Ajay Banerjee
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, May 11The Army tactic of “cordon and search,” which was discontinued in the early 2000s, will now be a permanent feature in south Kashmir as a part of the ongoing “re-arranging” of the counter-insurgency grid to tackle the growing unrest in the Valley.The cordon and search operations, which are referred to as ‘CASO’ in military parlance, were resumed after almost 15 years near Shopian on May 4.These will be permanent feature in Kulgam, Tral, Pulwama, Budgam and Shopian — all in south Kashmir, sources said while informing about the decision taken after due consultation with the state government and the Central government. “The top Army brass has been told that the CASO will have to continue and the Army will have to get physical control of the area,” the sources said.Another reason was the emergence of videos showing terrorists moving around openly. The counter-insurgency grid which is basically the military plan for deployment of forces in specific sectors is being re-done and the return of the CASO is a part of it.The CASO was the operational strategy that was used in the 1990s, confirmed a senior functionary.The CASO had been discontinued as it caused undue hardship to local population, alienating them from the forces, therefore they were stopped, a senior security official said.Instead, the forces had moved to intelligence-backed operations.The Army has also told the government that Pakistan-based terror groups like the Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed and Hizbul Mujahideen were operating together and sharing resources — a phenomena that was common in the early 2000s.
Army officer’s killing raises fear of more violence
Tribune News Service
Jammu, May 11
The barbaric killing of unarmed Army officer Lt Ummer Fayaz Parrey by militants is not only outrageous but aimed at gagging the voice of those who differ with doctrine of militant groups inspired by pan-Islamic extremist ideology.Space for liberal thought is shrinking and militancy is raising its ugly head in a violent form, mirroring the Taliban and ISIS tactics to use brutality as a tactic to control masses.“The militant methodology has been to ‘kill one and silence millions.’ In the 1990s, we witnessed how they silenced liberal, secular intellectuals and patriots who spoke their minds. By murdering Lt Ummer Fayaz, the militants want to discourage Kashmiri youth from joining the armed forces,” said Sualeh Keen, a cultural critic from the Valley.The government’s failure in countering the well-coordinated campaign of militants and their overground workers has created doubts in the minds of people about the ability of Central and state governments to deal with militancy and build confidence of people who abhor violence as means to solve the Kashmir imbroglio. “Youngsters have been radicalised to such an extent that even their parents are unable to restrain them. Silence is the golden rule, masses don’t trust government’s ability to safeguard us,” said a shawl seller, who is permanently shifting his family to New Delhi.“Insurgency in the Valley has always been influenced by religion. The exodus of Pandits in 1990, killing of moderate voices in early phases of insurgency and now the killing of the young Army officer will send the Valley into chaos of war and mayhem bringing further suffering to the people,” said Dr Roxy Arora, author of the novel, “Jihad in my Saffron Garden,” that depicts the pain of migration and rise of militancy.
Armed men sighted in Udhampur, Army on alert
Our Correspondent
Udhampur, May 11
Panic gripped Udhampur town today when residents of Jail Road reported that they had seen two armed men moving suspiciously in a car.Sources said locals had seen two armed men travelling in a car on Jail Road this afternoon and had reported their suspicious movement to the police.As the headquarters of the Northern Command is also in Udhampur, the Army formations have been put on alert.Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Udhampur, Sheikh Adil said he had got information that two suspicious men with arms were seen in the area. “We have launched a search operation in the area,” the DSP said.