#KashmirThroughMyEyes 1. Insurgency, terrorism & chaos in Kashmir was full time business & a career enhancement tool. I have written extensively in past on ‘why solving Kashmir issue did not find favour with establishment?” It WAS a thriving industry.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 2. I saw developments, on ground, in 90’s. Very closely for 15 years thereafter & served in most intense CI environment. From local to national politicians, bureaucrats, Army, police & intelligentsia agreed that ‘Kashmir problem did not have a solution’.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 3. A labourer in my camp left happily to join J&K Police as ‘recruit’. Said he had paid Rs 5 lacs in 1999. Whole family has contributed. He was confident that in three years he will ‘recover’. Common man across valley suffered. No one was interested.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 4. Travel from Quazi Gund to Chowki Bal or Sonamarg. 100% houses across the state are two/three stories, brick construction houses. No industry. No economy. No business. One wondered initially. Total up the money pumped in state in last 70 years.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 5. Nothing of this public money can be seen on ground. Does not take a person of average intelligence much time to realise that the complete Govt machinery, bureaucrats, lawmakers, contractors and middlemen rule the roost.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 6. The complete machinery works in hand and glove. Civil Admin produces millionaires. Law Makers are happy. So how to continue the fire burning? Security forces which had open cantts in 70’s & 80’s resemble German Fortifications. The second industry thrived.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 7. The second industry suited local who’s who. Security Forces. Massive numbers added massive ‘zeros’ to bank accounts. Construction, Ration, Labour, Intelligence, Salaries etc. The more the security forces, the better it was.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 8. Now the ‘security industry’ would extract their cost. Killing insurgency and terrorism was professional suicide. Keep troops happy with allowances. Keep insurgency alive. Get promotions by pressurising Command for KILLS. A sure shot way to success.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 8. Most exploited situation. The climb was rapid. Commanding Officers made it or were jacked up. No ‘kills’ meant incompetence. You dare not tell boss that ‘things are peaceful here’. The other uniforms learnt rather fast & beat original scriptwriters.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 9. So the industry thrived.Atmosphere of distrust helped to push agenda within own hierarchy, whether civil or uniformed. More troops meant more control. IAS, IPS, Military, Police and Lawmakers were all ‘right’ individually but collectively had one aim.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 10. This mess could ONLY be sorted out by PM. Not one PM was interested, in fact, keeping J&K alive made sense for political survival. With no one rendering advise, decision was left to PM. The rats had a ball. Thank
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 11. THIS WAS A MASTER STROKE. A Surgical Strike that broke back of this industry. Everyone is cut to size. They will be “not” be asked. They will be TOLD. The central funds will be used correctly. KASHMIRS INSURGENCY INDUSTRY IS DEAD. No more AVSMs & PVSMS.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 12. Common man was like ke RK Laxmans common man. Actually. We produced ‘Experts on Kashmir’. These experts were part of the problem and never the solution. Careers were made. No more ‘How many kills?’ Shocking as it may seem, the Insurgency Industry .....
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 13. was nurtured, watered & protected by the very people sent there to redeem Kashmir. I have written in past on ‘Why it doesn’t pay to finish insurgency ‘? It paid well in terms of funds, promotions, awards, careers & post retirement benefits! BYE.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 14. Though I said BYE, I cannot digest how we have exploited the ‘rich’ killing fields of Valley. It’s so easy to gang up when benefits are immense. The ultimate BHAI CHARA, so uncharacteristic in peace, it at full bloom in Counter Insurgency ‘Industry’.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 15. Promotions, Awards, Citations, Courses, Prized Postings and a favourable boss is the ultimate feed of Army. CAPFs are ruled by IPS and safest postings in highly intense CI with fattest allowances are their feed. They love proximity to law makers.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 16. State Police is on minting trip. It’s the most lucrative job in valley. They do wonderful work with SF and are equally comfortable with other side. Common man is their ‘milch cow’! They hate Army and CAPFs. Army hates CAPFs. CAPFs hate both. BUT??
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 17. Each one is at all times at the Sunday best. 24X365 you will find tremendous praise by Army for CAPFs & J&K Police & similarly by other two. The common binding factor is insurgency. Each is juicing the best & hence doesn’t want to topple the cart.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 18. Valley is infested with Intelligence Agencies. Each has his own. Each vies and dies to report FIRST to his boss. Others can go to hell. The economics are huge. The ‘Security Forces Industry’ is thus complete and each boss briefs his own boss!
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 19. At the state level different organisations give their regular assessment. @PMOIndia needs to get hand to assessment by each organisation for each month for last three decades. You can make a 100 episode TV Drama and still have more seasons.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 20. Now who gets to understand the inputs? Governor? CM? Army Commander? DG Police? Chief Secretary? WHO? So finally it emerges that it’s impossible to finish insurgency and more Funds, Forces and Equipment are mandatory. Central Govt always buckled.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 21. The law makers have their own games. They’re with the hare and hunt with the hounds. Masters. There are Moderates, Hard liners and the ‘Families’. All know at all times about everything. A renegade terrorist gets tipped off to police/CAPF/Army as favour.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 22. This morning ndustry was booming and kept alive for benefit of all stakeholders. You question, and bang comes denial. You will be trolled or worse you will be declared rogue. You will now understand where experts come from & what advise they will render.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 23. From IB, RAW, Army, IAS, IPS, Bureaucrats, CAPFs, administrators- EVERYBODY milches Valley to last drop. EXPERTS emerge. They write, position themselves to be picked up, appear on TV, cry, scream and in the evening all sit together and say cheers!
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 24. They position themselves within visible horizon of Government to attract attention to their ‘hard earned’ expertise!! They are Kashmir Experts!! Experts who were part of the Counter Insurgency Industry. They ran it. They ensured it was kept alive!
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 25. Enters the HERO. HEROINE. The King makers. THE PRESS. Vernacular to National. Local Channels to National. Journos, each with a clear agenda. The Counter Insurgency Industry is head over heels licking the press. Most look at them with begging eyes.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 26. They take FULL protection from forces, make the ‘boss’ lick them. They write. Positive- it’s hurray for boss. It’s negative- boss is sealed. They know how to extract hospitality and force them into submission. Truth is murdered at convenience.
PART 2 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 27. It’s 40-42 days of abrogation of Art 370. I remain a strong supporter but also watch the developments very carefully. Read this thread up to tweet 26 - written on 06 Aug 2019. LAST 42 DAYS VINDICATE MY VIEWS. Tweets follow.
PART 2 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 28. Kashmir was most lucrative investment (to earn money, progress career, plan future) with highest ROI. Investors were family, law makers, bureaucrats, local police, security forces, contractors, middlemen, terrorists. Each had own agenda.
PART 2 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 29. Central Govt could not have made public its intention on 370. It completely depended on the reports from all agencies including intelligence. The strategy to handle post-abrogation period was based on these reports. Reports!!!!! By who?
PART 2 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 30. Reports by very same agencies that converted Kashmir into ‘investment destination’, into industry. ECh had agenda and made reports to suit themselves. Each had myopic view and no one had full view. Centre had no way to find.
PART 2 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 31. WHY has it taken 40 days plus and nothing comes out of Kashmir? Reason is simple. Centre, without realising, had broken the back, broken the spinal cord of the industry called Counter Insurgency. By default all investors became paralysed
PART 2 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 32. Centre must have realised that reality was far far from true state. For worse? For better? No one can predict. It definitely was not what reports said. FORTY DAYS & still going on. CJI says he will go to Kashmir. Politicians turned back.
PART 2 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 33. Land lines, Internet, communication, papers, mobiles - all silence. It may come out that Centre handled it too well after realising that the Counter Insurgency Industry made fool for three decades. Converse may be true too.
PART 2 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 34. My view of the Counter Insurgency Industry being functional from three decades is proved by the fact that no credible plan to handle post-abrogation period came up. Centre has been left high and dry to handle it directly. The industry..
PART 2 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 35. The industry partners look like fools. Centre requires time to counter these ‘corrupt-in-mind’ industry partners whose back got broken by default. My appeal to all those criticising Govt is to request them to ‘unearth’ the industry. Bye.
PART 3 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 36. Central Govt would not have got a better situation than the present one. Direct control. Putting Int, Security Forces, Administration, Bureaucracy, Law Makers and the family in correct place. Taking steps to directly affect population...
PART 2 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 37. like Aadhaar, Jan Dhan, Ujjwala, Schools, PDS, justice, law and order etc. another month and half, Kashmir will be sealed by snow top mountains. Domination of LC and mounting massive operations to fish out terrorists will pay back.
PART 2 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 38. It’s now or never. Isolating Pakistan internationally is successful so far. Diplomatic War needs to escalate. Talk of siezong PoK has rattled Pakistan. High time attention of world is drawn to Balochistan. Debate how to regain PoK.
PART 2 of thread #KashmirThroughMyEyes 39. Govt needs to up the ante keeping winters in mind. Two months of absolute tight control and snowfall starts giving relative peace and upper hand to Army. Keep away trouble makers masquerading as ‘keepers of democracy’.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 40.
PART 1 Tweet 1-26
PART 2 Tweets 27 to 39.
Part 2 was 40-45 days after abrogation of Article 370.
I write PART 3 now, 85 days after Abrogation.
Read complete thread and decide for yourself. Keep dates of tweets and the real time events in mind.
PART 1 Tweet 1-26
PART 2 Tweets 27 to 39.
Part 2 was 40-45 days after abrogation of Article 370.
I write PART 3 now, 85 days after Abrogation.
Read complete thread and decide for yourself. Keep dates of tweets and the real time events in mind.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 41. Too naive to declare ‘diplomatic blunder’ in J&K. To me it was planned & executed to perfection. Opposition, ‘liberals’ & leftist took bait too soon. Collective stupidity of all those who do not want to see peace in J&K. MEA kept clean. Waters tested.
#KashmirThroughMyEyes 43. While a major party finalises a pan India protest, its star campaigner goes on a meditational holiday, the opposition is sent on a wild goose chase of an NGO. No one knows what’s happening. Another two weeks and most crossing points will be under snow.
