Bulldozing Houses Won’t End Terror, People Must Be Taken Along: CM Omar Abdullah

SRINAGAR, July 23: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday cautioned against punitive demolition of houses following terror incidents, saying such actions would not help restore peace and that lasting success against terrorism can only be achieved by taking the people into confidence. Speaking to reporters in Srinagar, Omar said he understood the anger within the police force following the killing of a policeman in Anantnag but stressed that the law must be followed. “I understand the anger of the police, but the Supreme Court has issued an order stating that summary action of this kind should not be taken,” he said. His remarks came after authorities demolished the houses of two active Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists, Adil Thokar and Haroon Rashid Ganaie, hours after Head Constable Ashiq Hussain was shot dead by a terrorist while on Amarnath Yatra security duty in Anantnag on Wednesday. Referring to similar demolitions after the Pahalgam terror attack last year, Omar said he had then urged the Central Government to halt such actions. “We witnessed a similar situation after the Pahalgam attack when some people’s houses were bulldozed. At that time, I had to speak to the Central Government to stop the trend,” he said. The Chief Minister noted that investigations into the Pahalgam attack had later revealed that none of the attackers were local residents. “Demolishing houses or making thousands of arrests will not improve the situation; in fact, it will only worsen it,” he said. Drawing on his experience as Chief Minister, Omar said security forces could contain violence to a certain extent, but a permanent solution required public support. “We can reach a certain point using the police, Army and the CRPF, but the real end will come only when the general public stands together against such violence,” he said. He said the people of Jammu and Kashmir had openly condemned the Pahalgam attack and had similarly expressed outrage over the killing of Head Constable Ashiq Hussain. Commenting on reports of the detention of more than 1,000 alleged over-ground workers (OGWs) following the Anantnag attack, Omar said such actions could alienate the public. “I hope we take our people along in this fight; only then will we achieve real success,” he said. Meanwhile, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti also condemned the killing of the police officer but criticised the demolition of houses belonging to the families of alleged militants, calling it “collective punishment” that had no place in a democracy. She said that if the Centre believes militancy has been reduced to near zero, it should adopt a more humane and lawful approach towards innocent civilians rather than resorting to what she termed “tit-for-tat” measures.