Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, May 15: Union Ministry of Home Affairs is in the process of preparing a new set of Standing Operating Procedures (SOPs) for Jammu and Kashmir militants, who have been held up in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) for past quite sometime and now want to return to their houses under Rehabilitation Policy announced by the State Government.
Official sources told the Excelsior that new set of guidelines were necessitated following influx of Kashmiri militants along with their Pakistani wives and children from Indo-Nepal border in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar notwithstanding the fact that Nepal route was not part of the Rehabilitation Policy.
“The new SOPs is in the process of being rolled out. The Union Home Ministry is engaged in discussions with various stake holders including Army, Jammu and Kashmir Police (JKP), Intelligence Bureau (IB), Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) and Shastra Seema Bal (SSB), a para-military force that was deployed along Indo-Nepal border in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh,” they said.
Sources said the SOPs would be issued taking into account the views of all stakeholders. Barring JKP, all other agencies were strongly opposed to return of Kashmiri militants either from Nepal or from any other route, prescribed under the Rehabilitation Policy.
Worthwhile to mention here that Army had on a number of occasions pushed back the Kashmiri militants, who wanted to return from the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch sector.
According to sources, so far 262 Kashmiri militants and their Pakistani family members including wives and children have returned to the State after the announcement of Rehabilitation Policy of the State Government, which has endorsement of the Union Home Ministry. However, all the militants have returned from Nepal route and not the four routes prescribed under the Rehabilitation Policy.
As many as 1094 militants, through their families here, have applied for return under the Rehabilitation Policy.
Sources said some of the security and Intelligence agencies were of the view that influx of Kashmiri militants from Nepal route to the State along with their Pakistani wives and children could pose a grave security risk as some of them could be recycled into the militancy.
“This was the major reason that these agencies were opposed to return of the militants, both through legal or illegal routes,” sources said.
They added that the new SOP was likely to allow Kashmiri militants to return from Nepal route. The SSB would detain the militants and handover them to Jammu and Kashmir Police, which would escort the militants and their families from the Nepal border to the State and they would also carry out background checks of all individuals.
The militants would be dealt with under law on their return, sources said.
It was, however, unlikely that the militants returning from Nepal route would be given the benefits, which a militant was entitled to under the Rehabilitation Policy.
Under the Policy, the militants returning from Poonch-Rawlakote route in Jammu, Uri-Muzaffarabad in Kashmir, Wagah border in Punjab and IGI Airport in New Delhi would have been entitled to cash benefits and other welfare schemes after undergoing complete reforms provided that they were not involved in any major terrorist activity here.
So far, none of the militants, who have returned from Pakistan and PoK, have been granted benefits under the Rehabilitation Policy as all of them came back from Nepal route.
It may be mentioned here that the Jammu and Kashmir Police demand for setting up a police picket along Indo-Nepal border in Gorakhpur area of Uttar Pradesh was turned down by the UP police on the ground that they can’t allow the police of any other State to set up their base in their area.
According to report, at least 3000 militants from Jammu and Kashmir could still be staying in Pakistan and PoK though most of them have now shunned the path of militancy and wanted to return. However, they were finding it difficult to come back due to strict surveillance on them by Pakistan Army and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
The Intelligence agencies here were worried that return of some of the militants might have been facilitated by Pakistan Army or the ISI with a view to use them later.
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