Home Ministry’s report on infiltration and fomenting unrest through radicalization of Kashmir Muslim youth is alarming. However, it is based on realistic ground situation in Kashmir. The report holds Pakistan responsible for change in its tactics and resorting to disrupting law and order in Kashmir. It has lately, meaning in the year 2016, changed strategy in which besides increasing infiltration bids by the jihadis from across the border, Pakistan is radicalizing Kashmiri Muslim youth through the means of social media. It whips up religious sentiments of Kashmiri youth, spreads hatred against India and security forces including the police.
In 2016 there was spurt in infiltration bids across the LoC as well as the IB. During 2016, both infiltration attempts and net estimated infiltrations have increased in comparison to 2015. In 2016, 364 infiltration attempts were made and 112 terrorists infiltrated into Jammu and Kashmir. The year 2016 witnessed a 54.81 per cent increase and a 110.25 per cent increase in the number of terrorist incidents and fatalities of security forces in comparison to the corresponding period of 2015.
It is evident that Pakistan is focusing on radicalization of Kashmiri youth and giving fillip to civil unrest through the instrumentality of social media. During the summer unrest in 2016, there were large numbers of stone pelting incidents in which there took place fatalities among the civilians as well as the security forces. The new tactics of causing unrest was that in a situation of encounter between the terrorist and the security forces, the people of the encounter villages come out in large numbers to pelt stones on security forces with two-pronged purpose. One is to divert the attention of the security forces from operation against the terrorist and the second is to provide escape route to the terrorists in which they generally succeed. Pakistan is using this tactics recurrently. These are the antics which Pakistan has been calling moral, diplomatic and psychological support to the so-called freedom fighters in Kashmir. Pakistan is focusing on fomenting civil unrest in Kashmir simply because that Pakistan knows that Kashmiris can be instigated and mishandled and then tell the world that Kashmiris are suppressed and oppressed by security forces. Terrorists are using more and more civilians to conduct activities that would result in unrest in the State. They torch school buildings in the hope that the school going children will be forced to say good bye to Government schools and head towards the Jamati Islami darsgah or seminaries where they undergo intensive brain washing. The terrorist and violent mobs even attack the houses of policeman to spread fear in them so that the keep away from active duty.
Radicalization under Pakistan’s intense propaganda has impacted segments of Kashmir society. Intransigent political leadership in Kashmir is behaving irresponsibly which ads fuel to the fire and worsens situation.
The question is what should be done to meet this kind of challenge. Obviously, the people have to be made knowledgeable about the consequence of behaving in an obstructionist manner. It is for the local Government to take corrective measures on a large scale. The MLAs/MLCs, Ministers, the ruling parties and even opposition have the responsibility to come out boldly in the field and dissuade the people from adopting a disastrous course. Stone pelting, misbehaving with security forces, torching schools and indulging such subversive activities do not at all help in realizing any nefarious design. Kashmir leadership has to stop the meaningless and misleading rhetoric that it is a political issue and Pakistan has to be taken on board to “find a solution”. No nationalist Government compromises with national sovereignty and territorial integrity of the State. Ruling parties in Kashmir have the responsibility to meet the challenge of unrest and radicalization programme that threatens national sovereignty. Their place is not in the Secretariat and other Government chambers. Today their place is in the field and their work is with the masses of people. They have to stop justifying illegal, unreasonable and sentimental approach to problems and have to be advised to behave as responsible representatives of the people.
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