Current Events :
Ajay Banerjee
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, September 19
Even as the government has been holding strategy-planning meetings on dealing with yesterday’s attack on a military camp at Uri, Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Lt Gen Ranbir Singh today said the Army had the “desired” capability and it reserved the right to respond at a time and place of its own choice.The DGMO held a second media briefing in as many days this evening at the South Block. His words indicated that the Army was evaluating its options and if military action was opted for, it would be sudden and precise.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)“We have the desired capability to respond to such acts of aggression and violence,” Lt Gen Ranbir Singh said. “We reserve the right to respond to any act of the adversary at a time and place of our own choosing,” he added.The DGMO’s words are a re-run of the statements made in January 2013 after Lance Naik Hem Raj was beheaded by Pakistan army regulars along the Line of Control in J&K. The then Army Chief, Gen Bikram Singh, had said: “I have given very categorical directions to the Northern Command. When we are provoked, we shall respond immediately. We will retaliate to Pakistan’s attack at a place and time of our choosing.” In July 2014, on the day he was demitting office, General Singh, on being asked if India had responded to the beheading, said, “It has been done (the response)… when we use force, (it) is from tactical to operational to strategic levels.” The DGMO said the Army had displayed considerable restraint while handling the terror situation along the LoC and in hinterland. Lt Gen Ranbir Singh said infiltration attempts had shown a marked increase in comparison to the past three-four years. In 2016, 17 infiltration bids were thwarted along the LoC. Of the 110 terrorists eliminated in Jammu and Kashmir, 31 were killed while attempting to cross the LoC. “It indicates a desperate attempt to infiltrate more terrorists with a view to create disturbance,” he added.
The gunbattle had lasted five hours. PTI
Tribune News Service
Srinagar, September 19
Another soldier succumbed to injuries in a New Delhi hospital, taking the toll in the Uri attack on Sunday to 18.Sepoy K Vikas Janardhan who was shifted to R&R Hospital, New Delhi, on Sunday in a critical condition succumbed to his injuries on Monday morning.In a deadly attack on an Army base in Uri, close to the Line of Control (LoC), 17 soldiers were killed and 23 others were injured when four members of Jaish-e-Mohammad stormed the base. The four militants were also killed in the gunfight.
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Meanwhile, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Monday led senior Army and police officials in paying tributes at the wreath-laying ceremony for the killed soldiers at the headquarters of Army’s 15 Corps in Badamibagh.
The 18 slain soldiers
Subedar Karnail Singh of Shibu Chak village, Jammu (J&K)Havildar Ravi Paul of Samba (J&K)Sepoy Rakesh Singh of Baddja village, Kaimur (Bihar)Sepoy Javra Munda of Meral village, Khuti (Jharkhand)Sepoy Naiman Kujur of Gumla village, Chainpur (Jharkhand)Sepoy Uike Janrao of Nandgaon village, Amravati (Maharashtra) Havildar NS Rawat of Rajawa village, Rajasmand (Rajasthan)Sepoy Ganesh Shankar of Ghoorapalli village, Sant Kabir Nagar (UP)Naik SK Vidarthi of Boknari village, Gaya (Bihar)Sepoy Biswajit Ghorai of Ganga Sagar village, South 24 Parganas (West Bengal)Lance Naik G Shankar of Jashi village, Satara (Maharashtra)Sepoy G Dalai of Jamuna Balia village, Howrah (West Bengal)Lance Naik RK Yadav of Balia village (UP)Sepoy Harinder Yadav of Ghazipur village, Ghazipur (UP)Sepoy TS Somnath of Khadangali village, Nashik (Maharashtra)Havildar Ashok Kumar Singh of Raktu Tola village, Bhojpur (Bihar)Sepoy Rajesh Kumar Singh of Jaunpur village (UP)Sepoy K Vikas Janardhan of Pitas village, Yavatmal (Maharashtra)
Heavily armed militants attacked an army base in north Kashmir early Sunday and killed 17 soldiers, triggering calls for a swift retaliation that could squeeze the space for any détente between India and Pakistan.
The dawn raid surprised soldiers in their sleep as attackers lobbed grenades and set fire to tents and shelters. The blaze killed 12 troopers and the rest died in the gunfight, sources added. TV images showed helicopters flying to evacuate the wounded and smoke billowing from the mountainous base at Uri, which houses about 12,000 troops.
Soldiers killed four “fidayeen” — or commando-style gunmen willing to fight to death — after an hours-long gunbattle to end what was the worst single attack on the army in years. More than 20 soldiers were wounded, some of them seriously.
The attack jeopardised hopes of peace returning quickly to Kashmir which has been rocked by two months of violent protests in which 86 people have been killed and thousands injured. Sources said the raid was part of a fresh wave of infiltration by militants from across the Line of Control, the heavily militarised de-facto border with Pakistan.
CALL FOR RETALIATION A top army official said the attack pointed to the involvement of the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad, which was also blamed by India for the Pathankot airbase attack in January. Islamabad denied any involvement.
Sunday’s attack led to calls for an aggressive response, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowing to punish those behind the “cowardly” and “despicable” attack.
No one has so far claimed responsibility but home minister Rajnath Singh hit out at Pakistan, calling it a terrorist state that needed to be “identified and isolated”.
MADE-IN-PAKISTAN Lt Gen Ranbir Singh, director general of military operations, said the militants could be from the JeM as some of the equipment recovered from them had Pakistan markings. He said four AK-47 rifles, four under barrel grenade launchers and ammunition were found on the dead militants.
Islamabad rejected the charge with the foreign office saying that New Delhi always blamed Pakistan for such incidents even before completing a probe.
The attack is likely to further roil Kashmir that army sources say has seen scores of infiltration attempts since protests broke out against insurgent leader Burhan Wani’s killing in July.
The Uri attack came within hours of the Uttarakhand police chief revealing that the Centre had sent out an alert for possible terrorist strike on defence installations in North India.
Defence minister Manohar Parrikar visited Srinagar for a meeting with top army commanders and home minister Rajnath Singh cancelled scheduled trips to Russia and the United States. Army chief Dalbir Singh and northern command head DS Hooda also rushed to Uri. Home secretary Rajiv Mehrishi will visit Srinagar on Monday.
SURGICAL STRIKE
Covert strike on terror camps in Pakistanoccupied Kashmir. But India might run the risk of a full-fledged war with a nuclear state
AGGRESSIVE POSTURING
Move forces to the border in an eyeball-to-eyeball deployment, close Indian skies to Pak flights. Move may not be of any help in long run
DIPLOMACY
Isolate Pak internationally. India has pursued this line for decades without success. Now that terrorism has emerged as a global threat, India has more diplomatic leverage
BILATERAL TALKS
Engage the civilian leadership in Pak. This, however, goes against New Delhi’s stated line that terror and talks can’t go together
BACK CHANNEL TALKS
Engage the Pakistani army, which controls the levers of power, through back channels. But their interest in peace is suspect
WAR OF ATTRITION
Scale up the offensive over Balochistan. Make Pak pay for its interference in J&K. But this might strengthen anti-India elements in Pak
HOT PURSUIT
After 18 soldiers were killed in an ambush in Manipur last year, Indian forces went across the border into Myanmar and eliminated them. This option was mooted against Pakistan-backed militants but never exercised. Pakistan is a different kettle of fish to Myanmar, though.
Islamabad: Opposition members in Pakistan have accused the Nawaz Sharif government of misleading the Senate by concealing information about the Pathankot terror attack in India, it was reported on Saturday. The accusations came on Friday when PPP Senator Farhatullah Babar alleged that the government was patronising militants, a claim Leader of the House Raja Zafarul Haq strongly denied, the Express News reported.“Why else did the government not share details of the investigation into the alleged involvement of Pakistani nationals in the Pathankot attack with the House?” asked Babar. — PTI
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, September 9
With most of the posts of judicial members in the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) lying vacant, the AFT Bar Association has approached the Chief Justice of India, saying the situation has resulted in “a complete breakdown” of the system of administration of justice for defence personnel and their families.At present there are only five judicial members against the sanctioned strength of 17 and out of eight AFT Benches located across the country, only three are functional as no fresh appointments have been made. This will be further reduced to two as another judicial member will be retiring this month.Stating that “incoherent and disjointed” legal provisions are equally to blame for the sorry state of affairs, Bar members have decided to protest by wearing black badges on September 22.“Other arbitrary provisions of the Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007, have not only resulted in a grave threat to administration of justice but have also placed the military community at a major disadvantage as compared to their civilian counterparts, resulting in blockage of effective access to justice and judicial review,” said a letter written by the Bar to Chief Justice TS Thakur.Claiming that quicker dispensation of justice through the AFT is just a myth, the Bar has averred that the biggest disappointment with the creation of the AFT is lack of any effective remedy of judicial review over its orders, thereby making it the first and the last court for litigants.While civilians get a three-tier system of justice and judicial review, military litigants, under the current provisions, cannot seek judicial review of AFT orders in the High Court and can seek review in the Supreme Court only on a point of law of general public importance.
Melbourne/New Delhi, August 28
Embattled French defence firm DCNS has approached the Supreme Court in Australia seeking an injunction against ‘The Australian’ from further publishing the leaked documents of India’s Scorpene submarine project.The DCNS has also sought a court order to the newspaper to hand over the documents in its possession and removal of the contents from its website.”The publication of this highly valuable document causes a direct harm to DCNS and its customer in terms of spread of sensitive and restricted information, image and reputation,” The Australian quoted an affidavit by DCNS lawyer Justine Munsie.The newspaper had said it will publish the documents regarding the weapons system of the submarine on Monday.Over 22,000 pages of top secret data on the capabilities of six highly advanced submarines being built for the Indian Navy in Mumbai in collaboration with a French company have been leaked.The move by DCNS comes after a former commander of US Pacific fleet Submarine Force warned that the leaks would undermine the confidence in the ability of French companies to protect classified information.Rear Admiral John Padgett (retd), who is also the president of the US Naval Submarine League, has said aggressive action needed to be taken to probe the leak and that France should share the outcome with Australia.The secret data included details of the capabilities of SM39 anti-ship missile expected to be used on the Scorpene and classified information about the number of targets the missile was capable of processing.Explaining the implications of the leak, Admiral Padgett said “It is never good for an opponent to have your playbook.””As a member of NATO, the French government and French military demonstrate that they enforce effective security controls and have a solid reputation with their allies,” he said.He said the investigation had to determine exactly how the breach occurred and what “aggressive action” would be taken to correct deficient security controls.His comments came as a French public prosecutor opened a preliminary investigation into the data leak, with DCNS filing a complaint for breach of trust.”We filed a complaint against unknown persons for breach of trust with the Paris prosecutor,” said a DCNS spokesman.The DCNS has won a contract to design Australia’s new $50 billion submarine fleet. — PTI
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, August 24
India’s bid to shore up its naval capabilities and have the tactical edge over rivals has taken a hit with around 22,400 pages of technical data relating to six Scorpene-class submarines having been leaked, compromising abilities of the underwater vessels. The subs are being built for the Navy in collaboration with a French company.Oped: A conspiracy behind the naval leaks?New Delhi launched an internal probe that commenced early today — soon after The Australian, a newspaper based out of Sydney, reported about the leaked data and its details. The paper termed it a “stunning leak”, saying “it details the entire secret combat capability of the six Scorpene-class submarines of India”.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)The Ministry of Defence asked the Indian Navy to send a formal letter to French submarine-maker DCNS asking about the leaked documents. The French Government owns about 62 per cent stake in DCNS, which is building six of the diesel-electric Scorpene-class submarines in Mumbai at a cost of Rs 23,562 crore ($3.46 billion). The first one — INS Kalvari — is set to be inducted into the naval fleet at the end of the year and the remaining five vessels at periodic intervals till the year 2020. The Indian Navy is confident that no operational data has been compromised.Sources said the hull of the submarine cannot change, its insides and noise reducing feature make the difference. Also since the vessels have not been made operational, the actual noise signatures — used by enemy submarine-hunting vessels to track undersea vessels — are not known. A spokesperson for the DCNS released a statement in Paris saying: “This serious matter is thoroughly being investigated by French national authorities for Defence Security. Probe will determine the exact nature of the leaked papers, potential damages to DCNS customers as well as the responsibilities for this leak.”International news agencies quoted the DCNS spokesperson as saying “corporate espionage” could be behind the leak.Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said: “The first step is to identify what all is related to us. Anyway it’s not that 100 per cent data has been leaked,” adding it appeared to be a case of “hacking”. An Indian Navy official statement said: “It appears that the source of leak is from overseas and not in India.”The Navy asked its specialists, including those working on cyber security, to report for work at 4 am today as they examined the files shown by the newspaper. They reportedly told the MoD the documents did not match with those supplied by the DCNS to India.The newspaper, which claimed to have seen the data, said leaked documents were marked “Restricted Scorpene India”. These detail most sensitive combat capabilities of India’s new submarine fleet and would provide an intelligence bonanza if obtained by India’s strategic rivals, such as Pakistan or China, it said.The data lists out the frequencies at which the submarines gather intelligence and the levels of noise the subs make at various speeds, the news report said. It also contains information on the submarine’s diving depths, range, and endurance, besides its magnetic, electromagnetic, and infrared data.The news report claimed the data was most probably leaked not from India but from the DCNS in France as it also includes separate confidential DCNS files on plans to sell French frigates to Chile and the French sale of the Mistral-class amphibious assault ship carrier to Russia.Since these projects of the DCNS have no link to India, there is high probability that the data files were removed from the company in France.The DCNS is also to make 12 similar vessels for Australia, a $38 billion contract it won beating stiff completion from Japanese and German submarine-makers. The contract was signed in April this year.
Golden jubilee of AWWA Raising Day concludesBathinda: The golden jubilee celebrations of the Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA) Raising Day concluded today at the Bathinda Military Station.On the concluding day, a special meeting on family welfare was held in which various schemes under ‘Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojna’ were discussed. — TNS
Modi’s offer may have few takers in the Valley
Being unpredictable, inconsistent and contradictory are qualities that Prime Minister Modi has made himself known for and these are reflected in his handling of various national issues — the latest instance being of Kashmir. In his Independence Day address Modi talked of Balochistan and PoK, and chose to utter not a single word on Kashmir, the omission was calculated and probably meant to hurt Kashmiri sensibilities. The government then appeared committed to letting the police respond to the angry adolescent protesters, hoping to tire them out and to hurt their families economically with long spells of curfew. The Prime Minister did not warm up to a request from Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti for a meeting and a possible intervention. Soon thereafter, however, Modi apparently had a change of heart. When a delegation of Kashmir’s opposition politicians called on him on Monday, the Prime Minister made an offer for dialogue — the first since the blinding and maiming of youth began after Burhan Wani’s killing on July 8. His mollifying words for the violence-hit came as a surprise but the impact would have been far greater had the conciliatory gesture been made from the Red Fort. How the Prime Minister, known for his effective stage performances, got the place and the timing wrong remains inexplicable. If the PM was indeed contemplating a policy change on Kashmir — from a tough administrative approach to a political dialogue — he forgot to convey this to his ministers. Only a day before, a usually dovish and reasonable Arun Jaitley turned hawkish on Kashmir and declared that stone-throwers were no “satyagrahis but aggressors”. Home Minister Rajnath Singh, meanwhile, is busy re-reading past recommendations of expert groups and trying old solutions — sending all-party and civil society groups to the Valley. He forgets the ground reality in Kashmir has changed drastically. Media reports say police stations remain shut in four districts of south Kashmir and leaderless mobs rule the streets. Mainstream and local politicians too have become irrelevant. The Centre has an obligation to nuance its politics and tactics in a manner so that the larger and long-term national interests are not irreparably damaged. Kashmir is too serious an issue to be reduced to an exercise in event-management.
Kolkata: The Maitree channel of the All India Radio (AIR) launched by President Pranab Mukherjee Tuesday morning revived memories of the 1971 liberation war of Bangladesh when the Kolkata station of AIR had played a key role. The channel aims to cater to Bengali listeners of both India and Bangladesh. While launching the channel, the President said it could play a significant role in promoting and preserving the composite Bengali cultural heritage, which is the proud inheritance of all Bengali speaking people irrespective of their geographical location. Akashvani Maitree, which will be on air 16 hours a day, will produce and broadcast programmes as reality shows, music and quiz competitions, discussions where participants from both the countries can take part. The channel will cover whole of Bangladesh and most of South East Asia. TNS
AS Dulat
Never mind the communication gaps, Delhi must make the conciliatory move
Tu idhar udhar ki baat na kar,
Yeh bata ke kafila luta kaise,
Mujhe Rahzanu se gila nahin,
Teri Rahbari ka sawaal hai
— Allama Iqbal
AND so it came to pass… Two months ago, Kashmir on the surface was at its glorious best, overflowing with tourists from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. Yet all was not well, and as very often happens, everything changed overnight. Burhan Wani’s killing was only the catalyst, or excuse, given the subterranean anger, hatred and alienation. Something was always waiting to happen. The status quo we banked on favoured the other side more than us. And now, Pakistan, always ready to fish in Kashmir’s troubled waters, is all over us. Lashkar and Jaish are calling the shots. Unwittingly, Burhan Wani’s killing has become Kashmir’s Bastille Day moment.The paradise on earth presents a depressing, stifled scenario. India, as we say, is one from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, with Kashmir our “atoot ang”. But the Kashmiri feels like an alien under seige, persistently humiliated — true, false, exaggerated, it is all the same a telling perception. Worst, we appear to be losing our emotional bond with Kashmir.When we stop talking to the Kashmiris, believing that they are under the influence of Pakistan, it demonstrates a lack of confidence. Their links with Pakistan are dependent on our links with them. Every Kashmiri leader knows Kashmir is going nowhere — it is with India and will always remain so. But we need to talk, and never stop talking to Kashmiris. As Mufti Saheb said, there was no other way but the Vajpayee way. Mehbooba reiterated the same sentiments while invoking Vajpayee during her visit to Delhi — statesmanship could still transform the setback into oppurtunity. The first step in putting things together, as Henry Kissinger suggested in the context of the Brexit controversy in Britain, was to rediscover confidence. Omar Abdullah said it was our inability to address the anger on the street that was keeping
it alive.
Pakistan is always a factor, but let us not exaggerate it. Pakistani flags come out in the Valley out of frustration and anger, rather than any love for it. Pakistan has no love for Kashmir and the Kashmiri is equally angry with India and Pakistan. Pakistan has only brought death and destruction to Kashmir, compromising Kashmiri aspirations. The Pakistan High Commissioner’s needlessly provocative statement on August 14 did no good to Kashmir. Nor does their insistence that the separatists pay obeisence to the High Commission. Pakistan is only a fallback position for Kashmir.In January 1990, Governor Jagmohan dissolved the state Assembly and J&K remained under Governor’s rule till 1996. Elected representatives are once again facing threats to quit, or face the consequences. The winter of 1989-90, eerie as it was, is finding echoes in the summer of 2016. Militancy almost dead, is again back with a vengeance. It is a frightening scenario.The situation in South Kashmir appears out of control and going from bad to worse. There has been a permanent hartal and curfew for the last 44 days. Yet protests and killings continue. Boys in their teens are in the forefront ready to do or die. Women who rarely come out in Kashmir, too, are protesting in large numbers. Seven year olds are demanding ‘azadi’ without understanding what it means. There is a fire raging in Kashmir whose flames need urgent dousing before they spread to Jammu and create a communal situation.And yet a vast majority of Kashmiris want out — peace more than anything else. And we owe it to them to provide an oppurtunity. Whenever anything goes wrong in Kashmir, Delhi is the first to get the blame, followed by its Kashmiri “stooge” (Mehbooba in this case). If Delhi finds it difficult to understand Kashmiri leaders, Kashmiri leaders find it more difficult to fathom Delhi. And hence Mehbooba finds herself alone in the wilderness. We have little other option, but to give her total support, and sometimes, listen to the voice that she “feels” rather than what she is required to say.There is another erroneous belief that Kashmiris may not be prepared to talk. Kashmiris are always ready and willing to talk. On August 20, the Northern Army Commander, Lt Gen DS Hooda, made a very reasonable offer to talk with everyone, including the separatists, to bring peace to the Valley. And the Mirwaiz immediately responded positively, going to the extent of saying that Kashmiris were prepared to talk to the Army if it could find a solution to Kashmir. If there was no Hurriyat, we might need to invent one since it represents a thought that was willing to be mainstreamed by engagement. Now that the Mirwaiz has time to think, he needs to seriously contemplate his future. Omar Abdullah has conducted himself impeccably as leader of the opposition, and already looks the future leader of Kashmir.Ultimately, the protests, which are going nowhere, will become wearisome. So, this too shall pass. But the hangover could create more terrorists. Discontent has long tentacles. Burhan Wani is said to be a product of the 2010 uprising and now his father, Muzzafar, a headmaster, is demonstrating pretensions of a leader.Kashmir deserves better. We need to spare a thought for Kashmir. As the former home minister, PC Chidambaram, said: “Kashmir is a unique problem that needed a unique solution.” At the very least, Kashmir deserves accommodation, self-respect and justice. Balochistan is all very well, but what we need to discuss with Pakistan is Kashmir.The writer is a former chief of RAW
