Ashok Dhar, born and brought up in Kashmir, has over thirty-five years of experience in the Energy sector. He is a member of Energy Institute (London), a Visiting Distinguished Fellow at Observer Research Foundation and the founding director of its Kolkata chapter. He has also worked in top leadership roles in three Fortune 500 companies in India and abroad. Dhar is currently Principal Consultant and Director, Akarosi Pvt. Ltd., Kolkata
Stories of the trauma and betrayal faced by Kashmiris have been told, the events retraced and analysis offered. And yet, one of the most long-standing disputes in India’s post-Independence history remains unsettled. If it were up to Lal Ded, a Sufi poet, she would offer the most difficult solution so far—to look within. Kashmir As I See It, a personal journey interspersed with geopolitical analysis, is not only about the state but also about the voice that yearns to be home again. Ashok Dhar slowly and carefully uncovers multiple layers of the conflict to show that apart from being a territorial dispute, it is also about historicity, morality and leadership—aspects that have been neglected so far. He holds that looking merely at the legality of the state’s accession is like looking at an iceberg; peace will not come if we have not examined what Kashmiriyat is. This rigorously researched and passionately honest account shows us a way to look for solutions that are not merely reflective but practical, using tools extracted from management studies such as game theory. A radical approach that throws open a new window of inquiry to resolve an age-old issue!
