A Pincer in the Making

Tensions with China may complicate India’s efforts to integrate Kashmir, but it’s too early to predict the full picture.

- Naseer Ganai and Bhavna Vij-Aurora

On May 30, Lt General B.S. Raju, the general officer commanding of 15 Corps, and Dilbag Singh, director-general of police, Jammu and Kashmir, chaired a high-level meeting in which top officials of the civil administration, intelligence agencies and security forces participated. Held at the 15 Corps headquarters in Badami Bagh, Srinagar, the meeting had an urgent agenda: to “review the security situation and ensure readiness to meet anticipated security challenges”. The trigger was the tension along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh. Sharing intelligence inputs, officials claimed the situation can lead to a rise in insurgency in the Kashmir Valley, with Pakistan trying to take advantage by keeping the Line of Control (LoC) simmering and cross-border militancy active. While reviewing the J&K security situation earlier on May 9 in New Delhi, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval had warned the forces to be prepared for a “hot summer”. This was soon after the CRPF lost six personnel in encounters in Handwara and Sopore.