The goons who until recently were masquerading as cow-vigilantes, or gau rakshaks, appear to have revised their targets ~ people of Kashmiri-origin working or studying outside the Valley.

Dangerous similarities can be seen between the lynch-mobs and those attempting to drive people of the troubled state away from the so-called heartland. Not merely in terms of the geography of their forays, but in their brazen assertions that they are defending the country against anti-national elements.

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They continue to defy the directives of the Supreme Court, and take with more than the proverbial pinch of salt the court-induced comment of the Prime Minister that the “fight was against terrorism, not Kashmiris”.

Needless to add that in the absence of follow-up moves by the local authorities, the police take only token action against the miscreants when pressure from the media makes that inevitable. Cases may be registered, arrests made, but neither at the political nor administrative levels are sincere efforts evident to reassure the victim community that they will receive the Constitutionally-mandated protection each citizen merits.

To put it bluntly, the raging lumpen do not accept that Kashmiris are Indians: they perceive them as Pakistanis who should either “get out” or risk extermination ~ while North Block looks the other way.

Shivraj Patil, at least, got the shunt: Rajnath Singh carries on regardless of his ineptitude. How many students who ran away last month have returned to their colleges, even as their examinations near? Of course the HRD minister denies any such exodus.

All those negatives flow from the under-reported assault in Lucknow on two dry-fruits sellers from Kulgam: two others are counting their lucky stars they managed to run away from a bunch of lathi-wielding hoodlums who arrogated unto themselves the right to settle scores (sadly, a term proudly used by the Prime Minister) for the suicide bomber taking the lives of 40 CRPF men in Pulwama on February 14.

A video-recording by a bystander and screened on TV should shock the nation into bitter reality. The saffron-shirted goons said they had demanded to see ID cards of the traders (under what provision of law?), and then said that since Kashmiris were stone-pelters they deserved a thrashing.

Had it not been for some decent folk in the marketplace the two traders could have lost life or limb. Not only were the police nowhere to be seen, they later made much of the traders saying they were appreciative of a handful of arrests having been made.

The goons declared they were members of the Vishwa Hindu Dal. And as was only to be expected, the Chief Minister’s lips remained sealed. So much for the orders of the apex court and the promises of Mr Modi. Ground realities explain why militancy remains an attractive allurement for Kashmiri youth.