The recent saga of alleged Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) militant Liaqat Shah, who was picked up by Delhi police while transiting from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir to India via Nepal, might make for a spy thriller but it has left the Union ministry of home affairs with egg on its face.
Indeed, it is worth raising the question whether the Central government was able to develop a policy worth the name for the return and rehabilitation of militants who claim to have a change of heart but are still trapped in PoK. The existence of a large number of such former militants began to come to light as far back as a decade ago.
Large numbers of young Kashmiris had crossed over to PoK for arms training in the turbulent years of militancy in Kashmir. Many settled down there and married local women. In time it became clear that a substantial number had tired of “jihad” and wanted out. But the ISI kept a hawk’s eye on them as their return would show that Pakistan’s old trick in J&K had lost its lure. Nevertheless, a number of them, through personal initiative and not a little recklessness, made it back to the Valley to return to normal life.
While it is to be established if Mr Shah — who is from a family of day labourers — was the genuine article or a still active HM activist seeking to sneak back by claiming to be an applicant for rehabilitation, his case is proof that the government has paid little attention to the important aspect of dealing with lapsed militants.
The completely chaotic state of affairs in the matter of coordination between the J&K police, the Intelligence Bureau, and in this instance the special cell of the Delhi police, is apparent from the fact that the home ministry has now thought it necessary to have the Liaqat case probed by the National Intelligence Agency.
This has become necessary because the J&K police says Mr Shah was being reeled back through their efforts. The Delhi police says he is a militant who was trying to hoodwink the authorities and was planning a major strike in the national capital with the help of an active cell of the HM which had collected firearms (which they say they seized).
The facts will become clear when the NIA inquiry is completed, but the probe is unlikely to have been ordered if J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah had not personally spoken to Union home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde. This speaks of a lack of political coordination between Srinagar and New Delhi.