Jammu & Kashmir DGP on Tuesday sought an explanation from a senior police officer who stirred a controversy by publicly questioning the rationale behind the state government’s counter-militancy policy in the valley, asserting the problem in the valley wasn’t terrorism.
Barely a week after security forces in Kashmir observed the success of ‘Operation All Out’, under which they eliminated 200 terrorists in the valley, IPS officer Shailendra Mishra questioned its efficacy, calling it the country’s “collective failure” in dealing with the violence in strife-torn Kashmir.
In a video that was widely circulated in Kashmir, Mishra is heard asking people not to celebrate militant encounters. “These deaths are a sign of our defeat and collective failure. We need to understand why these youngsters become militants. What were the circumstances that led to the making of a Burhan Wani and Wasim Malla?” he asks in a 10-minute long speech delivered at a private function in Mumbai recently.
“What does terrorism mean? In my personal opinion, there is no terrorism in Kashmir. What happened in Egypt two days back is terrorism. Three hundred and five people were killed. Has something like this ever happened in Kashmir? Terrorism means terrorising an entire country,” he said.
Hours after the video went viral, Jammu & Kashmir DGP SP Vaid asked the chief of J&K (Armed) police to seek an explanation from SSP Mishra over his comments. “How can any officer make such a statement? There are armed militants who are out there to kill security forces and civilians; it’s an ongoing war waged by Pakistan against India in Kashmir,” DGP Vaid told TOI.
Mishra, who was SP, Shopian, when Hizb commander Burhan Wani was killed in an encounter in Anantnag district of south Kashmir, is currently posted as commandant, Indian Reserve Police, in Jammu. The officer, who describes himself as a “perennial optimist” on his Twitter account, said that “militants are our own people, who have a problem with the system”.
J&K cop in trouble for questioning govt’s counter-militancy policy
