Washington, July 25: Asserting that India has "an iron clad legal right to Kashmir," Janata party president Subramanian Swamy has said the solution to the stalemate does not lie in another war or compensatory tradeoffs but in creating an atmosphere of peace and activating trade pacts between new Delhi and Islamabad. Addressing the controversial International Conference on Kashmir being held here, Swamy said legally the whole state is a part of the Indian Union but that another Indo-Pakistan war, Pakistan-backed terrorism or compensatory trade-offs are not viable options to resolve the issue. India has "an iron clad legal right to Kashmir," he said, adding there are two broad parameters in the search for a solution to the issue- Kashmir should remain undivided and neither parties should be made worse off the this quest. "Both nations clearly bear heavy costs in terms of foregone opportunities in a number of vital areas because of the continued stalemate in Kashmir. "The search for a solution must therefore commence afresh, and by taking into account the `zero sum` nature of the issue and the lack of tradeoff possibilities," he said presenting a five-step, 11-year plan at the conference hosted by Senator Thomas Harkins and Congressman Joseph Pitts. He suggested a "Joint Kashmir Assembly" in which people of both Jammu and Kashmir and the Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) should under the aegis of respective election commissions elect members to the body. Indian government has boycotted the conference.

"The two areas of Kashmir on either side of the ceasefire line under the aegis of their respective election commissions initiate the process to elect members of a Joint Kashmir Assembly, much as countries in Europe do for electing MPSs to the European parliament. This forum should function on an agreed schedule of subject division and at the same time work in harmony with the two existing assemblies," Swamy said.

The election commission of India must also ensure that the half a million pandit community be enabled to return to the valley for resettlement and voter registration, since ethnic cleansing to rig the vote is not acceptable under the UN charter of self-determination, Swamy suggested.

The next step of the plan include abolition of travel restrictions between the two countries. "If the three assemblies have worked smoothly, then all restrictions for travel in undivided Kashmir (phased over a period of two years) should be abolished. This would be without prejudice to known positions of the two countries on the Kashmir dispute but travel would require voter identity cards to be carried."

Thereafter, India and Pakistan would work out common market and free trade arrangements through the SAARC. Cross registration of university students should be permitted. Collaboration in information technology and pharmaceuticals should be focused on for joint ventures.

Also, at the end of 10 years, India and Pakistan should work to have a joint South Asian parliament with a charter on division of subjects for legislation.

The final step in the second year is a review to determine whether to stop there, or proceed further to even greater unity in the South Asian sub-continent, he added.

Bureau Report.