By IANS,
Udhampur (Jammu and Kashmir) : The Indian Army Saturday ruled out Taliban presence in Jammu and Kashmir but warned of a possible “spillover” if the situation in Pakistan worsened. It also expressed concern about “agitational terrorism” in the state, referring to the frequent street protests and shutdowns.
General officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Northern Command Lt. Gen. B.S. Jaswal denied the Taliban had entered the state but said that there was a “possibility of spillover if the situation in Pakistan goes out of control”.
“A stable Pakistan is in our interest,” Jaswal told a news conference at the Northern Command headquarters in Udhampur, 66 km north of Jammu.
He said that the situation in the subcontinent, referring to the highly volatile situation in Pakistan, where terrorists are frequently targeting civilians and the security establishment, “could have its effect on Jammu and Kashmir and the rest of India too”.
Jaswal said that though violence in Kashmir was on the decline since 2006, with just 36 incidents of violence reported this year as compared to 276 in 2006, he pointed out that “agitational terrorism” was a cause for worry.
The term agitational terrorism refers to street protests and shutdowns that started with the Amarnath land row agitation in the Kashmir Valley last summer, halting normal life for weeks together.
Widespread protests in 2009 too rocked the state with the latest being over the alleged rape and murder of two women in Shopian.
Jaswal, in his first media interaction after taking over charge of the command Oct 1, noted that militancy had come down and assured that the army was in a position to tackle all crises.
“The Indian Army would be able to overcome all the situations in the state,” he said.
“Militancy is down. It is visible in the faces of the people, who have shunned fear and come forward to provide us information,” the senior commander added.
Jaswal said that Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), despised by the people of Kashmir, was “a shield to the soldiers working for a cause”. He stressed that the army would ensure that no human rights violations occurred, but added that “minor aberrations here and there cannot be ruled out”.
“My orders are to the troops — not only fight insurgents but also insurgency because that is the root cause of the whole trouble.”
As regards equations with China, he said: “We are in a mode of strategic trust with China, but the Indian Army is prepared to meet any eventuality.”