Sheikh Suhail
Srinagar

Casualties suffered by security forces in Jammu and Kashmir have been on the decline in the past three years with 41 personnel killed during counter-insurgency operations in 2015.

Though the state witnessed growing radicalisation of the youth during the period, particularly after the emergence of ISIS, the security forces were effective in countering militants and terrorists.

The number of security personnel killed dropped from 51 in 2014 to 41 in 2015, whereas the number of militants killed in counter-insurgency operations marginally rose to 113 from 110 in 2014, official data reveals.

Over the past three years, the casualties suffered by security forces have been on the decline as 61 of them were killed in 2013.

The number of militants killed in security forces action has seen a steady rise since 2012 when 84 militants were killed. In 2013, 100 guerrillas were killed by the forces.

In 2015, the security forces in the state faced a new challenge from militant commander Burhan Wani, who emerged as the young face of Hizbul Mujahideen in the Valley as he led an 11-member group into a new field, social networking sites.

Burhan and his group posted their pictures on Facebook, brandishing guns, and uploaded videos of training with assault rifles and cracking jokes as the analysts believe that the outfit was trying to engage in a psychological warfare to break the morale of the security agencies.

Later, Burhan also released a short video message in which he talked about jihad and asked the Kashmiri youth to join militancy.

A defence spokesperson said terror incidents showed a declining trend in 2015 while development activities picked up momentum. He said that though terrorists and separatists made desperate attempts to reassert itself, security forces were successful in restricting such incidents.

Even though security agencies reiterated that continuing local recruitment by militant groups remained a cause of concern, the internal security situation in Jammu and Kashmir was stable, he said.

Counter-terrorism operations were effective as there was high level of synergy amongst all security forces and government agencies, the spokesperson added.

The year 2015 began on a violent note when five militants, including a Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) group commander, Abu Toiba, a Pakistani national, were killed in a gun battle in the Kellar forests of south Kashmir’s Shopian district on January 15.

Less than a fortnight later, militants killed an army colonel M N Rai and a state police personnel in neighbouring Pulwama district when they fired upon a joint search party in Tral area on January 27. Two militants were killed in the encounter that ensued. However, Col Rai’s killing was a setback for the army.

In all, 10 militants were killed in January but the month of September was the deadliest for the guerrillas as 18 of them – all in Kashmir Valley – were killed. Four security personnel were also killed in militants’ actions in September.

Three personnel of security forces were killed in January while February saw no casualties inflicted on them even as eight militants were killed.

On March 20, a fidayeen (suicide) squad of militants in Army fatigues stormed a police station in Kathua district of Jammu, killing three security forces personnel. Two militants were also killed.

The next day, in a fresh incident, two militants were killed during another fidayeen attack at the Army camp on Jammu-Pathankote National Highway in Samba district.

The month of April began on a sensational disclosure as on April 1, Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin claimed that police constable Nisar Ahmad Pandit, who was a PSO of then R&B Minister Altaf Bukhari had joined his outfit.

After this, the incidents of rifle-snatching increased in the Valley as the army maintained that militants were unable to infiltrate arms and ammunition from across the Line of Control (LoC) because of effective counter-infiltration grid.

Six security forces jawans and two militants were killed in the month of April in the state.

With the advent of May, violence and fear escalated in the Valley after militants threatened the staff of the cellular companies in Sopore area of north Kashmir’s Baramulla district after a communication device which they had reportedly installed on a cellular tower in the militancy infested town went missing.

Lashker-e-Islam (LeI), a hitherto unknown militant outfit, launched a spate of attacks against telecom employees and those who rented out space for installation of mobile towers.

The attacks drew strong condemnation from separatists and United Jehad Council, a conglomerate of various Pakistan-occupied Kashmir-based militant outfits. LeI was believed to be a splinter group of HM.

From May to September, as many as 58 militants were killed by security forces, while as they also lost 18 of their colleagues.

The security agencies achieved a major breakthrough in August as a Pakistani militant was captured alive after an attack in Udhampur district of Jammu region.

On August 5, two BSF personnel and one Pakistani militant were killed when militants attacked a convoy of the BSF on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway near Samroli in Udhampur.

One of the two Pakistani LeT militants involved in the attack from Chirdi village of Udhampur was captured alive by local residents.

Later that month, on August 27, security forces captured another Pakistani militant identified as Sajjad alias Abu Abaidullah while three other militants were killed in the encounter in Rafiabad forests in Baramulla District.

On September 12, a top Lashkar-e-Taiba ‘commander’, Irshad Ahmad Ganie alias Abdullah, who was involved in major attacks on security forces during the past three years in the Valley, was killed in an encounter in Pulwama District. Ganie carried a reward of Rs 10 lakh on his head.

Ceasefire violations and infiltration continued for the most part of the year. However, officials claim there was significant improvement in the counter-infiltration profile along the Line of Control (LoC) and there was significant decrease in infiltration.

On September 18, five militants were killed in the Gurez sector in Bandipora, as the Army foiled an infiltration bid along the LoC. On October 7, state police suffered a huge setback when a sub-inspector Altaf Ahmed was killed in a gun battle in Bandipora after he intercepted a vehicle in which militants including divisional commander of LeT, Abu Qasim, were travelling.

However, on October 29, police took its revenge when they killed Abu Qasim in an encounter in Kulgam district.

Qasim, the mastermind behind Udhampur attack on BSF that took place on August 5, was also behind several high-profile militant attacks including the Hyderpora attack in 2013 that left eight army personnel dead.

A fortnight later, on November 17, army lost a commanding officer of 41 RR, Colonel Santosh Mahadik, in an encounter with a group of militants in Manigah forest area of Kupwara District. LeT described Col Mahadik’s killing as a revenge attack for Abu Qasim’s killing.

Manigah remained in the news as the site for one of the longest anti-militancy operations in Kashmir’s history. The siege was taken off after around a month.

In the last three months of the year, 31 militants and 11 security forces personnel were killed in the state. The year also ended on a violent note as an encounter broke out in Pulwama district and security forces killed two militants — one local and another foreigner.

PTI