As the euphoria of a fantastic electoral victory dies down, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will start looking at various issues of governance and security. This must include a serious look at Kashmir, where a lack of understanding and of coordination between the Centre and the state, combined with wayward policies, has shaped the situation to the advantage of the separatists. Two observations need to be flagged. First, the 25-year, externally sponsored conflict is at a crucial stage. The military process of eliminating the internal systems of terror is reaching its culmination but politically, not enough has been done to take the situation to the next stage. Second, for the first time in 25 years, we have political stability at the Centre, with a single party having won a majority.

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