The deadly mindset of the armed forces

Such is the nature of the ever-simmering situation in Jammu and Kashmir that it needs just a little spark to trigger unrest. So, the killing of four innocent civilians on July 18 was too sharp a provocation for the situation to not implode. The unrest in the beginning of the month, set-off by the killing of two youths in army firing in Sumbal area of Bandipore had barely calmed down when the BSF killed four civilians and injured a score of people, which  incited a fresh spell of disturbances.

The provocation this time around seem to be much more serious. The dwellers of a hilly village in Gool area of Ramban district allege that besides vandalising a place of worship in the middle of the night, the posse of ‘unruly’ BSF jawans also desecrated the Koran. In the morning, the mob, high on passion, was only agitating against the sacrilegious act in front of the BSF camp, when they were mercilessly fired upon by the paramilitary force. That’s according to a reliable eyewitness account.

BSF high command, however, maintains that allegations of desecration and vandalising a place of worship are baseless. “An ambush-cum-patrol party of 76 Bn BSF intercepted a person Mohammad Latief, son of Mustafa of Dalwah, last evening and enquired about his identity. In return he started arguing with the BSF men. In the meantime 15 to 20 people assembled at the place and the BSF party returned to their post,” said the BSF spokesperson. 

A simple incident of mere questioning of an individual, even of the imam of a mosque, will not infuriate the masses and unleash such a deadly chain of incidents. Even if the BSF claim that “they tried to storm the BSF camp in the morning” and “the BSF had to open fire in self defence only” it cannot be accepted at face value; there has to be some deep provocation for the people to behave in such a terrible way.

The story put out by the paramilitary force almost justifying the killing of the innocents, however, belies, rather succinctly, the BSF’s concocted version of events. A man intercepted by an armed patrol could pick up an unnecessary fight in a desolate village in the middle of night knowing fully well that his rebellious streak could cost him his life, is simply out of question.

The BSF men sheepishly returning to the safety of their camp when some “15-20 people assembled at the place” sounds as pathetic as a cock-and bull story.
Given the ‘reputation’ of the police forces, will a citizen ordinarily enter into an argument with a night patrol even in a cosmopolitan city like Mumbai or Delhi, leave alone in a place like Gool?

For a village labourer, struck by the fear of losing his life at the hands of the paramilitary forces who enjoy complete immunity under the draconian AFSPA, arguing with the BSF is simply unimaginable. Even after such a hue and cry, those accused in this unprovoked firing on innocent civilians will never ever be punished.

Have the perpetrators of the fake Machil encounter — that in a way triggered the 2010 unrest — been punished so far; so why would it be any different for those behind the Gool incident? Human rights groups claim that 2003 onwards, the government “ordered 168 probes” and Omar Abdullah after becoming the chief minister had ordered 54 inquiries, “not even once out of these 168 times the inquiries have led to the punishment of any armed forces personnel”.

Under such circumstances, for the security men to eliminate a person after labelling him as a militant, is an ominous reality. In such a hopeless scenario, no villager will dare to argue with a trigger-happy paramilitary patrol. Moreover, a simple altercation is not enough to provoke the villagers into a “do and die” situation as claimed by the BSF. A much more serious provocation would have been required to compel the villagers to walk on the path of certain death.

If for a moment one agrees with the BSF version that no desecration of the holy book took place, then why did the people get so infuriated so as to “storm a camp” of the armed forces knowing well the dire consequences of such a desperate action?

It’s very much possible that an insensitive action by the BSF at the platoon level had hurt the deep religious sentiments of the villagers. BSF local commanders by obfuscating the allegations of desecration certainly infuriated the already highly agitated mob.

The BSF top brass in the end even tried to whitewash the horrible incident of firing at the unarmed civilians by saying that “a large number of people attacked the BSF camp and tried to force their entry into the camp and take away weapons”.

This only reveals the typical mindset of the forces who treat the local population as probable enemy. How else can the hostile attitude of the forces be explained?

The J&K cabinet that met on the following day of the incident, in a manner hitherto unprecedented, condemned the action of the security forces: “Cabinet condemned the excessive use of force in Gool area of District Ramban and extended condolences to the bereaved families and sympathies with those injured in the firing incident”.

Does this not speak volumes about the helplessness of the Omar Abdullah government? Central forces apparently operate at the beck and call of the state government, whose actions the state cabinet condemned eventually? The cabinet condemnation is in reality a harsh rebuke from the entire state government.

The author based in Srinagar writes on contemporary issues. Views expressed are personal.