India, Oct. 20 -- Has the Congress Party entirely abandoned the Nehruvian model of secularism - one that celebrated India's diversity and pluralism - in the face of the Right Wing's decade-long onslaught redefining nationalism through a communal lens? This question looms large, especially when one looks at Jammu and Kashmir, once a living embodiment of that model.
For nearly seven decades after Independence, Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh coexisted within a single political and cultural framework despite their differences - a rare testament to the Nehruvian idea of India. Ironically, this harmony had its roots even before Independence, when a Hindu Maharaja successfully governed a Muslim-majority state encompassing varied ethnic groups. The de...