Security and transparency

Investigation into alleged army atrocities at Rajouri comes at a critical juncture

AMONG THE MANY types of operations that the Indian Army has conducted in Jammu and Kashmir over the years, the most difficult are rarely those at the LOC and the LAC. There, the context is clear and the rules of engagement do not pose many restrictions on Indian soldiers or place them at a disadvantage. Military craft, a high degree of physicality, passion, energy, leadership and, of course, sometimes, negotiation skills, make the difference. Not so much in the case of hinterland operations which are of a hybrid nature and internal security and proxy war conditions place severe restrictions on troops and their manner of conduct. Restrictions also stem from political, social and demographic considerations. The context here is the incident of December 21, 2023, on Mughal Road near Bafliaz town in Poonch district.

In this area, a number of encounters between the Army and terrorist groups have taken place in the past 18 months or so. The troops have suffered numerous casualties without sufficient compensatory gains. The last incident allegedly became a trigger for some officers and other soldiers to interrogate a few local villagers whom they suspected of giving support to terrorists. Three civilians from Top Pir village in nearby Rajouri district died, allegedly due to torture, while several others suffered injuries. The Raksha Mantri visited the area and told the troops, “You are the country's protectors. But I want to request that besides ensuring the country’s security, you also have the responsibility to win the hearts of the people. There should be no mistake that hurts an Indian,” he said. It was a fine statement and timed appropriately. He also asked the Army to inquire into the matter transparently. That inquiry has concluded with reports of serious lapses by seven to eight personnel, including some officers.

Several cases continue to be invoked for the purposes of propaganda by indiscreet elements, even though these cases have long been solved. Yet, nothing can be above the law. Investigation and prosecution must follow all due processes. The findings in the Rajouri case, the welltimed visit of the Raksha Mantri and his appropriate statements clearly indicate that the current establishment — like its predecessors — will uphold the processes of justice because the people remain the centre of gravity.

The inquiry will no doubt go through all the due processes.

The public must be aware of three things: First, countering proxy war operations demands a high sense of balance on the part of security forces at every stage. There will be several successes to celebrate but there will also be setbacks involving casualties and other losses. The operating environment demands a very high level of decentralisation, going down to tactical and sub-tactical levels because quick decisions are required on actionable intelligence. At the operational level, all the support is provided — technology, higher intelligence analyses, information warfare, programmes to win hearts and minds.

But the sub-tactical level is the cutting edge of operations. There may be hundreds of operations going on at a time, especially when the strength of terrorists is high. For instance, as a senior operations staff officer 25 years ago, I had to coordinate 11-12 operations a day simultaneously in just South Kashmir. Soldiers will make genuine mistakes from time to time — only a thorough investigation will establish or negate culpability. An act of indiscretion amounting to a wilful breach of orders laid down for the conduct of operations will always invite the strongest response from the Army. The Indian Army is extremely careful of its reputation for fair play and human rights.

The second thing for public knowledge is the fact that the Army will always be vulnerable to its reputation being targeted — this is done to undermine its ability to keep the people of the region on its side. People are the “centre of gravity” in such operations. Terrorists and separatists would always try to tarnish the image of the Army and compromise its relationship with the people. Their intent is to reduce intelligence flow and garner public backing and logistics for the terrorists.

The third imperative in this environment is that allegations against the Army’s probity must be correctly judged at the highest levels. Investigating every allegation levelled by vested interests will demoralise soldiers. However, those considered serious enough must be probed within an appropriate time-frame and the process of justice taken to its logical conclusion in a fair manner. Several cases continue to be invoked for the purposes of propaganda by indiscreet elements, even though these cases have long been solved. Yet, nothing can be above the law. Investigation and prosecution must follow all due processes.

The findings in the Rajouri case, the well-timed visit of the Raksha Mantri and his appropriate statements clearly indicate that the current establishment — like its predecessors — will uphold the processes of justice because the people remain the centre of gravity.

The investigation of the Rajouri case is taking place at a very critical juncture. There are indications of a possible removal of AFSPA from all or some segments of J&K. It’s early to speculate on such an important issue. One of the major provisions of AFSPA is the protection it affords to Army personnel from prosecution without the Centre's sanction, for an act committed on duty. However, when the Army and the establishment continue to demonstrate a high level of transparency in investigation and prosecution of all cases, the need for AFSPA-LIKE protection will itself be diluted. That is how we need to view due processes in such cases of alleged misdemeanour while countering terror operations in a challenging environment.

The writer is a former corps commander of the Srinagar-based 15 Corps