FairPoint: Unmasking silent enablers key to breaking Pak's network in Kashmir

New Delhi, April 27 (IANS) The crucial link in the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack is the local support that helped the terrorists, some of them Pakistanis, execute the heinous plan right under the nose of the security forces.

An unknown person cannot reach a specific spot with heavily loaded weapons, kill people indiscriminately, and then vanish into thick woods. The Pahalgam plot deeply involves the locals, as pointed out by the family members of the victims and other tourists.

The local connection could be the ponywallas, the shopkeepers, those working in the hotels, those who decided to open the stretch without notifying the authorities, or even the policemen who failed to detect the anomaly. It could also be an intelligence failure, or if the intel was there, then either deliberate negligence or careless handling of information.

In Kashmir, anything can happen, and many times, what is evident is not the real story. There is always a plot and a subplot. The valley has witnessed lots of plotting since Sheikh Abdullah became the first Prime Minister of J&K after the then-king merged with India in 1947.

However, these plots became far more ruthless with the advent of Pakistan-backed terrorism in the valley. The terrorism was more about Islamisation and not about the so-called freedom or 'azadi' movement.

Had it been a genuine struggle for freedom or independence, the ethnic cleansing of Hindus, who were just two per cent of the population, would not have occurred. The plot was to drive them away and usurp their lands, houses, temples, and institutions, and this was successfully achieved.

This began in the late 1980s and continues to this day. Over 35 years later, Hindus remain displaced from their native land, and the few who are still there live in government camps surrounded by heavy security. Had it been just a few terrorists without local support, would this have been possible? The answer is no.

Pakistan has used the religious card successfully in keeping the Kashmiris disturbed and has lured many to dance to its tunes.

Almost every Kashmiri Hindu family who was forced out of their home has horror tales to narrate, with the central characters being the locals -- the neighbour, the colleague, the friend, the shopkeeper -- who colluded with the terrorists in killing, kidnapping, looting, and more.

It is the local radicalised individual who forms the critical link in all the terror-related incidents that have taken place in J&K, including the April 22 Pahalgam attack.

A woman tourist has identified a ponywalla as a suspect in the Pahalgam attack. She had even clicked a picture of this man, who had specifically asked her about her religion.

The woman said the man had taken out a phone hidden in his boots, claiming he was sending 35 people into the valley. According to her, the man mentioned that "plan A has failed" and spoke about guns, which frightened her further.

She said the incident happened on April 20 and that the man did not appear to be part of the ponywalla group when they were ascending toward Baisaran. If true, this raises several questions and points fingers at the other ponywallas, too.

The local link needs to be highlighted for two main reasons: without their help, the perpetrators cannot succeed, and once a terror act occurs, these links often go untraced. They scarcely come on any security radar and often escape detection.

Kashmir has seen extensive violence since the late 1980s, with the maximum suffering borne by Kashmiri Hindus, who ultimately faced ethnic cleansing and became refugees in their own country. When Kashmiri Pandits were targeted in the late 1980s and 1990s, it was often their own acquaintances who betrayed them -- neighbours, subordinates, colleagues, or even friends.

Notable figures, such as BJP leader Tika Lal Taploo, Justice Neel Kanth Ganjoo, writer Sarvanand Kaul Premi (and his son), Radio Kashmir Director Lassa Kaul, telecom engineer B.K. Ganjoo and hundreds of others were killed after terrorists were tipped off about their movements.

Girja Tickoo, who was kidnapped, brutally gang-raped for days, and then cut into two pieces with a carpenter's saw while still alive in June 1990, made one mistake that cost her life: she responded to a call from her colleague asking her to come collect her salary from the school where she worked.

She was kidnapped by five men from her colleague's home, and no one helped her.

B.K. Ganjoo, whose security detail suddenly disappeared one day in March 1990, was killed while hiding inside a drum in his home. His wife had hidden him there, but a Muslim neighbour saw this through an open window and informed the terrorists.

There are thousands of similar examples from Kashmir, where locals have helped terrorists unleash terror. Whether it was the Wandhama massacre, the Nadimarg massacre, or countless other attacks, each had a local link identifying and pointing out the victims.

In the April 22 Pahalgam massacre, unsuspecting tourists were led to the spot, and the waiting terrorists attacked before vanishing. Protests have erupted in the valley against this, but they seem to be more concerned with the business fallout than with the loss of innocent lives.

If the locals truly want peace, they must point out the hiding terrorists, whether involved in the Pahalgam attack or elsewhere.

The local link is the real and hidden villain of all the terror stories in Jammu and Kashmir. Till the time they are weaned away, the radicalised local link remains the trophy for Pakistan in its evil ambitions.

(Deepika Bhan can be contacted at deepika.b@ians.in)

--IANS

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