New Delhi, July 25 — The terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag was the first major strike since the Pahalgam attack last year that left 26 tourists dead. Following the Pahalgam massacre, security forces had largely kept terror groups on the defensive, foiling several attempts to carry out fresh attacks.
However, the killing of head constable Ashiq Hussain Qureshi in Anantnag has raised fresh concerns over attempts to revive militancy in the Valley. Security and intelligence agencies have since intensified operations, leaving no stone unturned to ensure that terror groups do not regain a foothold in Jammu and Kashmir.
Qureshi (45) was deployed on the Amarnath Yatra security duty when he was killed in the July 22 attack claimed by The Resistance Front (TRF).
Officials said the subsequent crackdown is crucial as intelligence inputs indicate that an ecosystem aimed at reviving both terrorism and separatism was gradually taking shape in Jammu and Kashmir.
According to officials, the network comprised former terrorists, overground workers (OGWs), separatist elements and stone pelters, who were allegedly working to rebuild the terror infrastructure in the Valley.
While there had been a major lull in terror activities, the Inter Services Intelligence-backed elements were quietly rebuilding their networks. “The idea was to silently rebuild while also carrying out smaller attacks in the Valley,” officials say.
An Intelligence Bureau official said that the major concern for the agencies is the attempt to revive separatism in the Valley. "This is a bigger threat than a single terror attack. Separatism changes the narrative, fuels violence and eventually leads to stone pelting, which the Valley witnessed frequently in the past," the official said.
However, when one looks at the investigations and crackdown that is being carried out post the Anantnag attack, it becomes clear that the scale at which these elements were working to revive terror and separatism in the Valley was huge.
An official said that the agencies have detained over 2,500 persons across Kashmir. The primary regions where these crackdowns took place were in Pulwama, Kulgam, Shopian and Anantnag. From these districts, the agencies have picked up 700 persons. In Srinagar alone, around 700 persons have been rounded up, while in Ganderbal, Budgam, Baramulla and Sopore the numbers stood at 100, 200, 178 and 70 respectively.
Another official said that all these elements had been lying low and now it is clear that this was a well-planned strategy. They chose to stay off the radar and decided that they would hit when the time is right.
“However, behind the scenes, most of these persons worked silently, and the aim was a complete revival of terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir,” the official also said.
Officials say that post the Pahalgam attack, several such arrests had been made from various parts of the Union Territory. A big part of the system had been dismantled. However, this remains a continuous process and new systems keep cropping up every few months.
The official clarified that not everyone detained was directly involved in terror activities or the alleged revival of separatist networks. Many were being questioned to help investigators gather more information and identify additional suspects.
While dismantling the OGW network remains a key focus of the investigation, security agencies are also prioritising action against separatist elements. Officials said these individuals play a crucial role in influencing and radicalising young people by spreading anti-India narratives.
“ISI has been making sustained efforts to revive separatism in Jammu and Kashmir, viewing it as a key component of its strategy in the region. Separatist operatives are funded to influence and instigate local youth, helping create an environment that can sustain militant activities,” the officials said.
The prime motive is to create an anti-India mindset among the youth and eventually divert them to various terror groups.
Officials said Pakistan's ISI has been aggressively trying to recruit local youth as part of a broader strategy to build a home-grown terror network in Jammu and Kashmir. They alleged that these recruitment efforts are aimed at strengthening TRF, which they described as a proxy of the Lashkar-e-Taiba that projects itself as an indigenous militant outfit.
According to officials, TRF's strategy is to maximise local recruitment so that attacks in Jammu and Kashmir can be portrayed as being carried out by home-grown militants rather than Pakistan-backed terror groups. They said this is intended to mask cross-border involvement while lending a local character to acts of terrorism.