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| Govt to adopt ‘go slow strategy’ to deal with protesters | | | EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, July 22: The state Government has decided to adopt a "go slow" strategy for quelling violence and protest rallies in the valley. Official sources said that any hasty step taken by the security forces in dealing with the protesters could kick up added turmoil. "Better to tire them out to showering bullets on the protesters," said these sources.
The sources said that since many agencies, including those across the border, were behind the current turmoil in Kashmir the Government had to deal with the protesters tactfully so that one mistake on the part of the security forces did not generate added problems for the ruling alliance.
The Minister for Agriculture, G.H. Mir, seems to support this strategy on the plea that the current turmoil, protest rallies and violence were confined to only some towns. He said more than 75 per cent people in the rural areas and semi-urban belts were opposed to violence because they believed turmoil could affect adversely development activities.
He too wanted that the security forces needed to observe utmost restraint. In reply to a question Mir said that so far the security forces had maintained restraint and they opened fire when they found the situation had gone out of control. The Minister hoped that the situation will register improvement by stages. He said the security scenario will improve gradually and "you cannot expect the situation to improve within a day or two."
Official sources said that the security forces besides the intelligence agencies have been asked to detain those who were potential trouble mongers. A senior police officer posted in Srinagar said that "it is better to keep trouble mongers and those inciting people to violence in custody than gunning them down." He said that so far more than 700 youths have been arrested from various areas of the valley. He said that the security forces have been told to concentrate in some pockets in Srinagar city, Sopore, Baramullah, Anantnag, Pulwama, Shopian towns and their adjoining areas.
He said that more leaders of the separatist camps would either be placed under house arrest or detained so that they were not allowed to campaign against the Government and to incite people to indulge in subversive activities.
The police officer said that the centre has accepted the state's Government's plea for deploying additional companies for paramilitary forces to the Kashmir valley. He said that from August 3 those forces that were deployed for providing security to the Amarnath pilgrims would be available for tackling the menace of stone pelting and violence because the annual yatra is to end on July 1.
He said several companies of police and paramilitary forces, posted in various areas of the jammu region, had been deployed in Kashmir in recent days in order to upgrade the security grid in the valley.
Mir said that these security measures needed to be supplemented with political initiative for countering the propaganda launched by the separatists. He said Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah, and senior leaders of the ruling alliance had started what is called political initiative. He said that various measure were being taken to tone up the administrative setup in the state so that people could experience the fruit of good governance. He said ministers and legislators had been holding meetings with prominent citizens in various pockets of the valley so that they supplement the Government measures for isolating trouble mongers.
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