Adil Lateef
Srinagar, Sept 9: Director General (DG) of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) Rajiv Rai Bhatnagar today said the ongoing National Investigation Agency (NIA) raids have affected stone-pelting incidents in Kashmir which otherwise were on rise since July last year.
“There is an affect following actions by all the agencies. There is also an affect because of what NIA is doing. The way stone-pelting was happening in a coordinated manner, this will definitely stop that,” the CRPF DG told reporters while responding to a question with regard to decrease in stone-throwing incidents after NIA started probe into terror funding on the sidelines of an event at District Police Lines (DPL) Pulwama which came under deadly fidayeen attack last month.
The CRPF along with police directly deals with law and order situations across Kashmir and has suffered hundreds of injuries during the stone-pelting incidents since July 2016 when militant commander Burhan Wani’s killing in an encounter triggered massive violence for months in the Valley.
The top paramilitary officer said the counter-insurgency operations will continue despite changing situations. “Situation keeps changing. The anti-militancy operations are intelligence-based and we are achieving success in them. They are ongoing operations and will continue,” he said, adding that so far 148 militants including top commanders have been killed this year.
The CRPF DG said that the Jaish-e-Mohammad militants who stormed DPL Pulwama and killed eight security personnel have not been identified and they appeared to be foreigners. In reply to a question about number of militants in south Kashmir, he said: “I will not go into numbers as they are not important. The important thing is that we are ready for every challenge. Whatever the numbers, you have seen that we have achieved success. We will continue such actions in the future as well along with Jammu and Kashmir Police (JKP) and the Army.”
The DG Bhatnagar paid tributes to four CRPF and four policemen killed by Fidayeen militants during DPL attack and praised security personnel for “containing” and “neutralizing” the attackers. “I have come here (DPL) to meet JKP and CRPF who participated in the operation that led to the killing of three militants. They fought with bravery and contained the militants,” he said.
With regard to the relations with public, the CRPF DG said that their “endeavour is to connect with the people of Kashmir as they all are Indian citizens”. The top paramilitary officer during his visit to the DPL Pulwama interacted with police as well as CRPF officers and they briefed him about the recent operation and steps that have been taken to prevent such attacks.
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