Kashmir Conflict- Are The Armed Forces In Sync With The Local Population? - How The Involved Parties View The Situation.

Zaheer*, 28, is a conflicted man. A Kashmiri, currently working in Nagpur, he remembers his childhood days, when he hated everything about ¡®India¡¯ and didn't consider himself a part of the country. All that changed after he moved to Delhi for higher education.

¡°In Kashmir, we largely feel that the Army represents India- and they are against us. Now that I know better, I try very hard to explain to my fellow Kashmiris, that it isn¡¯t true. The people of the country are warm and welcoming and just like us. We are a part of this nation.¡± His task isn¡¯t easy.

BCCL

For a majority of the local population that hasn¡¯t ventured out of Kashmir, they are at loggerheads with the Indian Army. They believe them to be oppressors instead of protectors.

¡°It isn¡¯t a correct opinion, but it has been perpetuated by many unfortunate incidents. I remember one -when, as a school kid, my friend and I were walking through an area where stone pelting was underway.

In the commotion, an Army man accidently shot my friend dead. We were 7-8 years old. Then in a bid to save his skin- he planted a stray rifle on my friend¡¯s body and claimed that he was a terrorist in the making. It scared me.¡±, claims Zaheer.

A high ranking Army official placed in Kashmir explains, ¡°We are not allowed to fire at random. There is a protocol. As far as shooting terrorists are concerned, we work on information provided by people living in the villages. They come and inform us out of duty, and are rewarded.

We keep their identity secure, and take great measures to provide security to them and their families. Only once we are sure, do we proceed¡±.

BCCL

He continues, ¡° Army personnel do not operate alone, they operate in groups ¨C the smallest being that of 6-7 boys. It is difficult for one of them to be able to get away with murder without being reported by the others.

He further explains- we are very strict with the use of bullets, each and every fired one is to be accounted for. Also, we do not encourage killing from a military perspective also, as a captured terrorist is more valuable as he can provide us with information.

Moreover, we have a strong chain of command, wherein every decision goes top-down and every action is reported bottom-up; and everybody along this chain is affected and answerable. If an allegation is made against an officer, the army court considers him guilty, unless he can prove his innocence. Therefore, it is a very strict system with little room for error.¡±

He does however also adds, ¡°In the early 90s, the borders were very porus, and lots of infiltrators would sneak in and hide in the villages. There would be lots of Army combing of these areas, and the area was large with fewer personnel. There could have been some instances of misconduct then, but I can assure there have been none in over a decade now.¡±

AP

Ali, who has been living in Srinagar with his family agrees, ¡°We do feel a lot safer with the Army around. I am sure there are some stories of wrongdoing, but on the whole I believe there would be too many inquires if an army-man indulged in a personal vendetta.

He goes on to add that a greater part of the Kashmiri populace identifies themselves as Indians, but the level of education isn¡¯t very high, so sometimes separatist agenda does brainwash them. At times their sons join the infiltrators, often for money, and then tend to convert the rest of their villages or families too.

However, this constant tussle between the government and the separatists really takes a toll on our lives, our business and our peace of mind. Nobody is safe here during periods of agitation.¡±

The Kashmir ¡®issue¡¯, started during independence, when the Hindu ruler of Kashmir ¨C Hari Singh- was unable to side with Pakistan or India, as a majority of his population was Muslim. In the subsequent years, the two countries have fought three wars over Kashmir, and have been involved in numerous war-like conflicts.

Insurgency started in Kashmir in about 1988, at a time when the people of Kashmir largely started losing sympathy with the Indian government. Different extremist groups pushed different ideas of either Kashmir aligning with Pakistan or of a free and independent Kashmir. The death toll on both sides has been enormous, and the other severe causalities have been the loss of normalcy for the people of Kashmir.

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The large scale displacement of Kashmiri Pandits has been a topic of heated debated. The rise of Islamic militancy has forced them to leave their motherland. A Kashmiri Pandit, Adeer*, remembers how they were systematically pushed out.

¡°They would announce on loudspeakers that they were coming for us, our women and our children. They started burning down houses- one area at a time. They were in no mood to spare any of us. We had no option but to leave our houses, businesses and to flee to save our lives and culture.¡±

The loss of normalcy of life for the residents of Kashmir, both Hindu and Muslim, is also a disastrous impact of the prevailing situation. The Armed Forces Special Powers Act has been in force in Jammu and Kashmir since 1990. It allows the army various powers that are necessary to control the situation in disturbed areas.

Amongst one of its factors, it increases military checking and patrolling in the areas. It also curbs basic democratic rights of people such as allowing an arrest without a warrant, or to the power to enter and search any premises at any time.

Often ¡®emergency¡¯ is declared in the state. This leads to massive inconvenience for the people. They are restricted in being able to procure food. Children are deprived of schooling and other childhood pleasures. Most of all, people with health conditions suffer greatly.

Patients have to go through numerous barricades to reach hospitals, and often health care professionals are unable to reach hospitals. They are stopped by both- the security forces, as well as the protestors.

AP

The ongoing clash is between two countries, between forces on two different sides; but the price is being paid by innocents caught in the crossfire. As Zaheer concludes, ¡°I am not condemning the Indian Armed forces.

They are, on the whole, trying to help the valley, they have some great education and other development programs... but what can you expect from children who grow up around bombings and pelting, and seeing dead bodies and violence? It was a daily occurrence for us, hearing gunshots. It is nothing like the movies; it¡¯s just a constant and very scary tak-tak sound. ¡°

Ishaan, 30, an Army combat trainer says; ¡°It is really heartbreaking that the situation in Kashmir is the way it is. We work to try to protect the people. Unfortunately, some of them end up getting injured in conflict¡±.

He recounts an incident where he and his team of 5 officers were surrounded by about 50 odd protestors in Baramullah, ¡°our immediate reaction was that our hands were on our weapons. But we kept our calm, as we are trained. We spoke to them and they let us pass peacefully. We never want to hurt innocents.¡±

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On the mob mentality of stone-pelters, he continues ¡°often these mobs place young children and women in front. Though we are sure to avoid them, there can be stray incidents where some of them may sustain injuries. This is an agenda pushed by the perpetuators, to taint the army. It is also a defense mechanism for them to try to escape after their nefarious activities.¡±

Many peace talks by the two countries have failed. Many international mediation efforts have failed. The status of the valley fluctuates from being very peaceful to highly volatile constantly. Lives are being lost, and there is little security.

As it stands, It is living hell on the heaven on earth.