It was a great diplomatic achievement on India’s part to get Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist by the United Nations (UN). However, this is equivalent to winning a battle and there is still a war to be won against terrorism. Pakistan after suffering a crushing defeat in 1971 war against India, has adopted ‘death by a thousand cuts’ approach. It has used terrorism since then to inflict casualty on Indian civilians and security forces.
Pakistan has also successfully destabilised the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir by not only occupying a part of it but also supporting an insurgency in the region against the Indian state. A terrorist like Masood Azhar is a product of Islamabad’s persistent anti-India campaign. Azhar was arrested in South Kashmir in 1994 and this was followed by several unsuccessful attempts to free him. Finally, in 1999, a Delhi-bound Indian Airlines flight from Nepal was hijacked by five people and taken to Kandahar. In return for releasing the aircraft, three terrorists were freed from the Indian government’s custody. Azhar was one of them. After being released, Azhar went on to form JeM. The arrival of the outfit was announced by a suicide attack in J&K.
Since then Azhar went on the become a master trainer of suicide bombers that targeted India. The attack on Indian Parliament building, Pathankot strike and the more recent attack on CRPF convoy on February 14 is attributed to him.
Under these circumstances, it is important to know that Azhar is one component in a terror chain. Neutralising him is not the same as neutralising the whole terror network. Although, his listing is a big diplomatic victory, there is still a long way to go.
India must use this negative limelight on Pakistan to its advantage by highlighting its covert support to terrorists not only in India but also in Afghanistan. This is the time when India has great diplomatic capital at its disposal, and by using it wisely, India can truly make a difference. It is also important that New Delhi show the world that India is not occupying power in J&K and that the state is an integral part of the India Union irrespective of the fake Pakistani narrative of Kashmir’s freedom
struggle.
Instead on focusing on Article 35A and Article 370, the NDA government should work towards building an anti-terrorism narrative and try to familiarise the rest of the Indian people with actual ground realities of Kashmiris.
Insurgencies are impossible to defeat without the support of the locals. How much is an average Indian aware of the perception of Kashmiris towards India? Getting Azhar listed as a global terrorist cannot be the major part of India’s strategy in its fight against terrorism. The major point of focus should be winning the hearts and minds of the locals. However, it is easier said than done but, there has to be a major push towards it which has been lacking over the past few years.
