On 24 July, when the J&K police found two non-local labourers involved in the rape and killing of a 14-year old girl in Langate village in Kupwara, Syed Geelani, Chairman Hurriyat Conference (G), came out with a call asking all non-state labourers to leave Kashmir voluntarily. The Hizbul Mujahideen soon followed with their own ultimatum to migrant labourers telling them to leave within a week. Consequently, the flight of labourers from the state has increased. The Hizbul and Geelani factions are using these means to reassert their significance in Kashmir. Why have the Hizbul and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) come out in support of the local Kashmiris after carrying out mass killings and brutalities against them? How will this impinge on the peace process in the state?

Disowning their previous statements, the hard line factions of the Hurriyat have now stated that they never demanded that non-Kashmiri workers leave, but only those involved in criminal activities. The Huriryat (G) has abstained from joining any dialogue with New Delhi, and is also against Pakistan's dialogue with India. Continuing with this unchanged position, Geelani branded the inflow of labour as a 'conspiracy' hatched to settle non-state subjects in Kashmir. He compared this policy to the one implemented in Palestine for the settlement of Jews.

To maintain its monopoly over this demand, the Hurriyat (G) asked the Hizbul not to intervene in a purely 'social issue.' The fear psychosis and threat of facing the wrath of the separatists and militants has forced thousands of labourers to leave the Valley.

The Geelani faction could have gained greater credit if the same opportunity was not used by the Hizbul, which has also blamed the labourers from Bihar, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, Haryana, Punjab and Nepal for criminal (immoral) acts in the state. The Hizbul and other terrorist outfits getting involved in 'social' issues highlights the linked security threats in the state. Migrant workers are the easiest targets for militants trying to exert pressure on the government. Eventually, the crime has been sidelined, with the incident being used to disrupt the ongoing peace process in Kashmir. By demanding the withdrawal of non-Kashmiri labour, the separatist and militant groups are not fighting for justice but to gain popular support. Is it possible to generalize that the entire non-local labour force in the state is involved in crime?

Amidst attacks on tourists and pilgrims in the state, the latest demand does not augur well for the ongoing peace process. Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Chairman of the moderate faction of the Hurriyat Conference was guarded in his response to Geelani's call, revealing his differences with the latter. The Kupwara incident and its immediate aftermath have raised critical issues. First, the statements made by Geelani and the Hizbul will affect Kashmiris working in other parts of the country. Politicization of a schoolgirl's rape can make thousands of Kashmiris living outside the state vulnerable. The scenario was changing for the better. In June 2007, the Hizbul chief had called for resettling Kashmiri Pandits in the Valley, but the same outfit is now calling for the expulsion of migrant workers. Second, the issue has sparked off a political struggle as the state unit of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has demanded the prosecution of Geelani for asking non-Kashmiri labourers to leave the Valley. Dr Ramakant Dubey, the president of the state unit, has demanded Geelani's prosecution under the National Security Act (NSA).

Third, this demand places the economy of the state at risk. Labourers from Bihar, Orissa, Bengal and Uttar Pradesh work at lower costs than locals. From highway workers to painters, carpenters to vendors, non-local labour are involved in most economic activities in the state. If they leave Kashmir, it will be a major setback for development projects in the state. High wages have drawn more than a hundred thousand workers to the Valley, Jammu and Ladakh. Agricultural labour is most popular in the state. There is considerable agricultural work and infrastructure construction available during the summer months. However, most migrant labour heads back home after the summer months. To conclude that migrant workers are tools in India's attempt to erode the religious and cultural identity of the state is an exaggeration.

At a stage when efforts are being made to bring the militants and hardliners to the dialogue table, such demands are obstructive. Even the Kashmir Bar Association has not withdrawn its statement asking non-local labourers to leave Kashmir. This could alter the behaviour of the local population towards non-local labourers reversing the content of people-to-people contacts. The need is for fighting the root cause of atrocities rather than allowing spoilers to escalate the conflict.