Srinagar, March 16: Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police (DGP) R R Swain on Saturday said that no serious effort took place to stop violence before the abrogation of Article-370 and any genuine inquiry into this reality will bring out very starling and painful revelations.
In an interview with a national news channel, DGP while responding to a question about the role of politicians in promoting terrorism, said, “Honestly speaking, when did serious effort take place to stop violence and cut the cycle of violence?. “Certainly, there was a gap of efforts when it came to stopping supply to the terror eco-system. We never went to the roots of terrorism-the financier, the glorifier, the builder of the narrative etc,” he said , “when you allow that, you create an environment to attract more violence”.
DGP also said conclusions had to be drawn from this. It is very much objective. “Judicial inquiry can be put in what I am saying. I have reasons to say that any genuine inquiry into this old reality bring out very starling and painful revelations”
RR Swain said after the abrogation of article 370, the big change is about going beyond merely neutralizing the man behind the gun. “It was about addressing the root causes of terrorism and its entire ecosystem”.
He said it is important to kill a man with a gun but it is more important to go beyond that and reach the source and stop it there.
“When there is a continuous supply of toxicity (terrorism). you can’t sit at the end of the pipeline and keep neutralizing terrorists. That will make you tired, that is what enemy wanted. You have to reach the source and stop the supply and disrupt it,” he added.
DGP said it was the strategy of the enemy to make you tired by continuous supply of terror. “There strategy was simple that they wanted to wear out the Indian State by keeping it busy at the end in fighting and killing terrorist”.
“There was a challenge before abrogation of Article due to interference of political parties as we were not properly able to ask the house owner where terrorists were killed. It is wrong to say that all house owners were not giving shelter to terrorists due to fear and it was not true. The police were unable to investigate other aspects in this manner,” he said.
Reacting to a question, whether political parties were acting as a stumbling block by preventing police from taking action against the terrorist in the past and now there is no such how do you get involved in this?
DGP Swain said, “in the past, there was no one to question those who used to glorify terrorism and mostly the youth were trapped due to these reasons.
“As per data around 20 thousand youth who were killed in terrorism in the valley and most of them belong to poor families. No one was investigating, who was glorifying the terrorism, who gave them guns and the majority were school dropouts.”
He said it takes time and hard work to gain fame by cracking IAS, IPS, JKAS or becoming a successful entrepreneur, “here in terrorism, these dropouts were getting free wealth and fame and later their deaths are also glorified.”
To yet another question, DGP Swain said the victim and perpetrator can be put on the same pedestal and that somebody has to stand up and call the bluff.
He wishes that the leadership not only at security level but at political level have courage and moral obligation to be able to distinguish between the killer and the perpetrator.
“In formal and informal meetings, people ask me theire should be clarity in who is a martyr and who is a killer. People know it though some done want to say it due to fear”
DGP said the Police is now incentivizing patriots and award them for playing their role in eradicating terrorism
“It is absolute clarity of thought that we would like to make a clear distinction between a common citizen who comes out to give information risking his life and family, so they are to be rewarded, ” he said adding, “When a patriot gives information, it is clear and it is in that connection that police rewards patriots,”.
The Police chief said every common Kashmiri given a chance will be at our side to fight the terrorism for a peaceful environment.
