Pulwama Attack: The Unfinished Agenda

Reactions to the Pulwama event made me think that we seem to have lost the plot since 1987. Allegations of widespread rigging in the elections in 1987 created massive disaffection in the Kashmiri populace against the Government.

This was exploited to the hilt by Pakistan, wherein the same Kashmiri people, who supported India in the Indo-Pak wars of 1947, 1965 and 1971, were brainwashed against India.

Security forces conducting a search and cordon operation following a gunfight with militants in Pulwama in January (Photo: IANS)

This was a carefully played card wherein infiltration was not by armed men, but by soothsayers who infiltrated the mind. Money for this came from Pakistan and the seasonal infiltration by armed terrorists was a decoy to give cover to the real infiltration - the infiltration of the minds of the youth.

We could have played the same game by isolating such elements and countering the infiltration of the mind - by creating a love for India. The opening up of the road to PoK (Pakistan Occupied Kashmir) was one such move by the Vajpayee Government.

I recall that during my tenure as Election Observer in Kashmir in 2008, all those Kashmiris who had visited PoK were massively disappointed and said, “We are much better off in India. Life is hell in PoK.”

The hard line adopted by the government against disturbance was not accompanied by a soft parallel approach to win over the populace sitting on the fence.

The Army did conduct some great outreach programs. Some students were taken to visit other parts of India. But the vigour with which we rallied against the attacks was missing in the outreach initiatives.

The covert game played by Pak should have been met with equally well funded counter measures. But this requires painstaking efforts by nameless, faceless people. It’s a thankless job with no glamour attached.

Harsh vigorous josh wala battles may be glamorous but are passé now. We have to defeat the enemy in the mind game he is playing. Such battles are not fought with swords or guns or fighter jets. They are fought with brains.

Hysteria will lead us to further alienate the Kashmiris which is what the Pakis want.

After the punishment which our armed forces are definitely going to mete out to avenge Pulwama, we have an unfinished agenda - to win over the Kashmiri Indians, who stay in PoK; by offering them a better life in India, than the hell in which they live presently.

  The author Ujjwal Uke IAS, retired as Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of Maharashtra. When not on his Yoga mat or catching up on history books and blogs, he follows his     passion of  motivating people for a peaceful, happy life by conducting workshops and spreading positivity.