SRINAGAR: With India mulling options after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, two former J&K police chiefs have said military action now is a compulsion for India and that the action must be bigger than surgical or Balakote strikes to eliminate Pakistan-sponsored terrorism.
Former J&K police chief Kuldip Khoda told this newspaper that the Pahalgam attack is a continuation of the situation prevailing in J&K for the past 35 years. Khoda, who served as J&K police chief from 2007-2012, said Pakistan army and the ISI have all through been guiding, calibrating and training terrorists.
“It has been revealed not once but hundreds of times during interrogation of arrested terrorists. They had revealed that they were trained by regular and retired Pakistani army men and sometimes training would take place at regular army camps,” he said.
According to Khoda, the Pahalgam attack was planned before the Pakistan army chief’s controversial statement on two-nation theory. “Terrorists had done recce of Amusement Park in Pahalgam on April 15 and this was revealed by OGWs (over-ground workers), who were aware of terrorists’ presence in Baisaran.
Terrorists were in Baisaran from April 20. They had done recce in Betaab Valley and Aru Valley,” he said, adding, “In Pahalgam attack, terrorists were using a satellite phone, which was linked to a Chinese satellite.”
To act now against Pakistan, he said, is a compulsion for India. Eliminating every terrorist in J&K is not possible because they get supplemented through infiltrations from across the border, Khoda said.
“Sealing off the entire border is also impossible, just like ensuring zero infiltration,” he said. “It has now become a compulsion for India to tackle the source of terrorists to ensure terrorism stops for good.”
“The situation has reached a stage where it is quite apparent that despite the surgical strike, Balakote strike, things have not worked. It has to be much bigger this time to eliminate Pakistan sponsored terrorism for all times to come,” Khoda said.
Another former J&K police chief S P Vaid said the Pahalgam attack was a security and intelligence failure. “If terrorists had carried out recce, why were we not able to detect it?” asked Vaid, who served as J&K police chief from 2016 to 2018.
“Military action should be carried out in such a way that it hurts Pakistan. The back of Pakistan army and ISI must be broken,” he said. “We have to financially cripple them. India has also to diplomatically isolate Pakistan,” added Vaid.
Army vehicle plunges into gorge, 3 soldiers killed
Three Army personnel were killed when their vehicle skidded off the road and plunged into a 500-metre deep gorge in J&K’s Ramban district on Sunday, officials said. The Army truck, which was reduced to “a mangled heap of metal,” was part of a convoy moving from Jammu to Srinagar along NH-44 when the accident occurred around 11.30 am.