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“all three terrorists eliminated. good job, boys,” tweeted the chief of police in india’s conflict-ridden kashmir.
the victory tweet went out friday afternoon, after security forces engaged in a gun battle with militants holed up in pulwama, kashmir. besides the terrorists, at least one civilian was reportedly killed in the melee when local protesters threw stones at police in attempts to disrupt their operation.
its the latest incident in a fraught muslim-majority area where kashmiris have long felt oppressed by the indian government’s heavy-handed rule.
even eid, the traditional day for celebration in islam, was marked by violence. hundreds of muslim youth took to the streets in kashmir to protest against the government’s rule, throwing stones at the police — and facing harsh fire in return.
for 30 years in the state of jammu and kashmir, protestors, armed groups, and pakistani-backed muslim militants have rebelled against the government — and tens of thousands have been killed in kidnappings, executions, skirmishes and raids.
it was supposed to get better under the state’s last chief minister, mehbooba mufti. starting in 2016, she took a reconciliatory approach toward the state’s muslim population in hopes of reducing the violence. then may of this year, she negotiated a pause in offensive military operations, a ceasefire meant to help the state’s muslim population peacefully celebrate the holy month of ramadan.
at first, mufti’s coalition partners from the hardline-hindu bharatiya janata party (bjp), were reluctant to support the deal. the bjp’s stance has traditionally been one of harsh punishment against kashmir’s rebellious muslims.
but indian prime minister narendra modi, the leader of the bjp, pushed the deal through.
“the idea of ramadan ceasefire is to give kashmiri youth a sense of stability and a chance to progress,” modi said in a visit to srinagar, kashmir’s summer capital.
but the ceasefire didn’t work. violence continued throughout the holy month. dozens of civilians, insurgents, and security forces were killed. it culminated on eid.
altaf thakur, a bjp spokesperson in kashmir, has little sympathy for protestors like shiraz. he believes foreign powers are backing separatists.
the eid protests were the last straw for both the local bjp in jammu and kashmir, and the central government.
the bjp then withdrew from a coalition with mufti’s party in jammu and kashmir’s state parliament, forcing her to abdicate her role as the state’s chief minister.
without a chief minister, “governors rule” was imposed in kashmir, which basically puts the bjp-led federal government in charge.
and now that the bjp has watched a reconciliatory policy with the state’s muslim population fail, governor’s rule could easily translate into increased security operations.
this segment originally aired june 21, 2018, on vice news tonight on hbo.
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