Tragedies that struck Kashmir on Thursday have underlined the failure and futility of both the Union and the State Governments’ outreach to those who believe in violence. In the holy month of Ramzan, and when the Centre had enforced a ceasefire on its security operations, a high-profile senior journalist in the valley and his two personal security officers were shot dead in broad daylight in Srinagar, and the bullet-ridden body of an Army jawan who had been abducted by militants, was found in a village in Pulwama district.
The ceasefire duration is now at its end, but it caused damage enough. The Centre had taken the ceasefire decision in good faith but it ought to have understood that militants and their sympathisers do not respect such outreaches — the past is witness to this harsh truth. The ceasefire only helped the militants have a field day, regroup and re-arm, while the security forces were forced to remain passive and act only under provocation. Operation All Out, which had been launched by the security forces earlier and which had had the militants on the run — with many neutralised by Indian forces — came to an abrupt end.
There had been disturbing reports that the Centre may extend the ceasefire beyond the Ramzan period, but the killings of Thursday have ruled that possibility out. The senior journalist, Shujaat Bukhari, was considered a moderate voice and had been even involved in various Track Two efforts to find peace in the State of Jammu & Kashmir. He had survived assassination attempts earlier. The Indian soldier who was abducted was off-duty and unarmed.
At least these incidents, which happened on the even of Eid, should make it clear that militants, who run their campaign in the name of religion, have no respect for religious sentiments. Nor have they any hesitation in killing Kashmiris in whose name they claim to be waging the so-called jihad. There are unconfirmed reports that the journalist’s killing was done at the behest of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence and carried out by local mercenaries. Whatever the truth is, it will be out soon. Meanwhile, the Centre must not any longer hesitate to order the security forces to relaunch full-scale proactive measures to tackle terrorists and their sympathisers in the State. The Mehbooba Mufti regime too has to abandon its romantic notion of achieving peace merely through the soft approach, and it must back the Centre fully in the latter’s forceful methods to tackle militancy.
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