There is a worrying turn of > events in Jammu and Kashmir that must be of serious concern to the State and Central governments. The changing character of the insurgency is a warning signal that an urgent course correction is required in Kashmir to prevent the clock being set back by a decade. The election of a federal government with a decisive majority last summer, coupled with the > installation of a BJP-PDP government in Jammu and Kashmir, had fuelled expectations that a firm political process would be initiated in the State. It’s time for New Delhi to get a grip on the situation. Of course, the current spurt in violence can be seen as a last-ditch effort by militants to cross to the Indian side of the Line of Control before winter snow shuts passes along the higher reaches. The intense appetite of news TV and social media also keeps insurgency-related incidents in sharper focus. However, these explanations should not mask the emerging challenge in the Kashmir Valley. Over the last two years, > militancy has been on the increase along all parameters . Of most concern is the recent increase in the number of young people being drawn to militancy amid indications of > a fresh wave of religious radicalisation . In addition, there is good reason to heed the caution that not all of what is seen in Kashmir may be what it appears to be. Of late, a flourishing industry of spies, informants and insurgents has muddied the waters.
India’s engagement with domestic insurgencies has been uneven, ranging from successful incorporation into the democratic fold of former warriors against the state, to seemingly unending wars of attrition and containment. Kashmir has been on the burn for more than 25 years, and tens of thousands of people, from young children to heroic soldiers, have lost their lives. It is time for a holistic political process to kick in, drawing from past efforts and adopting best practices from around the world on resolving such disputes. > Financial packages , such as the one announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit early this month to the Valley, alone cannot assuage the historical grievances of the Valley. It would play no major role in finding a lasting solution to the Kashmir dispute. In this context, care also needs to be taken to ensure that money pumped in by the government does not continue to feed the well-oiled corruption machinery and middlemen that violence has created. New Delhi needs to approach the issue keeping in sight the fact that India’s strategic interests are intertwined with the goodwill of the Valley’s ordinary people. Recent killings of army officers, the sudden increase in infiltration attempts and growing indications of radicalisation are all warnings that the fog of war is thickening in Kashmir. Before violence yet again gets out of hand, New Delhi needs to take charge, and deal with the dispute with a grand vision.
