Hizbul attack must alert Kashmir’s politicians
At a time when lawmakers in Jammu & Kashmir have been preoccupied with the irrelevant matter of the interred body of a convicted terrorist, one can only hope that Wednesday's terror attack in Srinagar will help them rearrange their priorities and focus on what's really important. For one, the attack should make clear why the time is not yet right to repeal the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act — the other contentious issue for Kashmiri politicians besides the latest Afzal Guru hanging case. Reportedly carried out by Pakistan-based Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists, the attack on a CRPF camp that killed five jawans and two militants, is possibly the most deadly in recent years. Srinagar, especially, has not seen this kind of violence since lashkar-e-Tayyeba militants opened fire at an Army convoy passing near a popular hotel last October, killing one person. Wednesday's attack, therefore, is only evidence of the fact that even though there has been a semblance of peace and calm in the State including in the Valley in the past three years, the situation is still very fragile. Militants, terrorists and mischief-makers of all sorts still lurk around the corner and indeed across the border, and just about any development can turn explosive. While the cause for this latest attack is unclear, it is noteworthy that it came on a day when Kashmiri separatists had called a strike demanding that 2001 Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru's body be returned to his family in the State. For years, the Union Government dilly-dallied over carrying out his death sentence fearing a backlash from separatists in the convict's home State of Kashmir. More than a month after he was finally hanged, it would have been safe to assume that the matter had blown over. However, Union Minister for Home Affairs Sushil Kumar Shinde's final statement on Monday that Guru's body will not be returned was excuse enough for trouble-makers in the State to get back to business. And so, on Tuesday, members of the Jammu & Kashmir Assembly disrupted proceedings throughout the day, prompting the Speaker to adjourn the House several times, even as marshals bundled away an independent MlA who was one of the most raucous members to condemn the Government on the Guru issue.
In view of Wednesday's terror attack, which clearly points to the dangers looming on the horizon, perhaps Kashmir's outraged legislators need to be administered a reality check. First, they must understand that against the backdrop of militancy which continues to plague Kashmir, bringing back Afzal Guru's body, ostensibly so that those who consider the convict a martyr can build him a memorial, is a recipe for disaster. Second, there has to be an acknowledgment that the State Government's focus should be on decimating militancy and maintaining law and order. It cannot be occupied with securing the body of a slain terrorist who had plotted the attack on Parliament.