The fatal shooting of seven pilgrims from Gujarat during a terror attack on the Amarnath Yatra will be a crucial moment in militancy-ravaged Kashmir.
The attack on a group of pilgrims, that too from Gujarat, the home state of prime minister Narendra Modi, is obviously quite loaded with symbolism for a country where religious fault lines run deep.
Modi took to twitter and said: “India will never get bogged down by such cowardly attacks and the evil designs of hate.”
The time is now ripe to look beyond this platitude, specially when it comes to Modi who doesn’t hesitate to act if a push comes to a shove.
This is exactly what happened on September 29, 2016 when Indian commandoes carried out surgical strikes in Pakistan administered Kashmir after 19 soldiers were killed in a terror attack in Uri. The surgical strike was unprecedented and was undertaken despite knowing the risk of being drawn into a war with Pakistan.
The Amarnath Yatra attack coupled with the June 22, 2017 lynching of police officer Ayub Pandith outside the historic Jama Masjid as well as the May 10, 2017 abduction and fatal shooting of Lt Ummer Fayaz, just 23, looks like a moment of truth for Kashmir.
The leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is in an uneasy alliance with the PDP, will be hoping for a strong, deterrent action.
In the multi-layered, multi-faceted situation in Kashmir, carrying out a full-fledged war against terrorism would be easier said than done. But, it is possible to undertake a major offensive against terror and crush it. This is exactly what is being done across the border in Pakistan where its army is involved in operation Zarb-e-azb to finish off militancy.
Closer home, the ruthlessly efficient security operation against terrorists in Punjab under the leadership of KPS Gill brought an end to militancy.
But, for that to happen the political leadership would have to take a strong stand. The Modi government seems well prepared to ensure that such a security operation is successfully carried out.
So, how will the situation pan out. The forces may further beef up security and this time target the Over Ground Workers (OGW).
Army chief General Bipin Rawat has already made it abundantly clear that that those who obstruct operations in Jammu and Kashmir shall be “treated as over-ground workers of terrorists”.
General Rawat has been a man of action, even though his ascension had to led to two officers, Lt General Praveen Bakshi and Lt General PM Hariz, being superseded, triggering a controversy.
In June 2015, 18 soldiers were killed in an ambush by militants in Manipur. The army responded with cross-border strikes by units of the 21st battalion of the Parachute Regiment. 21 Para was under the operational control of the Dimapur-based III Corps, which was then commanded by General Rawat.
With Modi in political command and General Rawat in operational command, even as we write this, major preparations for a swift, decisive action against terrorism in Kashmir may well be underway.
This coming winter in Kashmir is going to get really hot for terrorists.
