Azhar Qadri
Tribune News Service
Drass (Kargil), July 26
Confident that the scourge of terrorism would be rooted out from Jammu and Kashmir, Army Chief Gen Bipin Rawat on Friday said the only way forward for the militants was to give up arms and join the mainstream.
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- Chiefs of armed forces pay tribute
- CM gives double promotion to ‘forgotten’ Kargil war hero
- 20 years on, wounds of martyr’s family yet to heal
Addressing the media on the 20th anniversary of the Kargil war victory here, the Army Chief also said Pakistan would get “bloodier nose” if it tried another Kargil. He said they were reaching out to people through social media and other programmes to shun weapons and come overground. “Any local militant picking up a gun against the security forces will no longer be a militant. The gun and the man will be separated. The man will go to the grave and gun will be with us. But this is not the end of everything. We are trying to approach the civilian society (to encourage youths to give up violence),” he said. Gen Rawat said the government approach to ensure that everybody acted together was paying good dividends and the Army would claim victory over terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir.
The Army Chief said India had complete right over the state of Jammu and Kashmir, including the areas under Pakistan’s control. “It is a political decision how to control (complete state). Whether it has to be done diplomatically or through other means, it will be done according to the decision,” he said.
Gen Rawat said the Army was compelled to undertake the 1999 war to throw back Pakistani intruders who had undertaken the “misadventure” of occupying the heights in the Kargil region. “We have gathered here to pay tribute to the gallant soldiers who brought us victory in these very months 20 years ago.”
Kovind’s drass visit cancelled due to bad weather
- President Ram Nath Kovind’s visit to Drass on the 20th anniversary of Kargil Vijay Diwas was cancelled on Friday due to bad weather
- The visit was part of the commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the 1999 Kargil war victory and the Army had hosted a series of events