How India’s Push for Tourism is Hiding the Abuses in Kashmir

India goes to the polls in 2024 and the message that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his BJP want the world to know is that there is nothing wrong in Kashmir. With his heavy-handed leadership, he has “stabilized” the region, and there is a so-called booming sector of the Indian economy that is open for business where tourism leads the way.

Just don’t look too hard, pay no attention to the costs in lives, the human rights abuses, and the tyranny of the government.

Modi wants the world to see India as a peaceful multicultural democracy that leads the way into the 21st century. But the truth is that he has turned Jammu and Kashmir into a prison state, spits in the face of democracy, and is engaging in cultural annihilation.

Modi visits Srinagar and promises more tourist development

On March 7th, Modi visited Srinagar and announced a host of development initiatives intended to boost tourism to the region. He promoted the ‘Dekho Apna Desh People’s Choice’ campaign, where 40 places have been identified by the government to be developed as tourist destinations in the next two years.

“This new Jammu-Kashmir has the courage to overcome any challenge,” Modi told thousands of people attending a public meeting at a stadium in Srinagar, the region’s summer capital, amid tight security. People were bused in from remote towns and villages for the public spectacle to build his image before the upcoming election.

“The country is seeing these smiling faces of yours … (and) feeling relieved to see you all happy.”

The visit caps off last year’s G20 summit, which also attempted to highlight increased tourism as a sign of progress in the valley.

Kashmir is a beautiful land full of diverse regions and attractions. From Srinagar to Gulmarg – the snow paradise of the region, and the Kashmir Valley, which lies at the foothills of the Himalayas and draws the attraction of hikers and mountaineers.

The Hindu nationalist government has also promoted religious pilgrimage to the region to visit such Hindu sites such as Kheer Bhawani Temple and Amarnath Cave, to promote right wing religious domination in Kashmir.

Thus tourism serves three different goals—fulfillment of Hindu devotees, economic development for the state via the use of foreign travelers and more importantly- the destruction of Kashmiri identity through tourism. In doing so, the BJP seeks to garner Hindu nationalists’ votes in the upcoming elections.

The ugly stain of settler colonialism

Behind all the shiny veneer of tourism is the awful truth. This push for normalcy hides a cost that has been paid for in lives.

Article 370 and 35A were eliminated to allow an influx of Hindu settlers – boosting sting Hindu nationalism. In the aftermath of the 2019 decision to abrogate Kashmiri self-determination – Modi turned Jammu and Kashmir into a prison state under the criminal military-industrial enterprise.

With its communication blackout, over half of businesses did not survive. The Indian government has led to a widespread crackdown on dissidents, human rights activists, and journalists, leading to arbitrary arrests and indefinite detention. People have been displaced and homes have been demolished to make way for these new developments.

New development money does not go to the people the Modi government displaced. Instead, it goes to the newly arrived settlers who already have their hands in the BJP wallet.

Modi can throw money at a problem and claim ‘Mission accomplished’ but the truth is that economic activity is still down 55 percent from before 370s elimination.

All is not well in Kashmir. Press releases and photo ops cannot disguise the fact that Kashmir is illegally occupied against the will of the local Kashmiri population and in violation of 16 UNSC resolutions. It carries on a campaign of destruction of lives and erasure of the Muslim majority culture.

This pattern of oppression and displacement eerily echoes the troubling beginnings of what the world is witnessing now in Palestine. Both cases highlight the urgent need for international attention and action to address issues of ethnic cleansing and human rights violations.

The international community continues to ignore the problem

In 2023, India held the rotating presidency of the G20 and made normalcy through tourism part of its mission during the year-long summit.

During the G20, there were belated mumblings from Western nations about the situation in Kashmir. Talks presented with no action. Both China and Pakistan condemned it.

However, nothing made the Modi government change course.

As 2024 dawned, it is clear that the issues remain far from the minds of western policy makers.

Over 4 billion people will participate in national elections throughout the world, in both the United States and India.

American officials are overstretched and ignore the issue as heightened partisan tension in Congress, the Russo-Ukrainian War, and the invasion and genocide in Gaza by Israel– overwhelming America’s foreign policy bandwidth.

Final thoughts

Tourism should be a unifying tool for economic development, and to welcome people from around the world to experience the culture and traditions of Kashmir and Jammu should be a good thing.

It is not.

Tourism is being weaponized against the region to eliminate the cultural heritage and identity of the region’s Muslims.

The benefits of tourism do not benefit the region – as New Delhi has depressed the economic realities of the Kashmiri people and driven the investments to insiders who adhere to Modi’s
Hindu nationalist agenda.

The flip side of the coin is that in Modi’s desire to eliminate Kashmiri identity – he sows the seeds of chaos and instability that prevent tourists from visiting, and the simple truth is that the best way to make Kashmir prosperous is to free Kashmir so they can determine their own future.