The ongoing encounter in the Kokernag area of South Kashmir’s Anantnag district — in which commanding officer Colonel Manpreet Singh, company commander Major Aashish Dhonchak and a soldier of 19 Rashtriya Rifles Rashtriya Rifles along with deputy superintendent of J&K Police Hamayun Muzamil Bhat gave the supreme sacrifice — indicates that the menacing shadow of terrorism still looms in some pockets of J&K.
Coming just after New Delhi hosted a grand ceremony to mark India’s spectacular and praiseworthy presidency of G20, there are strong suspicions that Pakistan orchestrated this dastardly attack by using terrorists that it has been patronising.
While a lot has been written and said about the strategic and tactical significance of this terrorist act, the human angle has largely been ignored. A Sena Medal awardee, Colonel Singh was a true soldier who volunteered to continue serving in J&K despite completing his tenure. Maj Dhonchak was another die-hard soldier who put duty before self and has left behind a bereaved wife along with a three-year-old daughter, who will at best, only have a hazy memory of her father.
Son of a retired Inspector General of Police (IGP), DSP Bhat was a highly motivated Kashmiri, who, following in his father’s footsteps, joined J&K police. It was heart-wrenching to see him performing his son’s last rites. While DSP Bhat’s loss will forever haunt his near and dear ones, his one-month-old son is perhaps the most unfortunate as he will have to grow up without the loving hand of his father on his shoulder.
In fact, this is precisely what had weighed on Bhat’s mind after he was mortally wounded when he made a video call to his wife and told her: “I may not survive. If I succumb to my injuries, please take care of our son.”
This terrorist act reminds all of us that peace and stability in the Union Territory is at best fragile. It also indicates that even four years after Article 370’s abrogation that paved the way for unprecedented progress, people of the region remain vulnerable to Pakistan-sponsored terrorism and need protection. Accordingly, the counter-infiltration grid and anti-terrorist operations have to continue as these are live threats to peace and normalcy in J&K.
The Kokernag incident also raises several questions regarding the Union Home Ministry’s claims on terrorism in J&K. It has projected a 32% drop in terror acts during 2019-22, as compared to 2016-19. However, have civilian and security personnel deaths really gone down by 14 and 52%, respectively, as stated? Is there a significant decline in recruitment of terrorists? Why does the UT still need an excessive security presence? Despite trumpeting major successes, has the local administration has fallen short on the issue of dismantling local terror networks?
Why are the areas south of Pir Panjal range, especially in Rajouri & Poonch area, witnessing an upsurge in terrorist activities? Is there unfinished business post-Burhan Wani’s elimination in 2016? Is the Anantnag incident a chilling reminder of J&K in the 1990s? It is as clear as daylight that the government and security establishment have to remain alert and we need to have an effective and efficient intelligence grid, while India’s strategic calculus requires freshness and nimbleness.
Our men in uniform can no longer be treated as sacrificial lambs. We also need to rebut any suggestions by Kashmir’s (discredited) political class of talking to Pakistan, the indisputable harbinger of state-sponsored terrorism. Leaders like Farooq Abdullah, Mehbooba Mufti and others need to be reminded time and again that human lives cannot be sacrificed for political expediency. The Indian government has already sent out a strong message that every sinew available will be used and strained to counter the ‘deep state’ within Pakistan.
The international community now knows for a fact that Pakistan stands exposed on the issue of Kashmir. This last year, more than ever, demonstratively reflects that if the lid is firmly kept on terrorism and militancy, the common people in J&K can enjoy socio-economic benefits long denied to them.
Terrorism fundamentally focuses on killing innocent men, women and children. It is totalitarian in approach and power-driven, i.e. might is right. It is absolutely and factually incorrect to say that terrorism began from the 9/11 attacks in the US. India has long been suffering from it and Pakistan’s devious outlook has made Kashmir an unstable region for almost seven-and-a-half decades.
Post-Anantnag, New Delhi’s messaging has to remain strong and unambiguous. Pakistan needs to be told that come what may, India’s security forces will, with active support from citizens, root out terrorism. The people of Kashmir, too, need to be aware and conscious about any form of separatist propaganda aimed at creating unrest. Kashmiri society has long been deprived of happiness and laughter due to terrorism and its time brutal subjugation and violence ends.
Former secretary of United Hurriyat conference Dr Gh Mohmmad Hubi warns that poor economic conditions and political uncertainty can lure Pakistani youth to join terrorism just to meet the requirement of two square meals. He is also hopeful that people of Kashmir will remain vigilant and denounce motivated acts that promote violence and escalate terrorism in J&K.
The author is Editor Brighter Kashmir, author, TV commentator, political analyst and columnist. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18’s views.
Comments
0 comment