Srinagar:
Srinagar's Lal Chowk is covered in snow right now, but is causing considerable heat over the BJP's plans to hoist the national flag here on Republic Day.
The separatists have called for a counter-march on January 26. And a tense Chief Minister has warned, "It is clear we will not allow anybody to vitiate the atmosphere and the separatists travelling to Lal Chowk also fall under this purview."
The BJP's youth workers are on their way from West Bengal to Jammu and Kashmir. They plan to end their march at Lal Chowk, where, in 1948, Jawaharlal Nehru promised Kashmir a plebiscite. That speech forms the basis of separatist discourse. The BJP says hoisting the tricolor here will prove Kashmir is an integral part of India.
The BJP yatris plan to enter the state on January 25 from the border town of Lakhanpur in Jammu. They will then head towards Srinagar.
For those trying to maintain the fragile calm, the new complication comes amid a terror threat to Srinagar on Republic Day. "It's a sensitive area, and I feel any small incident can trigger other actions. So we should be careful about it," cautions K T Parnaik, the Northern Army Commander.
The state government has invited the BJP to attend the official state function at the Bakshi stadium.
But the BJP says the march does not challenge the government, only the separatists. At the party's Jammu office the preparations are in full swing. "If the yatra is stopped anywhere, those who stop us will be stopped. We will march ahead towards Lal Chowk," says local leader Nitish Naveen.
But in Delhi, the BJP's leadership has urged caution and sensitivity. Yatris have been ordered not to resort to violence or make inflammatory comments even if their march is blocked.
In all probability, the BJP yatra will be stopped on Monday from entering Jammu and Kashmir. The responsibility for ensuring peace - and it is a hefty one - rests equally with the BJP, the separatists, and the state government.