THE HINDU EDITORIAL

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Unjust and unwise: On counter-insurgency operations in J&K

Counterinsurgency in Jammu and Kashmir must not target civilians indiscriminately

One of the aims of militants in the asymmetric warfare waged against Indian security forces is to provoke the forces into committing rights violations against civilians and to use grievances and indignation among them to increase their own support base. Such actions by security forces play into the hands of militants and their handlers across the border. Second, the legitimacy of force or violence and its use by the state depend on the justness of the actions. Indiscrimination in the use of violence targeting civilians without just cause only results in the questioning of that legitimacy in the eyes of the people. The J&K police have registered a murder case against unidentified persons following the deaths of the civilians and the Army has taken three senior officers off their posts while promising an inquiry. Both these agencies must now deliver justice quickly and in a firm manner. “Fake encounter” deaths and torture by security agencies in the Valley have resulted in spurts of increased militancy besides public outrage that developed into major law and order situations. The Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government has tried to use a no-holds barred security-centric approach to tackle the problem of militancy and public anger in J&K. The repeated acts of rights violations and crimes in the name of counter-insurgency are clear evidence that this approach is not working.