Over 700 “Terrorist Sympathisers” Detained In J&K After Civilian Killings
Security forces have detained over 700 people in Jammu and Kashmir in response to the killing of seven civilians, including those from the Kashmiri Pandit, Sikh and Muslim communities, in six days.
Several of those detained are believed to have links to the banned Jamaat-e-Islami or are suspected overground workers (OGW), and come from Srinagar, Budgam or other areas in southern Kashmir.
A senior police officer told NDTV they had been detained to “break the chain of attacks in the (Kashmir) Valley”. The officer also said the attacks may have been fuelled by an increase in radicalism following the Taliban’s rise to power, and that the killers were going after “easy” targets.
The murders have sparked outrage in the already tense Kashmir Valley, with opposition leaders fiercely critical of the administrations’ apparent inability to stop the attacks and locals living in fear.
On Thursday, National Conference leader and former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah told NDTV that innocent people are dying and demanded the government re-assess polices. Mr Abdullah also called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the Valley and offer reassurances to those living there.
Dozens of scared Kashmiri Pandit families living in transit camps have already fled the Valley.
The most recent deaths were of two government schoolteachers – Supunder Kour (a Sikh) and Deepak Chand (a Hindu), who were shot dead by gunmen in Srinagar on Thursday.
“The pistol-wielding men came… asked for ID cards of teachers and fired at two… one each from the minority Sikh and Hindu community,” news agency Reuters quoted a schoolteacher as saying.
On Tuesday, Makhan Lal Bindroo, 70, the owner of a pharmacy in Srinagar’s Iqbal Park, was shot at inside his store. He was rushed to a hospital where doctors declared him dead on arrival.
A Kashmiri Pandit, Mr Bindroo stayed in Kashmir even during the 1990s – the peak of terrorism.
Two others killed on Tuesday were Mohammad Shafi, a taxi driver in Bandipora, and Virender Paswan from Bihar, a street food vendor in Srinagar.
Police have attributed most attacks to “The Resistance Front” – reportedly an offshoot of the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba. They have also said seven of the 28 civilians killed since January are non-Muslims.
On Thursday the Home Ministry sent a team of senior officers to Kashmir to supervise operations. This was after Home Minister Amit Shah held a meeting and reportedly criticised local officials.
Earlier this week sources told NDTV the police were clueless and planning a massive crackdown.
J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has condemned the killings and warned terrorists that a “befitting reply” will be given to those found involved in the attacks.