American troop pullout from Afghanistan has triggered speculations of the Pakistan backed terrorists now turning back to the Kashmir front. Fallout on Kashmir after the US troops moving out of Afghanistan has become a hot topic of debate particularly in the valley.
Amidst apprehensions of renewed upsurge in terror strikes, the top commander of the Srinagar based strategic 15 Corps of the Army, Lt. General DP Pandey has said that the security situation in the Kashmir valley is under control and there is nothing to worry about the fallout of the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan.
Security forces are in a dominating position and have neutralized more than 100 terrorists, including some top commanders, so far during the current year.
However, the worrying factor was revival of the terrorist infiltration routes in the Poonch and Rajouri districts of the Jammu division that have, after a gap of about 18 years, witnessed fierce encounters between the security forces and terrorists. Two Pakistani terrorists were killed on Monday and three few days ago.
Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI has reportedly activated the terror launch pads along the Line of Control (LOC) in Poonch and Rajouri. The J&K DGP Dilbag Singh recently confirmed this while reviewing the security situation on the LOC and international border (IB).
Another worrisome report recently emerging from the Pakistan occupied Jammu and Kashmir (POJK) is the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) outfits celebrating homecoming rallies of its terrorists who fought against the Afghan army alongside the Taliban. Videos of terrorists hugging each other and firing in the air as a mark of celebration in Hazira, Abbaspur, Sensa and other parts of POJK have been posted on social media. These places are not far from the LOC, particularly Poonch and Rajouri. These terrorists have started terrorizing the local population in POJK, reports say.
The Pakistan based JeM and LeT are already active in Kashmir and were so far also fighting alongside the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Top Army commanders have taken stock of the situation at the LOC and the Western Command of the Indian Army during a joint security review last week also invited officers of the Border Security Force (BSF) of the Jammu and Punjab frontiers.
Security experts point out that nothing can be left to chance as the Pakistani Talibani terrorists, who are now free from Afghanistan, could be sent to the Kashmir front by the ISI. However, the robust anti-infiltration grid at the LOC would not let the terrorists walk across the border.
Armed with not much sophisticated guns these terrorists had joined the Taliban but now they have returned carrying American M4 carbines and M16 rifles that were more accurate than the traditional AK47 they were presently using in J&K. Many M4 have been seized by the security forces from terrorists killed in encounters. The BSF had a few months back shot down a Pakistani spy drone carrying an M4 and other ammunition at the IB in Hiranagar.
Taliban terrorists have captured these weapons from the Afghan National Army that without showing any resistance allowed them a free walk to Kabul. The terrorists were also carrying laser guns and night vision gadgets that were gifted to the Afghan Army by America, reports say.