On 9 November, a cordon was laid around a nondescript house in Tujjar village of north Kashmir. Trapped inside was a local youth, an LeT militant named Bashir Ahmad. The stage was set for his first and, probably, the last battle.
“I called up the house owner and asked him to hand over the phone to Bashir,” Superintendent of Sopore Police, Harmeet Singh, who led the operation, told The Quint. “There was no way he could have escaped. We didn’t want to kill him. He had returned from Pakistan recently but there was no case against him.”
But Bashir was unrelenting, ordering the house owner to hang up. "Then we got his father to convince him. I assured them that no legal action would be taken if he surrendered," SP Harmeet said. Bashir hung up the call for the second time.
Some moments later, the Lashkar militant walked out of the house, unarmed, a rare occurrence in the bloodied counter-insurgency warfare in Kashmir.
The whole village came to see us. I am glad my son is alive. He will be there to shoulder my coffin when I die. At least I won’t be buried with the guilt that I shouldered the coffin of my son.Abdul Rahim, Father of Bashir
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Idolising Burhan
Some weeks after Burhan Wani was killed and the resultant precipitation transformed into an ugly dance of protests and killings on the streets, a young boy, inspired by the Hizbul Mujahideen commander's tragic story, followed in his footsteps.
In the wee hours of 28 September, Waseem Ahmad Khanday struck at the residence of Abdul Rehman Tukroo, a former legislator. Tukroo told the media that an AK-47 rifle was looted from his personal security officer who had gone to the washroom.
A resident of Kellar village in Pulwama, Khandey went on to join Hizbul Mujahideen, until 5 November, when forces cordoned off a forested area in Dobijan along the historic Mughal Road, and killed him.
Mounting Concerns
In his death, Burhan has become an inspiration for entrants of 'new insurgency' popularised by the Hizbul commander in last two years. According to officials, between 250-300 militants are presently active in Kashmir, a jump of more than 100 since last year.
Of these, sources say, at least 25-35 youths, mostly from south Kashmir, joined rebels after Burhan's encounter in Kokernag village. Khandey was one of them. One of his friends, who spoke on the condition of anonymity with The Quint, said the Hizbul commander was an inspiration for him.
He wanted to be like Burhan who chose a righteous path in order to fight against the atrocities of forces and singlehandedly challenged India’s military might. He was very angry when Burhan got martyred. Then, for weeks, there was no news of him. I later came to know that he had joined tehreek (insurgency).Khandey’s friend
Although police puts the figure of new recruits at 25, unofficially the number is almost double. Since the unrest started, at least 60 weapons have been snatched from security personnel. For the first time in many years, police sources say militant footprints have been seen in central Kashmir's Budgam district, which was declared militancy free some years ago.
Prompting a Rethink
Harassment of ordinary people in the name of security keeps the pot boiling in Kashmir. During encounters, the killing of local militants, some of whom turn out to be well-educated lads belonging to respectable families, adds fuel to the fire which chars the idea of reconciliation in Kashmir. The anger reflects during the funerals where thousands, comprising children, women and elderly, turn up to pay their respects to their 'fallen heroes'.
By producing ‘martyrs’, we are losing the whole game. You are giving people reasons to hate us. In many recent cases, we found the new entrants in militancy over the last two years are those who were provoked to join after the killing of another militant.Senior J&K Police officer to The Quint
The phenomenon of 'new insurgency' and the unfolding mayhem in Kashmir over the last two years, which coincided with the coming to power of the PDP-BJP coalition government in Jammu and Kashmir, has now prompted a rethink in the security establishment.
While encouraging militants trapped in an encounter to surrender is part of Standard Operating Procedure, it is rarely followed. However, the chief minister, Mehbooba Mufti, is pushing a new idea: Forces must "encourage" militants trapped in encounters, especially locals, to surrender.
Interestingly, J&K's civilian government has told the Army to bring parity in reward for successfully encouraging a militant to surrender with killing one. "Burhan's killing brought the entire Kashmir on to the streets. We don't want a repeat of it," a senior government officer said.
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