DINNER WITH BS: Mehbooba Mufti

Worthy successor

Kashmir's gutsy leader reflects on her personal struggles, political agenda and hopes for the strife-torn state.

After a rather dull day in Parliament and a shopping spree in the company of her two teenage daughters, Mehbooba Mufi was in a mood to relax. "Oh! These youngsters "" they want to try everything before buying,'' she complained. However, she was soon proudly showing off the trendy beige and silver shoes the girls had forced her to buy. Mehbooba had chosen her favourite Chinese restaurant, Jade (at the Claridges), for dinner. "This is the best place if you love Chinese," coos the MP from Kashmir as she sips her mixed fruit juice. On her suggestion we order her favourite crispy spinach as a starter, writes Aasha Khosa.

Some 20 years ago, Mehbooba's life took a dramatic turn. She ended her marriage to a cousin and moved away with her two toddler daughters to Delhi. This Kashmir University law graduate who hails from a prominent political family of the Valley took up the job of an airline executive and decided to secure her girls from the emotional aftermath of a broken marriage. It was amidst this that Mehbooba discovered this restaurant. "My daughters have grown up as complete Delhiwallas. While I consider Delhi my camp office, they feel it's their home," she says.

Children are obvious starting points for a cosy conversation between two women. "I used to be a doting single parent till the day I joined politics in 1996," says Mehbooba reflectively. The day her father asked her to file her nomination as a candidate for Assembly elections from their ancestral hometown of Bijebehara, Mehbooba says she virtually left the girls on their own. Life suddenly moved in top gear for this Mufti scion who, till then, was a cause of worry for her parents in comparison to her more successful siblings. Addressing rallies, meeting people and extensively travelling within Kashmir to garner support became her routine. Today, after 11 years the girls appreciate her work and often blame their grandfather, Mufti Mohammed Sayeed, for overburdening their mother.

Her electoral victory over, Mehbooba caused ripples in the political scene of Kashmir. She was the force behind her father's regional outfit, People's Democratic Party, and changed the way Kashmiris perceived politics as a manipulative and New Delhi-controlled game in Kashmir. Over the years, her powerful presence changed the political discourse in the state on real issues that touch peoples' hearts.

Mehbooba slurps chicken soup and I eat vegetable dumplings as our conversation dramatically shifts to food. "This place is unlike other grandiose and opulent restaurants that are so intimidating that one does not feel comfortable there,'' she says. Mehbooba's politics also veers around the magic of simple communication between the leader and the people. Politics is useless without the public at the centrestage, she says. She is the happiest when she visits Kashmir's villages with the aim of building her nascent party. "Believe me, the days I address five to six rallies I feel so happy and recharged,'' she chuckles.

Her mantra for success in politics, she says, is: Speak honestly if you wish to be taken seriously by everyone. "Last year while visiting a village in Kashmir I found that allegations of rape against the armymen were totally false." She spoke about this to the villagers. This helped the army and the cause of truth. "Today, if I raise an issue about excesses and disappearances, the army seriously looks into it," she adds.

At the end of the day, it's issues and not people who raise them that should be the centre of attention, says Mehbooba. "This is my problem with issues like Narmada.'' A self-confessed recluse in Parliament, she says unless the House is allowed to function normally by agitated members of the Opposition, going to Parliament is a waste. She joined the young MPs' forum only to stop attending its meetings after some BJP MPs tried to disrupt her maiden address at the meet.

As the main course comprising ginger-garlic hakka noodles, oriental vegetables in black sauce and Toiachin chicken is served, Mehbooba cautions against using chopsticks. "Never use them if you are hungry,'' she warns.

Kashmir could be headed for elections this year, she says lowering her voice. There is definite talk of India and Pakistan signing an agreement on Kashmir this year, she adds. With General Musharraf on a sticky wicket, the process may get hastened further. Little wonder then, Mehbooba is on overdrive. "Yes, I have visited and held rallies in all districts of Jammu and Kashmir, barring perhaps Doda," she declares.

History is being turned around in Kashmir. Mehbooba admits that till some years ago, she had never imagined that a bus would run between Srinagar and Muzzaffarabad. Sceptics still do not believe that Kashmir's old roads to central Asia, Tibet and Pakistan would re-open in the coming years.

Mehbooba is, however, apprehensive of the BJP's intentions on Kashmir. "My gut feeling is that the BJP would put hurdles in every move," she says. Her reasoning: The BJP could be visualising its return to power at Delhi and would prefer to clinch a deal with Pakistan when it is in power.

While Kashmir remains Mehbooba's obsession, at times she feels strongly about pan-Indian issues like caste-based reservations. It's a wrong remedy for a just cause, she says. Giving reservations on the basis of caste is akin to planting a ripe fruit on a sick tree. Why not instead nurse the tree back to health and harvest a bountiful? There are no schools in the areas inhabited by lower castes, and here we are talking about reservations for them, she adds.

Mehbooba picks baby corn bits from the vegetarian dish as she talks about her recent visit to a Muslim women's conference in Doha. She sees the tensions between the west and the Islamic world as the fallout of the centuries-old rivalries among the three main Semitic religions. To Mehbooba, blaming others for Muslims' problems is useless. Haven't the Christians progressed in different fields only because they have spread education, she asks. On the other hand, the oil-rich Arab states have been pushing funds for opening madrasas in third world countries. At the women's conference in Doha, Mehbooba proposed making Islamic studies just a small part of the madrasa curriculum. Kashmir, she says, has mercifully remained untouched by the Islamic wave in spite of the violence. Sensing my disbelief, she quips, "Only the number of mosques has increased but people remain the same."

We order a platter of exotic oriental fruits for dessert as we find ourselves talking about the risks of working in places like Kashmir. "When I filed my nomination papers for the Assembly elections and started visiting my constituency, I had no idea of the killers lurking about,'' she laughs. Last year, militants threw a grenade on her rally. She kept speaking without considering she could die. Finally, securitymen had to drag her away from the platform. Is she naturally courageous, I ask, or has she grown this way after a lifetime of facing challenges. Mehbooba refuses to be drawn into this debate. "Courage is what makes a naughty child wait for a car to get close enough before he starts crossing the road," she says.

We end the delicious dinner with jasmine tea. As we ready to leave, Mehbooba suddenly remembers someone whose disinterest in politics changed her life. "You know, Tassaduaq, my brother, who was supposed to be in my place "" he recently received an award for his cinematography in Vishal Bharadwaj's Omkara," she says, pride glinting in her eyes.