(The recent civilian killings in Kashmir have rattled the Union Territory and set off a flurry of speculations. The Quint has published diverse opinions on the subject to present a broad view of the situation to its readers. You can read other views here)
The fresh spate of killings of the minorities in Kashmir has ruptured the semblance of peace and vitiated the overall environment. It also exhibits that the government of India’s invalidation of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution doesn’t automatically translate into neutralisation of Islamist terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). The ruling party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has widely publicised a hunky-dory picture of Jammu & Kashmir while not paying much heed to the ever-growing radicalisation, particularly in Kashmir.
The killings of Makhan Lal Bindroo and Virendra Paswan on 5 October 2021, followed by Supinder Kour and Deepak Chand on 7 October, by Islamist terrorists in Srinagar have sent shock waves across Kashmir. These are reminiscent of the targeted killings of Hindus in 1989-90, when the armed insurgency against India, in which many Kashmiri Muslims actively participated and were backed by Pakistan, had just started in Jammu and Kashmir.
Makhan Lal Bindroo, Supinder Kour, and Deepak Chand were citizens of Jammu & Kashmir, whereas Virendra Paswan was from Bihar.