Burhan Encounter Aftermath

A shroud of silence and a pall of gloom enveloped Jammu and Kashmir as news of the 21-year-old Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Muzaffar Wani’s killing spread. People from north, south and central Kashmir instantly started pouring in at his native place in Tral on Friday night. The atmosphere was charged.

An icon and a posterboy for the youth in Kashmir, Wani was killed along with two other militants in an encounter with forces in Kokernag area in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district on Friday afternoon. Curfew was imposed and a few Hurriyat leaders and Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chief Yasin Malik were rounded up.

By Saturday evening, eight innocents were dead in south Kashmir when protesters clashed with police. This was confirmed by ADG (CID) SM Sahai at a press conference. Sources said many were injured in clashes between protesters and security forces, and the toll is likely to rise. Reports said an Army camp was also attacked by protesters. Television channels reported that 94 security personnel have been injured in the clashes.

ADG Sahai said unruly mobs attacked the forces, civil, police and vital installations throughout the Valley. He said even when the angry mob set fire to a police station, the police didn’t fire at them.

The protesters set afire police stations in DH Pora, Achabal and the police post in Kund, Qazigund. The mob also stole arms from the stations, said the Current News Service, a Valley-based news service.

The Valley saw a complete shutdown with the stone-pelters out on the street with Azadi slogans resonating people’s frustration. Thousands joined the funeral procession and prayer for Wani in the afternoon. Palpable tension returned to the Valley after a very long time.

Former chief minister Omar Abdullah tweeted, “Burhan’s ability to recruit in to militancy from the grave will far outstrip anything he could have done on social media” and “Kashmir’s disaffected got a new icon yesterday”. Burhan was known in the Valley as the posterboy of “new age militancy” whose videos were circulated on Facebook and WhatApp.

Senior Kashmir hand Wajahat Habibullah asserted that the government has failed to come out with an alternative to keep the youth engaged.

“Burhan was in a state of rebellion. Those who are going to militancy are now from educated class like Masrat Alam. Why is this happening? If one set of youth are going to IAS, the other is picking up guns. What option has the government given to them? There is no enterprise. How do they keep themselves engaged and occupied constructively and productively…They are becoming destructive, why? The government has to facilitate the role of the civil society to reach out to these people. The youth are facing a challenge and they need guidance.”

Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq says, “It is very evident that there is a lot of anger and alienation as far as the ground situation is concerned, especially among the youth, and these are some of the occasions when they can actually come out on to the street and pelt stones to vent. Otherwise the way things are controlled and managed here, their emotions are suppressed. As a result, people are associating themselves with the sacrifice, commitment and ideology. More and more people feel that Government of India is not going to resolve issues related to Kashmir through dialogue or discourse. This is the reason why young boys are coming and challenging the might of the Indian government despite knowing that they may not win; and they are displaying their resistance and resilience.

“Besides, it used to be earlier said that Pakistan or others are involvement in Kashmir turmoil but Burhan perhaps never went across the border (for training). So one has to understand why the youth are getting drawn to this path without crossing the Line of Control because many of them see it as a cause for the nation or ideology, something which is Islamic. This is something new that is growing in the Valley. They are not the militants of the 1990s when a section also joined for social status or recognition without any conviction. They just followed the herd blindly. But this is not the case this time.”

“Also, there is a change in the situation now. In the 90s, militants had full support of the people; they could remain underground for long, they had full support of the people with money, shelter, safety measure. In the 90s, the militancy had an upper hand. But now the militants are on their own because the security agencies have their sources/informers everywhere. Besides, those joining militancy now are from good financial and educated backgrounds which means they believe in it and not blindly joining. As people say that Burhan perhaps never fired at the security agencies himself. So, his becoming a symbol of resistance despite not firing a shot, speaks a lot and he became very important which is why people from all ideology are pouring out from posh colonies to galis,” said the Mirwaiz.

Former Government of India interlocutor MM Ansari said, “Unless the Kashmir imbroglio is politically resolved, killing one militant will produce 10 more of them. An eight-lakh Army is pitched against sixty-lakh alienated youth of the 21st century, which is unfair as Army is not meant for eliminating its own children, howsoever, misguided they may be. We must engage everyone in search of a solution through democratic means.”

As per a statement issued to news agency Current New Service, the United Jehad Council chief Syed Salahuddin said the death of Burhan won’t have any impact on the ongoing movement. “Burhan defeated death on several occasions and he showed that a handful of believers of Almighty can break the pride and arrogance of mighty power. Under the banner of Hizbul Mujahideen, Burhan produced scores of Burhans and every drop of his blood will continue to produce thousands of Burhans in Kashmir valley”.