Six militants, a soldier and a civilian were killed during a gunfight in Shopian district on Sunday, and around 68 civilians suffered injuries in the action by the forces against the protesters at the encounter site. Shopian encounter followed immediately after the one at Bijbehara where also six militants were killed. Overall, 17 people have died over the past week in the Valley. But except for the mourning in the Valley and an inevitable hartal, nothing has changed. It is more or less business as usual.
The killings have generated little media attention across the country nor have these become the focus of the political debate, more so, at a time when elections are being held in five states. This reveals a chilling indifference towards the bloodshed in the state. However, this indifference is not confined to India alone, even around the world too the situation in Kashmir gets little to no attention. It is like Kashmir has been forsaken by the world. In fact, the rising number of killings only seems to deepen the apathy towards the state. Such a situation should be a cause for deep worry in Kashmir. It also makes a strong case for introspection and rethinking our approach to the situation.
The state and central government, on the other hand, have long given up on a political outreach to the state. Under Governor’s rule, the security agencies are in the thick of their “Operation All Out 2.0” against militancy. The objective of the campaign is to eliminate insurgency by attempting to kill all the militants within a specific timeframe. Viewed from that perspective, the security agencies have been exceptionally successful over the last two years. Around 228 militants were killed in 2017. And this year also, the score has already gone beyond 200. It is expected that the killings of the militants at this rate could drastically reduce their number. This, in turn, is expected to alter the political dynamics in the Valley and usher in peace. But the deeper factors underpinning the current state of affairs will linger on and can be expected to create conditions for yet another phase of violence and unrest. This has been the case over the past three decades. The militancy has gone through its crests and troughs but never been wiped out. And same has been the case with the public unrests.
What does the near future, therefore, hold for Kashmir? A lingering uncertainty. Security experts hope that should the current uptick in the killings continue, they would have substantially reigned in the militancy in a limited time period.
But killings have hardly been a deterrent in the Valley. Though local recruitment could be expected to dwindle somewhat, it is unlikely to stop. And for the recruitment to stop, the overwhelming public support that drives it has to come down. But it wont. Perhaps never. This public support is rooted deep into the political aspirations of the people. And those will need addressing before violence can be hoped to stop. But is New Delhi even interested in such an approach? It isn’t. Kashmir needs a drastic shift in mindset in New Delhi about Kashmir. One hopes such realization dawns sooner than later.
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