Relatives and neighbours of Gowhar Hussain Bhat, a youth leader of the BJP in Jammu and Kashmir, mourn during his funeral at Shopian in J&K recently. (Photo: AP)

Of all the methods or themes used by agents of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) or terrorists and separatists supported by it to maintain terror, spread discord and to perpetuate radicalisation in Kashmir Valley, the latest one-alleging chopping of women’s hair/braids — is bizarre. And to claim that the Indian Army personnel are committing such acts is nothing short of ridiculous. In fact, that is the term used by most of the persons this writer spoke to, while researching this unusual problem.

ISI’s propensity and expertise in spreading lies and propaganda and with the windfall, or liability, of technology-driven social media much damage has been done to the populace of some of the Valley districts by way of radicalisation, ruining of education and even loss of livelihood. Earlier the main aim of radicalisation was to incite public, particularly youth to target the Army and other security forces (SF) personnel, by way of assaulting, stone-pelting, petrol bombs, firing from within a crowd, heckling anti-terrorist operations, etc.

The latest new modus is spreading rumours of braid chopping, levelling false allegations against the Army and SFs as an excuse to attack their personnel, particularly those who are not in a group.

Since 2016 there have been a number of cases reported of Pakistani terrorists or those supported and directed by the ISI, of tonsuring youth trying to get recruited into the Army and police or the Central Armed Police Forces.

While initial reports of this latest mischief of braid-chopping began emanating since early August from Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, even some in Delhi and then Punjab, none of the alleged victims seem to have seen the culprits.

According to some sources in the Valley, who would not like to be named, if there have been any actual cases of braid-chopping in any of the Valley areas, the possibility of them being perpetrated by Pakistani terrorists, agents or separatists on ISI’s payroll cannot be ruled out at all, particularly if soldiers and policemen are being targeted.

Braid chopping allegations have resulted in even lynching and burning alive of innocent people as well as vilifying the Army and SFs. One unfortunate victim accused as a braid chopper and attacked by a violent mob trying to lynch or burn alive in Sopore was reportedly mentally unstable. Another unfortunate victim, who had come to offer prayers at Hazratbal Dargah, was drowned by a mob.

At least four armymen have been thrashed. Three of them who were in civil clothes were assaulted in Baramulla even after their identity cards were shown. A police official said that “miscreants” thrashed them before they were rescued. A video of the fourth soldier of the Territorial Army who was attacked and the Army and police trying to rescue him went viral on the social media.

Political leaders, instead of trying to instil some sense into people on braid chopping, have resorted to ridiculous ranting. J&K Pradesh Congress Committee president G.A. Mir said that government has failed to control the situation. His allegations of Army soldiers threatening locals in Shopian during night has been condemned by the Army as false, mischievous and malicious. Alleging that the government was responsible for incidents of braid chopping, he said: “When people try to catch braid chopper, why government forces are also there. It clearly indicates that it is a government-sponsored design.” He also made allegations against chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, saying: “Mehbooba Mufti has designed this plan to torture women socially and mentally... Mehbooba says that people must help them to catch these braid choppers and when people try to catch them, forces use tear gas and firing upon people. Even FIRs are being lodged against common people. It shows that it is the designed led by Mehbooba Mufti.”

Formations of the Army’s Northern Command have been reaching out to locals in their respective areas to convey that accusations against Army personnel of braid chopping are absolutely false and that peace must not be allowed to be disrupted by spreading such outlandish rumours and also that rumours must not be believed. This is the same Army, which for decades, has not only been protecting the people, but under its long term civic assistance programme, Sadbhavna, also periodically reaching out with various welfare measures/projects involving providing medical and veterinary care, running schools and vocational training programmes, organising Bharat darshan tours, etc. The Army has also been involved in improving the living conditions of people in remote areas of the Kashmir Valley by installing solar cells to provide electricity where there was none and also measures to improve water supply/water management. During disasters it is the Army that has been swinging into action for rescue, relief and rehabilitation, despite/in addition to combating terrorism exported/supported by Pakistan Army/ISI.

Effective actions by the Army on the Line of Control (LoC), the Border Security Force on the International Boundary (IB) and the Army, J&K police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in the hinterland frustrated the ISI and the terrorists so much that they began resorting to radicalisation and instigation public to carry out stone-pelting, lobbing petrol bombs and heckling Army and SFs engaging terrorists. The heckling is done with the definite aim of helping terrorists escape when engaged by the Army or SFs.

In recent months the pressure on separatists and their hawala or terror-funding link — persons/relatives — has further raised the frustration of ISI/terrorists/separatists, for whom the latest of ploys is to spread rumours about braid chopping.

The effectiveness of the Army and SFs is borne out by both the Pakistan Army’s director-general military operations (DGMO) and its rangers DG approaching their counterparts.

Following Operation Arjun that targeted farms and residences of ISI officers and retired Pakistani Army officials in retaliation to Pakistani sniper fire, Pakistan’s DG Rangers Punjab Maj. Gen. Asgar Naveed Hayat Khan twice called DG BSF K.K. Sharma on September 23 and 25, 2017 requesting to hold fire. Subsequently, on the request of Pakistan Rangers, a sector commander level flag meeting was held between BSF and Rangers on September 29 in Suchetgarh. At the meeting, the BSF strongly objected to Pakistan’s dastardly acts of sniper fire killing constables Brijendra Bahadur and K.K. Apparao on September 14 and August 25 respectively, while they were on duty at forward posts along the border fence. The BSF also protested against unprovoked cross-border firing and shelling on number of Indian border villages targeting innocent civilians and their properties and conveyed that such provocations will not be tolerated and shall be responded to with equal and more measures. Besides discussion on number of other issues related to border management, the BSF strongly objected to movement of armed intruders/terrorists in close vicinity of the international boundary at night attempting intrusion into India from Pakistani territory. Pakistan Rangers’ assurance that they would take required measures to maintain peace on the border amounted to naught as yet another freshly-dug tunnel was discovered by the BSF and one of its battalions was attacked.

On October 30, 2017, in an unscheduled hot line requested by Pakistan Army’s DGMO to his Indian counterpart and alleged that the Indian Army had resorted to unprovoked firing along the LoC. Indian Army’s DGMO Lt. Gen. A.K. Bhatt emphatically stated that retaliatory firing by Indian troops had only been in response to unabated support given by the Pakistan Army to terrorists who infiltrate across the border and target Indian Army posts with heavy calibre weapons. Lt. Gen. Bhatt further clarified that the Indian Army always maintains impeccable standards of professionalism and does not target civilians. On the contrary, the Pakistan Army has employed civilians at the forward posts and has allowed them to be permanently located in the vicinity of Pakistan Army posts. These civilians have repeatedly been used for gaining information of Indian locations and providing guides to terrorists crossing the LoC. Lt. Gen. Bhatt impressed upon the Pakistan DGMO that while the Indian Army will continue efforts to ensure peace and tranquility on borders and reiterated that the Pakistan Army’s support to terrorism is unacceptable and that the Indian Army will continue to take all retaliatory measures as well as retain the right to punitively respond to such provocative acts of aggression from Pakistan side in future too. In the past six months, the Army has eliminated about 80 terrorists.

The writer, a retired Army officer, is a defence and security analyst based in New Delhi