Force And Fears

With the Centre’s decision to scale up operations in the valley, the biggest worry for security forces is the loss of more lives and continued unrest

- Namrata Biji Ahuja

The Centre’s ceasefire announcement during the holy month of Ramzan in Jammu and Kashmir was part of a “blow hot, blow cold” policy, but the chain of events eventually led to the collapse of the BJP-PDP coalition government. The policy came with collateral damage—civilians, officers and jawans were caught in the middle as violence escalated in the valley.

With the imposition of governor’s rule on June 20, the biggest worry of the security establishment is the loss of more lives and continued unrest as the Centre scales up operations in the valley. Intelligence reports reveal that while 18 incidents of grenade attacks, weapons snatching and other violence took place during the month preceding Ramzan, the ceasefire period saw as many as 50 such incidents. The violence culminated with the assassination of senior journalist Shujaat Bukhari and the abduction and killing of Rifleman Aurangzeb Khan on the eve of Eid.