OBSERVER BUREAU
SRINAGAR, MAR 29
Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Party (Nationalist) president Ghulam Hassan Mir today cautioned the government against “intolerable level of collateral damage” in the anti-militancy operations in the Valley. Mir said what happened in Chadoora, Budgam was “a smear on the democratic face” of the government and also an impression had gone that the security forces were allegedly taking on civilians as they were doing to militants. “These killings are highly regrettable and these have the dangerous portent of becoming festering wounds and incurable scars,” the JKDPN chief said while stressing the point that the government and security forces should come out with an alternative strategy and go for course-correction to deal with the situation. “It won’t matter much if the anti-militancy operations are discreet and time-consuming but the civilians should be spared. No doubt there are some provocations but here the difference should be made between the militants and civilians. That is how the governments and security forces are expected to act in difficult situations,” Mir said. Mir, who has been pleading for dialogue and peace initiatives, wanted all sides to respect human lives. “One civilian’s life lost leaves permanent mark on the psyche. It hurts more because Kashmiris have already been living under tremendous pressure and uncertainty over the decades. The government should go in for course correction. That is the only way out,” he said.
