From The Editor / The Legitimate
Last week the security forces in Kashmir have achieved a major success after killing top Hizbul Mujahidin commander Riyaz Naikoo. Naikoo, a Hizbul Mujahidin operational commander was active for over six years.
He was killed in an encounter in South Kashmir along with his accomplice after being trapped in one of the residential houses. Following his killing, the UT administration immediately suspended the mobile phone and internet connections in the entire Kashmir valley fearing massive protests over his killing.
The killing of Naikoo took place just a few days after Army and police in Handwara lost five of its men including Colonel, Major, SI, and two other army men after militants reportedly took them hostage during an encounter.
The army, however, had clarified that all of them were killed while evacuating civilians trapped in the house occupied by militants. It was only a day later in the same area, three CRPF men lost their lives after militants attacked a naka party. The loss, security forces suffered was unbearable for the whole of India as criticism from the commoners build terrible pressure on the government. The people in India have deep emotional attachment with their soldiers and receiving their coffins from the Kashmir is almost unacceptable for them. This was evident from the massive damage the CRPF men faced at Lehtpora in February 2018 suicide attack, killing nearly 50 paramilitary men. Hundreds of Kashmiris faced the wrath and were forced to flee for their homes from other states of the country.
Modi government given to emotions running high in-country launched a Balakote airstrike. Meanwhile, owing to this massive damage in three operations- all in Kupwara district, it was expected to see security forces intensifying their counter-insurgency operations in order to maintain the pressure on militants. Naikoo’s killing, who shot to fame for releasing his audio clips often and convincing youth to pick gun against the establishment in Kashmir provided a much-needed relief to the centre government as it substantially cooled down the anger of the public. But this does not seem an end of prevailing three-decades-long armed conflict. Naikoo was not the first one who picked up gun against India neither the last one in the last several years. There have been many faces in Kashmir in the last several years that glorified the militancy and induced youth towards it. There was an era of Burhan Wani who despite not firing a single bullet induced hundreds of youth to join militant ranks until his death in 2016. His successor was controversial militant Zakir Musa who set the foundation of dreaded ISIS in Kashmir, though it too got buried along with him after few years.
Ever since the militancy in Kashmir was born in the 1990s, it had seen many faces from Shabir Shah to Yasin Malik, Bitta Karate to Ishfaq Majeed and it kept mobilizing the youth.
Meanwhile, Naikoo’s killing was a temporary solace that security forces may have enjoyed but in the long run there are many more youths who are on the same path. The worst part of this prevailing militancy is that it has mixed groups of locals and foreigners, making it more lethal and challenging for SF’s. Over the past few months, the security forces managed to kill over 28 militants in April alone. In the last several years, the month is considered to be very damaging and discouraging for the militant outfits operating in Valley.
The indigenous Hizbul Mujahidin has been the worst sufferer with its 22 men losing their lives in counter-insurgency operations. This is perhaps why militants carried few daring actions last week against security forces in North Kashmir to restore their shattered morale and confidence. Army claims that it has intensified its CIO to build maximum pressure on militants and keep them away from assembling.
The efforts of the army and other security agencies may cause difficulty for them in assembling again and carry out its operations, but it is impossible to keep them at bay for a long time. Under such circumstances, it is inevitable and necessary for the centre to find the permanent solution to the problem instead of relying more on military operations of handling Kashmir. Beyond a limit the role of army proves counterproductive and often narrows down the paths of reconciliation.
