Editorial: A calm response to Pahalgam
The first details emerging from the attack, the deadliest civilian-targeted violence in Kashmir since 2019, make it clear it was a wanton act. It took place at an unguarded tourist spot that can only be reached by foot or pony
Security officers patrol a shopping area in Pahalgam (Photo: AP)
Even by the yardstick we apply to Kashmir, the heinous killing of 26 civilians, most of them tourists, in Pahalgam on Tuesday (April 22) is shocking, and also remarkable for its design to trigger horror and drive religious polarisation in the country, thereby unwittingly serving a wicked agenda.
The first details emerging from the attack, the deadliest civilian-targeted violence in Kashmir since 2019, make it clear it was a wanton act. It took place at an unguarded tourist spot that can only be reached by foot or pony. So, the terrorists faced no threat of being engaged by security forces. They came from the hills wearing military fatigues, armed with assault weapons and small arms. They singled out some individuals from among the tourists before shooting them dead at close range. This was no guerilla insurgency. It was a cold-blooded crime against humanity, designed to stoke hate far beyond Kashmir.
Predictably, the massacre has set social media aflame. Videos of victims pleading for their lives are being circulated with hateful commentary. The harm this can do to the already strained communal relations in this country can hardly be overemphasised. It becomes the duty therefore of PM Narendra Modi to frame the government’s response in non-partisan terms using measured language. The perpetrators must of course be brought to justice, but senior government figures must be advised to avoid fuelling the wrathful atmosphere.
The PM was correct to cut short his visit to Saudi Arabia and take a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security at the Delhi airport right after landing. However, while dramatic acts do serve to convey the gravity of a situation, a calibrated response is likelier to achieve the stated objective.
The more fevered minds in the far right are imagining commonalities between the Pahalgam massacre and the Oct 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel and asking for a Netanyahu like response. To go along with such a narrative would amount to falling for a ruse. The consequences of doing so would be disastrous. The Centre must resist all exhortations by its Hindutva laity to embark on what they think is a muscular adventure in Kashmir. There is no need to. Delhi already commands the territory, bar the occasional insurgent attack. Only a determined pursuit of Pahalgam assailants is called for.
It is of course an embarrassment for India that this happened while US Vice-President JD Vance was in the country. It is not an uncommon correlation, and we have had a few. The Kandahar hijacking in 1999 occurred during the run-up to Bill Clinton’s visit to India, which significantly coloured the outcome of that episode. The 2006 bombings of Mumbai local trains occurred days before a G8 summit where Manmohan Singh was to meet George W Bush. The 2016 Pathankot Airbase attack happened days before Modi was scheduled to meet Barack Obama. In 2015, ahead of Obama’s arrival to be our Republic Day guest, and in 2020, ahead of Donald Trump’s visit to India, there were intelligence reports of militants preparing for fidayeen attacks in Kashmir. Security forces were alerted to be on their toes and reportedly foiled multiple plots well in time. So, the question that arises from Pahalgam, is why there was no such intelligence ahead of Vance’s visit. That’s a question for Home Minister Amit Shah and Kashmir’s Lt Governor Manoj Sinha to answer. They are the direct custodians of security in the union territory.
