Turbulence in the Valley shows no sign of easing but a couple of positives must be noted
Whether it was happenstance, coincidence or by design is not important. What is of some import is that the Indo-Pak thaw along the line of Control (loC) in Jammu and Kashmir as manifested in the Director Generals of Military Operations (DGMOs) of both armies picking up the hotline on Tuesday to reiterate their commitment to “fully implementing the Ceasefire Understanding of 2003 in letter and spirit forthwith”, came on the same day of news breaking that the Mehbooba Mufti administration has decided to follow the Delhi Police's ‘Yuva' campaign under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana to retrain and skill petty criminals from the Valley, i.e. stone-pelters, to enable them to join the mainstream. The symbolism inherent in the combination of a (hoped for) lull in military action on the loC and the effort on communicating to Indian citizens in the valley that separateness, leave alone separatism, has no place in a modern, democratic state that draws inspiration as a nation from its civilizational past, is vital.
The reiteration of the loC ceasefire comes in the wake of the Indian Government having announced earlier this month a cessation of proactive operations against terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir during the month of Ramzan, which it clarified was not a ceasefire against the jehadis active in the Valley, whether homegrown or imported. The Union Home Ministry, in fact, has gone to some length to point out that not only would Indian security forces continue to defend themselves in a robust manner if attacked but also would not hesitate in launching immediate action if innocent lives were targeted by the terrorists. Officials have also been adamant that unlike previous occasions when a suspension of operations by security forces as a goodwill gesture was used by the terrorists to regroup, Intelligence agencies are closely monitoring the situation to ensure that at the first sign of something like that happening strong measures can be taken. But the crucial point to remember is that all of the above follows close to two years of Operation All-Out, the joint offensive launched by Indian security forces to flush out and eliminate terrorists in Kashmir until there is complete peace in the State.
The Indian Army, CRPF, Jammu and Kashmir Police, BSF and IB have combined to wage a relentless and coordinated assault on the terrorists which has clearly signaled to Islamabad, which is dealing with its own domestic political, economic and security crises, that talks or the prospect of peace will be on the table only when complete military domination is established in Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan's puppets maybe in denial about the changing security situation on the ground in Kashmir, with more terrorists having been eliminated over the past 18 months than ever before, but their handlers obviously have no doubt on that score which is why the loC ceasefire offer came from their side and was accepted with alacrity by the Indian side. Indeed, a quiet loC would be an excellent thing not only to prevent the loss of life, civilian and military, on either side but also for the Indian security to focus on eliminating every Kashmiri terrorist active in India.
Simultaneously, the outreach by the PDP-BJP regime to misguided youngsters who have been drawn into acting as terror accomplices is an excellent idea as long as the hardcore element among them is weeded out. Employment-oriented skill development, which is what the Yuva programme does, is the way for Kashmiri youth to prosper and assert their primary identity as Indians.
