Jammu: Gone are those days when terror was incentivised and there used to be a premium on separatism in strife-torn Jammu and Kashmir. Continuing with their policy of zero tolerance against secessionist forces, govt in J&K has constituted a special task force (STF) to identify and act tough against government employees involved in anti-India activities.

To tighten noose against employees waging war against India, STF headed by Additional Director General of Police (CID), has been assigned the task of speedily scrutinising and screening such cases in a time-bound manner.

Employees who will be found to be involved in aiding terror - directly or indirectly - will be immediately dismissed from service. To avoid any legal hassle, last year on July 30, the General Administration Department (GAD) of the J&K invoked a special provision - under Art 311 - of the Constitution of India for the purpose of terminating the services of the employees or reducing their ranks without holding an inquiry, but on the basis of evidence against them.

Copy of govt order to constitute state task force to identify anti-India govt employees


About 750 Employees On STF Radar

About 750 public servants are under scanner in J&K for posing threat to the security and integrity of India. The name of many of them has already been recommended for termination from service.

Intel inputs reveal that some of these employees proactively used social media platforms to destabilise the situation in Kashmir Valley by sowing seeds of dissent against govt's decision to abrogate Art 370.

Ever since Pak-sponsored terrorism raised its ugly head in Kashmir valley, the section of the government employees has been involved in churning out the pro-separatist and anti-India narrative. Pro-Pak Netas in Valley further provided oxygen to the ecosystem of terror that slowly and slowly had been spreading its tentacles in government institutions.

Terror Teacher Arrested From Bandipora

Last week National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested, Altaf Ahmad Rather, a govt school teacher from the Bandipora area in North Kashmir, for radicalising, motivating, and brainwashing youngsters to wage violent jihad against India.

He was associated with pan Islamic terror outfit Lahkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and his job was to lure youngsters to gun culture and recruit them into terror ranks.

NIA came to know about Altaf's involvement while investigating case related to the arrest of one Tania Parveen, by Bengal Police in 2020, for her association with Lashkar, a proscribed terror organisation.

Terror probing agency during investigation found that it was Altaf, who had introduced Tania Parveen to inter service intelligence (ISI) officials and Lashkar leadership in Pakistan.

The NIA charge sheet revealed that Tania Mondal alias Tania Parveen was part of 70 jihadi groups on social media. Tania, a resident of Malaypura, West Bengal had converted to Islam after being radicalised by Altaf.

NIA officials found that Tania besides recruiting youngsters was trying to honey trap Indian soldiers in lieu of information about the Indian Army.

Blot On Khaki

During the last one year, more than five policemen have been arrested for anti-national activities. It was the arrest of the decorated police officer, Davinder Singh, that came as a shocker for security agencies.

On January 11, 2020, police intercepted a car near Qazigund and arrested deputy superintendent of police (DSP) Devinder Singh, while he was on his way to Jammu to provide a safer hideout to Hizbul commander, Naveed Babu.

Investigations by NIA revealed that Davinder Singh was a Pakistani mole in khaki. Besides providing sensitive information to Pak spy agency inter-service intelligence (ISI), his job was to help terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen smuggle arms and ammunition from across the line of control (LoC) to keep a pot of terrorism boiling in Kashmir valley.

In another shocking incident, a woman Special Police Officer (SPO) from Kulgam district of J&K was arrested and terminated from the service for “glorifying terrorism” and “obstructing" security officials in the discharge of their duty.

Saima Akhter, a resident of Frisal area of the south Kashmir district and working as SPO, was arrested under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act ( UAPA) for obstructing security force personnel during a search operation launched to nab terrorists hiding in her house.

They are not the only ones to have brought bad names to the police force. During the onset of terrorism in the early '90s, around 100 police personnel deserted and joined the terrorist ranks. Some of them like Ali Mohammad Dar, who towards his end in 1998 was Hizbul Mujahideen’s “Chief of Operations” with code-name of Burhanuddin Hijazi, were killed in different encounters.

Jagmohan Was First One To Crack The Whip On Anti-National Employees

The first major action against the employees posing threat to the security of the State was taken by then Governor Jagmohan.

Sending message loud and clear to anti-India forces operating in the Valley, Jagmohan during his first stint as Governor of J&K in 1986, ordered the termination of the services of three professors- Abdul Gani Bhat, Abdul Rahim, and Shariefuddin- for promoting secessionism. Prof Abdul Ghani Bhat later became chairman of all Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC).

To further choke the lifeline of radical ideology, Jagmohan during his second tenure as Governor of the erstwhile State of J&K, imposed a ban on Jamiat-i-Islami and its affiliated institutions.

Unfortunately in the name of 'national interest' same was revoked by then Prime Minister Narsimha Rao. Soon after the installation of a popular govt lead by Farooq Abdullah in 1986, all those jobless teachers of banned Jamiat-i-Islami (JeI) schools were accommodated in govt schools.

Many saw this as a reward to them for germinating poison in the minds of youngsters over the years. The role of the same teachers - who had infiltrated into govt run schools in a systematic manner under all the political dispensations - came under scanner during 2016 unrest, post-Burhan Wani killing in Kashmir, when stone-pelters brought life in Kashmir Valley to screeching halt for almost four months.

Many feel that the formation of STF to identify anti-India elements will help govt to weed out pro-Pak elements and free govt schools of their influence.