by UN resolution) and in Balochistan (who’s IoA was taken by Pakistan under military pressure) after ensuring both these territories free from outsiders.
(iv)- Though the ‘Hudson Institute’ in this report has talked about some taboo regarding talking to the so-called terrorist organization but it forgot that the way the USA talked to Taliban and facilitated them in gaining power in Afghanistan, The ‘Hudson Institute’ needs to re-formulate international laws about this matter.
(v)- The ‘Hudson Institute’ should further know that the West led by the USA has made a mockery of the UN (which is busy in meaningless UNGA at New York) because the West was for war in Afghanistan post 9/11 under UN resolution but the September 14 European Union (EU) motion says that [G – whereas the Taliban are facing the NRF of Afghanistan in the Panjshir Valley led by Ahmad Massoud; whereas Pakistan is assisting the Taliban in fighting the NRF by supplying its special forces and providing air support] – And still UN is not taking any military action against Pakistan and instead (i)- Allowing the West led by the USA to end war in Afghanistan (ii)- Allowing the Taliban to remain in power. (surprisingly the ‘Hudson Institute’ is demanding action against Pakistan about hardly-existent Khalistan when the West led by the USA and the UN are doing nothing against Pakistan about what it is doing in Afghanistan and which has destabilized the whole region).
(4)- Has the ‘Hudson Institute’ before talking about Khalistanis ever thought about what is the stand of India about Tibetans of China who are allowed to live in India and to talk about even the Tibetan government-in-exile though in a duplicitous manner. India should have asked these Tibetans whether they want Tibet to be part of China or an independent country and then only India should have formulated Tibet policy but it never did so. As far as the human rights of Tibetans in China, it can be taken-up through human rights laws as per ICCPR of the UN.
(5)- As far as Quad is concerned the The ‘Hudson Institute’ is expected to be more impartial and professional and is expected to ask the USA that why it depends upon individual alliance such as QUAD, AUKUS, NATO etc (even for resolving international disputes) and does not reconstitute a world body (the UN or otherwise) which will function as per international laws and will give preference (in some form may by through voting rights in UNSC) to the countries which are practicing ‘liberal Western democracies’ over those countries which are practicing authoritarian political system.
The ‘Hudson Institute’ in view of above mentioned, should demand action from the USA (its Administration and Congress) about the activities of the so-called separatists of Kashmir and Khalistan only after keeping in view that India (and even the USA as the leader of free world and sponsor of the UN) are equally if not more responsible for all the bloodshed in this region and the solution for this region is only ‘Federation of Secular Democratic mini-SAARC’ of India, Pakistan. and Afghanistan and not the punitive actions which The ‘Hudson Institute’ have recommended by the USA in said report against Khalistanis, Kashmiris, Pakistanis and Chinese.
