Former Chief of Naval staff, Admiral Laxminarayan Ramdas in an open letter to President Ramnath Kovind on Saturday, February 23 called for restraint and demanded a judicial enquiry into the Pulwama attack, reported Scroll.
Condemning the attack and calling it “a despicable act, and a tragic event,” Ramdas questioned how a vehicle loaded with RDX could penetrate such a strategic highway with security checks. “It is also clear that such an event should never have happened on such an important strategic highway, especially in view of some reports that speak of there having been some intelligence reports to this effect in possession of the police and Intelligence agencies,” he reportedly added in the letter.
As a proponent of peace between India and Pakistan and resolution of conflicts through dialogue, Ramdas included a list of concerns in the letter, including the suffering of citizens of Jammu and Kashmir. “We continue to proclaim that they are an integral part of India. If indeed that is so, then they must be treated as such, as equal citizens — be they in Jammu, the Valley or in Ladakh . Had we done that we would have been less likely to see the levels of alienation, especially of young people,” he wrote.
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More importantly, Ramdas asserted that there is something very wrong in the conduct of the Indian state towards Kashmiris given that a young boy had the audacity to blow himself up in an attack like this. He wrote, “It is the strongest indicator yet of the levels of anger and alienation that the youth of the state are experiencing today. No amount of force as part of the avowedly “muscular” Kashmir policy can quell this. We must act now and sit across the table and have an honest dialogue with all parties concerned. It might already be too late.”
Following the attack, there have been incidents of brazen discrimination, harassment and violence against Kashmiris which Ramdas condemned. Expressing his anguish, he wrote, “Soon this might spill over to Muslims across India. We CANNOT allow this to continue and spread with dire consequences which are hard to assess.”
Urging the President to take action in his capacity as the Head of State, he said, “caution our own leaders about the very real dangers of the present standoff escalating into a war situation – and quickly going beyond a conventional engagement – given that both India and Pakistan are two nuclear armed countries.”
He added that a halt must be put to the terrible media war being waged on innocent Kashmiris who are going about their business quietly in towns and cities across the country. “This message must come from the highest level – and the Honorable Prime Minister must be advised that he can halt this current backlash in minutes if he so chooses, by issuing stern and clear warnings against any violence and threats and harassment against citizens – be they Kashmiri or indeed Muslim citizens.”
Further, Admiral Das added that an independent judicial enquiry can answer many questions. In his letter to the President, he added, “Enable an impartial and independent Judicial Enquiry. This group should comprise serving judges of the Supreme court.”
In the wake of the Pulwama terror attack, there have been several reports of violent mobs attacks Kashmiris across the country. Additionally, the rhetoric of war and violence propagated by many, including media houses, has compelled several eminent individuals to urge calm.