Militant attacks: Why J&K government blames Army and security forces

Notwithstanding the position taken by the BJP at the central level, with the new government in place in Jammu and Kashmir, there is certain shift in political discourse after two militant attacks in Jammu.

Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed, who likes to call himself a proud Indian, held non-state actors responsible for the attacks and asked Pakistan to keep them in control instead of taking the traditional route of blaming the Pakistani state for the attacks.

The statement is seen as an attempt by Sayeed to seek the cooperation of Pakistan to curb militancy in the state while isolating the Pakistani state from militant acts in J&K. Sayeed, in an attempt to empathise with Pakistan, described non-state actors as those people who are attacking churches and mosques in Pakistan.

While as minister for health and senior BJP leader Chaudhary Lal Singh blamed security forces for lapses and questioned how infiltration was taking place along the tightly guarded international border (IB) in Jammu, Minister for Education and senior PDP leader, Naeem Akhtar, stated that the Army and other security forces charged with the duty to guard the border should take steps that are necessary to prevent such intrusions in future.

Zaffar Choudhary, a senior journalist and policy analyst involved in Track-II peace building initiatives, says, “It is much easier to blame Pakistan but the time has come to look inside also. This corridor from Akhnoor in Jammu district to Hira Nagar in Kathua district has seen a similar pattern of attacks since July 2003 when a brigadier was killed inside a brigade headquarters in Akhnoor.”

“These attacks,” Choudhary argues, “convey that there is something seriously wrong with security grid and so it is important to secure borders. The sooner this realisation comes the better.”

He says all militant attacks are taking place in this stretch with audacity for long.

On September 26, 2013, three armed militants had attacked a police station and an army camp in districts of Kathua and Samba, killing ten people, including four policemen, three soldiers including Lt. Colonel.

Last year in March too, militants carried out attacks in the Samba sector and the pattern was the same.

Choudhary argues that Pakistan does not recognise the International Border along Jammu, Kathua and Samba districts and calls it a working border and these attacks “whether by the state actors or non-state actors are constant reminders that some sections in Pakistan do not recognise the border and this and other issues need to be addressed through talks.”