Militancy stays a magnet for J&Ok Youth regardless of Covid pandemic

NEW DELHI: Jammu and Kashmir noticed a pointy improve in native youths taking to militancy in 2020 regardless of Covid-19 restrictions and clampdown by safety forces, as per official knowledge. As many as 167 native youths joined militant teams resembling Hizbul Mujahideen (HM), Jaish-e-Mohammad, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Terrorist Resistance Front in 2020, up from 115 within the earlier 12 months, mentioned officers.

Officials mentioned there was additionally a rise within the variety of lively over-ground staff of militant teams, with greater than 600 of them, together with some lively militants, being held in joint operations by the military, Jammu and Kashmir police and the Central Reserve Police Force.

Nine leaders and activists of the BJP have been among the many 11 political staff of various mainstream political events who have been shot lifeless by militants final 12 months within the run-up to the district improvement council polls in December. These included BJP panchayat member Bhupinder Singh, district president of its Other Backward Classes unit Abdul Hamid Najar and Sheikh Waseem Bari.

The Centre had scrapped Article 370 of the Constitution, which granted particular standing to Jammu and Kashmir, and bifurcated the state into two Union Territories, on August 5 final 12 months. More than 5,100 individuals have been taken underneath preventive detention forward of the abrogation of particular standing. The native elections have been the primary main political exercise within the Valley following the discharge of mainstream political leaders together with former chief ministers Farooq Abdullah, his son Omar Abdullah and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti.

The residence ministry had claimed that terrorist violence had declined after the elimination of Article 370 on August 5 final 12 months. According to official knowledge, the variety of violent incidents in J&Ok had fallen to 265 from 294 within the earlier 12 months.

Officials mentioned about 230 militants are believed to be lively within the Valley, with 75 of them being foreigners. HM has remained probably the most lively militant group, making an attempt to instigate and indoctrinate native youths to affix militancy, they mentioned. While the recruitment amongst native youths has gone up, militant teams are going through scarcity of weapons and ammunition, mentioned an official accustomed to the operations.

To overcome scarcity of assault rifles, HM commander Riyaz Naikoo approached deputy superintendent of police Davinder Singh of the Jammu and Kashmir police in 2019. He was killed in an encounter with safety forces final 12 months. The suspended J&Ok police DSP was linked to PDP youth wing president Waheed-Ur-Rehman Para.