Prisons Need Reforms

Mallaya's extradition to India is held up as the British judiciary demands to know the status of prison in which Mallaya may be lodged. Doubts have rightly been created in the mind of the court about the living conditions obtainable in our prisons.

Following two daring escapes from Punjab and Bhopal, I had written an article which was carried by Millennium Post. The text is reproduced below along with the link to the article:

Two daring escapes from high-security prisons in a space of less than one month has provided a major jolt to the concerned states and the centre and posed uncomfortable questions about the law & order situation and prisons management.

In an audacious daylight raid, six hardened criminals executed a well-rehearsed plan to free none other than Khalistan Liberation Force Harminder alias Mintoo along with another terrorist and another four dreaded criminals. The raiding party masqueraded as cops with a supposed prisoner in handcuffs to gain entry inside the high-security prison without raising any doubt in the minds of the prison watch & ward staff. Once inside, the attackers snatched a rifle and fired indiscriminately before making good with the escapees in the waiting cars. No resistance was offered and the operation lasted less than a quarter of an hour.

The escape of eight SIMI cadres from the high-security Bhopal prison in the wee hours of 31st October and subsequent encounter resulting in the death of all fugitives within hours at the hands of the anti-terrorist squad (ATS) of Madhya Pradesh has triggered a vociferous debate on the validity of the encounter.

Theoretically, the possibility of escape from jails should be nil. The jail manuals and standing operating procedures (SOPs) are very elaborate in spelling out the security protocols. Whenever inmates are taken out or locked out for the day or night, a headcount is done. Locks of barracks are changed every day. Every barrack is under the watch of at least one sentry or warder who knows and identifies his wards. CCTV cameras are installed in sensitive prisons. The air is, however, rife with innuendos and allegations of laxity and complicity in both the breakouts.

Recovery of mobile phones, drugs and other contraband from jails has been reported at almost regular intervals. Inefficiency, corruption, collusion, patronage to some high profile convicts and undertrials, official apathy and political interference have all been associated with the prisons. Prisons are also accused of becoming nurseries for hardened criminals than reformatories. This article will deal with the basic issues concerning the weaknesses in prison administration and will explore solutions.

The manpower crunch is the bane of the prisons set up in India.

The National Crime Records Bureau’s figures for 2015 place the nationwide vacancy figure at 27000 which is a worrying 34% on which no hue and cry is raised on any platform. Some of the prisons operate with as few as 8 warders!

The Model Prisons Manual, 2016 circulated to all the states for adoption prescribes a ratio of 6:1 in every shift. By the MHA norms, the staff strength should be more than 1500 for the Bhopal prison and 1200 for the Nabha jail. Compared to these, Bhopal has just about 200 persons and jails in Punjab have an average staff of 85. These MHA norms may be very exacting on the state exchequer, but there is a definite need for rationalisation of human resource needed in prisons across the country.

Arranging funds for strengthening of the prison system has always been an issue right from the year 1838 when “Lord Auckland’s Government accepted generally the views of the (first Prisons) Commission, but, having regard to the great expense which they entailed and the many difficulties that beset the introduction of a complete jail system in India, enjoined caution in carrying them out.”

Since the return on investment in enforcement apparatus cannot be quantified, there is a general diffidence in making an adequate allocation for them. The 1998 escape of 78 prisoners from Nizamabad jail, now in Telangana, by virtue of their sheer numbers compared to the available guarding staff, is a grim reminder of the need for adequate staff to perform their custodial responsibilities and quell riots which break out inside the prisons.

The law & order machinery in the states had immensely benefited by the central government funded India Reserve Battalions which infused much-needed manpower into the beleaguered state police forces. Funds for infrastructure, equipment and salary for the initial five years were provided by the centre. A similar central scheme to augment manpower in the jails is the need of the hour as the fiscal health of most of the states may not allow them to create more jobs.

The prisons are beset with the problem of overcrowding. The national overcrowding percentage stands at just fifteen percent. The Bhopal prison houses 3000 prisoners against a capacity of just 1400. The Nabha jail is slightly better with the occupancy rate of 118%. Besides issues of hygiene, human rights, medical care, security, alacrity and watch & ward functions also become complicated given the inadequate manpower. Capacity expansion in jails and provision of the matching staff are immediate requirements.

The availability of modern gadgetry for watch and ward functions, access control, surveillance, perimeter security, point to point communication, force multipliers and arming policy vary from state to state showing disparate allocation of resources to achieve a basic uniform minimum standard. The modernisation plan for the prisons had been discontinued by the UPA-II which has also affected the process of upscaling of infrastructure and equipment in the prisons.

In reply to an unstarred question in Lok Sakha in August 2015, the minister of state for home stated that “a consolidated Memorandum was submitted by the Ministry of Home Affairs to the Fourteenth Finance Commission for consideration which included the demands projected by the States/UTs amounting to Rs. 13,962.60 crore for prison reforms in the second phase of modernization of prisons. The 14th Finance Commission has observed that in view of the improved outlay for States now, there is appropriate fiscal space to provide for additional expenditure needed for their requirements. The 14th  Finance Commission has not made any specific fund allocation in favour of Central Government for this purpose. Therefore, with appropriate prioritisation, the States/UTs should be able to meet the proposed expenditure on the modernisation of jails.”

The refusal of the 14th Finance Commission to allocate any funds for the scheme has dealt a severe blow to the modernization of prisons in India.

The Apex Court has directed the centre and states to install CCTV cameras in all prisons. Like CCTNS for the police, e-prison software to automate processes is also at different stages of implementation. Both these projects are possible only with assured financial support either from the centre or the states or in combination with the centre picking up the bigger tab. The modernization plan has been revived for the police and central armed forces. The same needs to be done for the prison administration which is an equally important part of the criminal justice system.

Basic and in-service training in the prisons departments is also a major casualty. Some of the states do not even have a single training institution of their own. Ministry of Home Affairs should prepare a scheme for setting up of training institutes in all the states and BPR&D should design basic and in-service courses for all levels of prison personnel. Most of the ground level staff has not undergone any in-service training in the prisons across the country.

Intelligence and internal vigilance are alien features in jail administration. There is no intelligence staff sanctioned for coordination between the prisons and other agencies like the police, Narcotics Control Bureau and intelligence agencies. Internal vigilance works as a great deterrent to most of the ills associated with enforcement functions in the jails. Intelligence and internal vigilance cells should be created at the state prisons headquarters, central jails and all district jails.

Most of the prison reforms that are taking place are due to a proactive judiciary. Independent India has seen several committees on different aspects of prisons reforms recommending overhauling of the prison administration and replacement of obsolete and archaic prison laws and manuals with modern laws in synch with the times. In 1999, a draft Model Prisons Management Bill (The Prison Administration and Treatment of Prisoners Bill- 1998) was circulated to replace the Prison Act 1894 by the government of India to the states but this bill is yet to be enacted.

Reform and rehabilitation are the buzzwords in the correctional discourse. Improvement in correctional administration can be expected only when a sound legal base is provided by amending or replacing the Prisons Manual and the Prisons Act.

India has seen some sensational jailbreaks in the past. Daring escape of 43 LTTE cadres from Vellore Fort in August 1995 and escape of three inmates accused of the assassination of a chief minister from the model central jail Burail in Chandigarh along with the daring gunbattle escapes of Maoists from Jehanabad jail are still fresh in the mind. In 2015, eighty-nine inmates escaped from the prisons while another 111 ran away from police custody outside the prison complexes. The escape of most of these inmates did not make headlines. National attention is attracted only when high profile and notorious prisoners escape from the jails. And it is for such prisoners that the jail administration has to plan and provide for.

The prison establishment may be expensive to maintain but is essential for any society. There is a need to accord priority and address issues affecting the efficiency of the prisons and reform and rehabilitation programmes. MHA may consider detailing an officer exclusively for the prisons related issues and to coordinate with the states and other stakeholders. Ministry of home affairs should order a security audit of all prisons on fixed parameters and after gap analysis, corrective measures should be taken in a time-bound manner. Unless the reforms agenda is pursued vigorously by committing funds and enhancing manpower, incidents like Bhopal and Nabha will keep occurring and the basic issues of custody, care and rehabilitation will be ignored by TRP hungry media.

http://www.millenniumpost.in/what-ails-our-prisons-175730 

RELEVANCE OF STATE SENTENCE REVIEW BOARDS

State Sentence Review Board and some pertinent issues

By Somesh Goyal -

 Feb 20, 2017

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“Hate the sin and not the sinner”.

— Mahatma Gandhi

The Indian Penal Code, 1860 prescribes punishments for different crimes committed by individuals. The Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 not only lays down the procedure but also defines the humane side of the law holding out possibilities of remission, suspension or commutation of sentence of the deserving prisoners with or without their consent.  While Sections 432 and 433 are enabling provisions, Section 433A was added to the Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 later imposing certain restrictions on the powers of remission or commutation by the appropriate government in certain circumstances and cases.

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These sections read as follows:

Section 432:- Power to suspend or remit sentences.

(1) When any person has been sentenced to punishment for an offence, the appropriate Government may, at any time, without Conditions or upon any conditions which the person sentenced accepts, suspend the execution of his sentence or remit the whole or any part of the punishment to which he has been sentenced.

(2) Whenever an application is made to the appropriate Government for the suspension or remission of a sentence, the appropriate Government may require the presiding Judge of the Court before or by which the conviction was had or confirmed, to state his opinion as to whether the application should be granted or refused, together with his reasons for such opinion and also to forward with the statement of such opinion a certified copy of the record of the trial or of such record thereof as exists.

(3) If any condition on which a sentence has been suspended or remitted is, In the opinion of the appropriate Government, not fulfilled, the appropriate Government may cancel the suspension or remission, and thereupon the person in whose favour the sentence has been suspended or remitted may, if at large, be arrested by any police officer, without warrant and remanded to undergo the unexpired portion of the sentence.

(4) The condition on which a sentence is suspended or remitted under this section may be one to be fulfilled by the person in whose favour the sentence is suspended or remitted, or one independent of his will.

(5) The appropriate Government may, by general rules or special orders give directions as to the suspension of sentences and the conditions on which petitions should be presented and dealt with:

Provided that in the case of any sentence (other than a sentence of fine) passed on a male person above the age of eighteen years, no such petition by the person sentenced or by any other person on his behalf shall be entertained, unless the person sentenced is in jail, and-

(a) where such petition is made by the person sentenced, it is presented through the officer in charge of the jail; or

(b) where such petition is made by any other person, it contains a declaration that the person sentenced is in jail.

(6) The provisions of the above sub- sections shall also apply to any order passed by a Criminal Court under any section of this Code or of any other law which restricts the liberty of any person or imposes any liability upon him or his property.

(7) In this section and in section 433, the expression” appropriate Government” means,-

(a) in cases where the sentence is for an offence against, or the order referred to in sub- section (6) is passed under, any law relating to a matter to which the executive power of the Union extends, the Central Government;

(b) in other cases, the Government of the State within which the offender is sentenced or the said order is passed.

Section 433:- Power to commute sentence. The appropriate Government may, without the consent of the person sentenced, commute-

(a) a sentence of death, for any other punishment provided by the Indian Penal Code;

(b) a sentence of imprisonment for life, for imprisonment for a term not exceeding fourteen years or for fine;

(c) a sentence of rigorous imprisonment, for simple imprisonment for any term to which that person might have been sentenced, or for fine;

(d) a sentence of simple imprisonment, for fine.

Restriction on powers of remission or Commutation in certain cases.

Section 433A:- Restriction on powers of remission or Commutation in certain cases. Notwithstanding anything contained in section 432, where a sentence of imprisonment for life is imposed on conviction of a person for an offence for which death is one of the punishments provided by law, or where a sentence of death imposed on a person has been commuted under section 433 into one of imprisonment for life, such person shall not be released from prison unless he had served at least fourteen years of imprisonment.

STATE SENTENCE REVIEW BOARD

Prior to 2001, the provincial governments in India followed different procedures particularly for suspensions and remission of sentences. The disparities and differing standards applied by the various states in deciding the premature release of prisoners serving custodial sentence, were examined by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). The Commission appointed a committee to evolve greater uniformity of standards in dealing with this matter.  The Committee in turn, drafted guidelines and suggested constitution of Sentence Review Boards to deal with the cases of premature release. Suggestions from all the states and union territories were invited on the guidelines by NHRC by 30th September, 1999.  On 20th October, 1999, the National Human Rights Commission issued amended guidelines for implementation by the states and union territories. The state governments were expected to amend inconsistent government orders and locally drafted rules with an aim to achieve uniformity in this regard throughout the country.

In nutshell, these guidelines led to the birth of the idea of State Sentence Review Board.

The State Sentence Review Boards have served the purpose admirably keeping in view the general principles of amnesty, remission of the sentence, welfare of the prisoners and society at large.

The National Human Rights Commission observed that the need for the State Sentence Review Board and a uniform procedure for premature release was necessitated by the complaints received from and on behalf of convicts undergoing life imprisonment without any sympathetic consideration for premature release or remission even after serving long sentences ranging from 10 to 20 years.

The eligibility criteria and the procedure prescribed for the State Sentence Review Board, therefore, considers only the cases of those convicts who have been sentenced to life imprisonment. In the light of these guidelines the scope of suspension and remission under section 432 of Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 has been limited only to these cases whereas the Criminal Procedure Code provides suspension and remission to any person who “has been sentenced to punishment for an offence” without laying down any length of punishment as eligibility criteria for consideration for premature release. It may be interesting to find data of post 2001 of all the convicts who have enjoyed premature release. None of them may belong to the category incarcerated for less than life imprisonment.

The National Human Rights Commission guidelines and procedure prescribed in para 6.3, 6.4 and 6.5 are perhaps in variance with what is prescribed by section 432(2).  It is prescribed in section 432 (2) that the appropriate Government or the competent authority to grant premature release, “may require the Presiding Judge of the Court before or by which the conviction was had or confirmed, to state his opinion as to whether the application should be granted or refused, together with his reasons for such opinion and also to forward with the statement of such opinion a certified copy of the record of the trial or of such record thereof as exists”. In the NHRC guidelines, there is no reference to this statutory provision of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1973.

The Apex Court in a few recent judgments has reinforced the mandatory observance of the procedure provided in section 432 (2) of Criminal Procedure Code 1973.  In the case of Sangeet and others Vs. State of Haryana, (2013) 2 SCC 452, in para 77.7, the Supreme Court has observed:-

“Before actually exercising the power of remission under Section 432 Cr.P.C. the appropriate Government must obtain the opinion (with reasons) of the Presiding Judge of the convicting or confirming Court. Remission can, therefore, be given only a case-by-case basis and not in a wholesale manner.”

In another case pending before the Supreme Court of India, in an interim order, the Apex Court has observed in the case of Union of India Vs. V. Sriharan @ Murugan and Others, (2016) 7 SCC 1, in para 52.6 of the judgment that:-

“No Suo Motu power of remission is exercisable under Section 432 (1) of Code of Criminal Procedure. It can only be initiated based on an application of the person convicted as provided under section 432 (2) and that ultimate order of suspension or remission should be guided by the opinion to be rendered by the Presiding Officer of the Court concerned.”

From the foregoing it becomes absolutely clear that in the eyes of the Apex Court, the most material opinion is that of the Presiding Judge of the convicting or the confirming court that is why the Court in its judgment has replaced the word “may” as in Section 432 (2) of Criminal Procedure Code with “must” and “should”. Secondly, in none of the judgment of the Apex Court, the Court has made any mention about the procedure prescribed by the National Human Rights Commission.  Hence, it is a matter of legal debate whether the directions of the Apex Court as given in the judgment of the above two cases have to be followed or the NHRC guidelines which do not facilitate observance of the procedure prescribed in the Cr.P.C.

It has been experienced that the State Sentence Review Boards decide cases of premature release in a wholesale manner in one sitting. The applications received from the convicts seeking premature release are allowed to pile up till the State Sentence Review Board meets.  The National Human Rights Commission guideline for a quarterly meeting is followed more in breach. There are instances when the State Sentence Review Board meetings have not taken place for more than a year.  Section 432 of Cr PC very clearly states that the appropriate government is to take a decision “whenever an application is made”. In Sangeet and others Vs. State of Haryana, (2013) 2 SCC 452, in para 77.7, the Apex Court has  pronounced the following,

“Remission can, therefore, be given only on a case-by-case basis, not in a wholesale manner.”

In view of this judgment of 2013, does it not become incumbent on “the appropriate government” to process the cases as and when these are received? Do the State Sentence Review Boards remain relevant after the Apex Court’s pronouncement in the case of Sangeet & others vs. State of Haryana (2013)?

The question of premature release among other issue is under the consideration of the Supreme Court of India in Writ Petition Sr. No. 48 of 2014 of Union of India Vs. V. Sriharan @ Murugan and Others. In its order dated 09.07.2014 the Apex Court had restrained the state governments from exercising their powers of remission and commutation of sentence under Section 432 and 433 of Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 to life convicts.  The Supreme Court reviewed its order on 23.07.2015 and restricted the 09.07.2014 order only in the four following conditions or cases:-

(i) Where life sentence has been awarded specifying that-

(a) the convict shall undergo life sentence till the end of his life without remission or commutation;

(b) the convict shall not be released by granting remission or commutation till he completes a fixed term such as 20 years or 25 years or like.

(ii) Where no application for remission or commutation was preferred or considered suo motu by the concerned State Government/authorities.

(iii) Where the investigation was conducted by any Central Investigation Agency like the Central Bureau of Investigation.

(iv) Where the life sentence is under any central law or under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 or any other similar offence.

The order of the Apex Court in para 4 (iv) continues to restrain the state governments from exercising the powers of remission and commutation, “where the life sentence is under any central law or under section 376 of Indian Penal Code, 1860 or any other similar offence”.  Life sentence is provided to the best of knowledge of the writer, only under the Central laws barring the State of Jammu and Kashmir which has its own Penal Code. By insertion of this Sub Para to Para-4, the States continue to be restrained from the exercising the powers enjoyed by them under Section 432 and 433.

WHAT ABOUT THE VICTIM

The rights of the victim generally comprise the following four ingredients.

a) Access to justice & fair treatment,

b) Restitution,

c) Compensation &

d) Assistance.

More and more judicial pronouncements and legal pro-activism are expanding the scope of the rights of the victim in India.

The provisions in the Criminal Procedure Code, particularly in Section 432 (2), were made with a view to considering the gravity of offence damage or loss caused to the victim herself and to the family, legal heir(s) and the society at large.  It is perhaps keeping in mind the interest of the victim, that the lawmakers provided for the opinion of the convicting or confirming judge before deciding on premature release by the appropriate Government.  Naturally, it is the convicting or the convicting judge only who has tried the case and inflicted life sentence after weighing all pros and cons and the gravity of the offence and its impact on the society at large.  The impression formed by the convicting or confirming judge and supported by the material and circumstantial evidence should rightly be the guiding light for the appropriate government and not the opinions of some armchair bureaucrats, correctional authorities and others.  The State Sentence Review Board guidelines issued by the NHRC are completely silent on the aspect of the representation of the interest of the victims. Should victim’s voice be heard in the process leading to suspension or remission of the sentence?

In the light of the above, the writer wants to raise the issue of relevance of the State Sentence Review Board in its present form.  The State Sentence Review Board guidelines need to be revisited in view of the emerging case law and concern for the rights of the victims.

http://tilakmarg.com/opinion/state-sentence-review-board-and-some-pertinent-issues/

Testing Times Ahead in J&K

http://www.millenniumpost.in/opinion/opinion-249100

On Shab –e- Qadr, the night of seeking the blessings  of Allah, a band of agitated stone pelters took away the life of a fellow Kashmiri police officer who was on duty in Srinagar the summer capital of Jammu & Kashmir to ensure that the people who had gathered at the Nowhatta mosque in downtown area to offer night-long prayers and to make supplications, could do it peacefully.

The trouble reportedly started when Mohammed Ayub Pandith, a Dy Superintendent of Police posted in the Security Branch, was seen by some youth taking pictures of the Jamia Masjid mosque and the stone pelters. Being in a plainclothes wing of the police, the officer was in mufti or civil dress. The mob caught hold of the officer and to wriggle out of the clutches of the frenzied mob, Ayub fired from his service weapon injuring a few. This was provocation enough for the mob to attack and lynch him to death in one of the most gruesome and dastardly assaults on policemen in the recent times in the valley. It may be noted that Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was among those present at the Nowhatta mosque at the time of the lynching.

The sacrifice of the six bravehearts of the local police including the affable station house officer in Achabal in the south Kashmir is still fresh in the national memory. Like in the Punjab during its militancy, the policemen and their families in the state of J&K are also being now targeted by the terrorists and their sympathisers.  The state police are at the forefront of the anti-militant operations. In the last three decades of the militancy in the state, the local police have lost more than seven thousand members. Regardless of the setbacks, they have carried on with their fight against the militancy.

The Special Operations Group of J&K police is a highly motivated unit. As per the law, the rest of the forces are deployed in the Valley in aid of the civil administration. Coming from the same stock, the local police are vital to intelligence gathering and mounting of successful operations. They are led by an able officer in SP Vaid who belongs to the state and is known for his strategic acumen. These are no doubt hard times for the police and the security forces. But then their resilience and expertise and repertoire to deal with such anti national insurgencies is abundant. 

Friday was expected to be a fateful day in the light of the venomous diktat of the separatist leaders of the valley to protest after Friday prayers against the Indian genocide of the innocent civilians. Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Yasin Malik in a statement after the Pulwama encounter in which three militants were gunned down by the local police and the security forces, exhorted people to protest the “targeted killing” of the youth during the operation. The youth, “chronic stone-pelter” according to the police was killed during the violence which erupted after the burial of the slain militants in Kakapora Pulwama.

It can be termed as the bloodiest Ramzaan in the valley. Militant attacks have continued during the holy month forcing the security forces to retaliate. In all twenty seven militants were neutralized during the month. The militants killed nine policemen/security forces personnel and only six civilians lost their lives. The police and security forces have been avoiding use of lethal force against civilians who have been targeting the former on daily basis.

The militants have suffered several reversals following a hard stand against them and their sympathisers. It should be a worrying trend for the security forces that militants of different shades and tanzims are closing ranks to achieve synergy in their so called struggle for azadi and jihad. The presence of Jaish – e-Mohammed and Hizb militants at the burial of a slain Hizb area commander is a pointer towards that.

The masters of the militants across the border have unleashed a radicalisation and recruitment drive through the internet and social media. Propaganda against the idea of India is quite vociferous. The sub text now focuses more on religion based jihad than azadi for Kashmir. More than 200 such sites are operating from Pakistan itself. While the ground battle is being effectively fought by the security forces, the response in the cyberspace is far from desirable. Director general of police of J&K calls it cyber war and is alive to the situation. The stock response post an operation is to ban the social media or clamp down on the cyberspace for a while. Ban is just a first aid. What we need is a long-term treatment and response. All the security agencies, particularly the intelligence agencies have to come together to work on a systematic response to this threat which is resulting in further aggravation of the situation.

Counter propaganda and subversion measures also need to be devised at the earliest. Since the political parties have conceded space to hardliners and militants, there is a clear void in managing the public perception of alienation. The efforts of the government at the state and the national level to continue with a meaningful dialogue with the people of the valley also get nullified due to repeated incidents of violence against the civilians and the security personnel including the local police. There is a big section of Kashmiri society that abjures violence in favour of sufiism and Kashmiriyat. Brutal killings of Kashmiri policemen, who are seen as brethren by this section have created revulsion to the senseless violence by the militants. Intelligence agencies have to work with this section of society and further consolidate the numbers to counter war of perceptions. Working with women in the Valley may prove useful in conveying the message to the youth to abstain from the destructive path preached by the separatists. A beginning in this direction has to be made.

There may be more attacks on police stations and posts and its personnel in the coming days to weaken the will of the policemen to fight the militancy. Threats may be held out to the families. Police will have to be extra cautious about the safety of their colleagues in plainclothes. More armed vehicles are needed now in the valley. The police leadership and the state government need to ensure that the morale of the civil police in the state does not take a hit by the recent barbaric attacks on the policemen. The best the J&K police can do in this situation is to resolve to own the responsibility to restore normalcy in the state. This is quite doable. They have the Punjab model to inspire and emulate. 

A Timely Reversal Expected

http://www.millenniumpost.in/opinion/opinion-245932

 7 Jun 2017 9:14 PM |  New Delhi 

In the wee hours of Monday, there was a fidayeen attack on the camp of the 45th battalion of the Central Reserve Police Force at Sumbal in Bandipora, Kashmir. Heavily armed terrorists were aiming to repeat a Uri-like incident in Sumbal. However, the enemy failed in their nefarious designs. Thanks to an alert sentry who noticed them and soon raised the alarm, all the four fidayeen were immediately engaged in a fierce exchange of fire. After a gritty and tactically sound operation, the CRPF troops were able to neutralise all the four terrorists and recovered four AK series of rifles, one Under Barrel Grenade Launcher (UBGL), large quantities of grenades and ammunition. The high point of the operation was that the home side suffered no casualties. 

The CRPF leadership deserves a pat on the back for a successful operation. Tactically sound defences around the camp, alert sentries and quick response from the troops and officers who must be in a deep sleep when the intrusion was attempted, must make the Indian Army and all other security forces breathe a sigh of relief. In the recent past, Indian security personnel have been under a cloud of successful enemy penetrations in sensitive defence installations. The J&K Police also responded to the situation and made it impossible for the fidayeen to escape. 

From a security man's perspective, this successful operation is a morale booster in an otherwise glum security atmosphere in the Kashmir Valley. The Valley, some say, is on a boil, which is certainly not correct. There are some mischief mongers on the payrolls of the separatists and Pakistan who have been testing the patience of the security forces and provoking them to do something seriously wrong which will ultimately alienate the common man, fan the flames of separatism and lay the foundation for a Wahabi order. 

Peaceniks and some human rights activists may cry themselves hoarse over the situation, but it appears the current government at the Centre has a definite plan to resolve the K issue once for all. Several Central leaders and spokespersons have made it amply clear that the Indian state shall not hold parleys with those who have received large sums of funding from Pakistan and her deep state, the ISI. Several separatist leaders have been exposed accepting vast sums from Pakistani agents. The role of Dukhtaran – e-Millat in receiving napaak funds from Pakistan to destroy temples of learning and deny the right to education to thousands of impressionable students, while subsequently recruiting them as stone-pelters also stand exposed. The Central government deserves support from one and all in the country for its surgical financial strike on the Hurriyat and other terror proxies. 

The National Investigation Agency and Enforcement Directorate have been unleashed to investigate the ill-gotten riches of the separatists and bring them to book. Historically the separatists have acted as double agents receiving financial patronage from both the Indian government and its adversary in Pakistan. The highly pampered Hurriyat leaders and other separatists had not expected such heavy punching from the Indian "soft state". Yasin Malik has been arrested and the other two bigwigs namely Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq have been placed under house arrest. Some more stringent measures against other pro-Pakistan separatists will ease the situation in the Valley. 

The Centre has enunciated its no-nonsense Kashmir policy through the Army Chief Bipin Rawat. His frequent appearances in the Valley indicate the steely resolve of the government to deal with infiltration and militancy with an iron fist. While the Army and BSF solely manage the LoC, the Valley operations are shared by all the security forces. The mandate is very clear – liquidate infiltrators and militants of all shades but maintain utmost restraint while dealing with people. The bullet for bullet for militants policy shifts to pellets only doctrine for stone pelters and the misguided youth. Ground level intelligence has also shown improvement. Recent operations to neutralise cohorts of Burhan Wani are a pointer towards that. 

One worrying aspect of the Kashmir situation is the horrendous level of media discussion, particularly on the idiot box. One historian and economist sitting saat samundar paar and without first-hand knowledge of the situation has been economical with the truth in dubbing the recent 'human shield' incident as the 'General Dyer' moment in the Valley. Either he has no idea of the Jallianwala episode, or it is a deliberate attempt to add fuel to the fire. The debates on some channels on the telly are pathetic. Anchors are baying for blood, whipping up ultra-nationalism. The choice of their participants in the discussions is also worrisome. Most of them believe that the power of the argument lies only in the pitch of the voice! Deterioration in the use of diction can be seen all around. The editors on such channels may claim that they are hosting an objective debate by inviting Pakistani hawks and the Kashmiri separatists on their shows. But they forget that they are affording free airtime to the separatists' views slamming the Indian state for human rights violations and the alleged occupation of Kashmir by the Indian troops. These channels unwittingly become platforms for propaganda and subversion. Pakistani commentators choose their words very carefully addressing the Kashmiri population and their support to the Azadi idiom. There is a need for these channels and a section of the print media to be wary of such contributors and exercise restraint and show sobriety and maturity in dealing with the Kashmir issue. 

There is no denying the fact that the importance of dialogue can never be undermined. Spadework needs to be done before talks can be had with the real representatives of the people. Unfortunately, most of the political parties in Kashmir have conceded space to Islamist hardliners and to preserve their constituencies, and they are merely pedalling soft separatism. Whosoever is out of power is known to indulge in brinkmanship in Kashmir. 

The governments at the state and Centre and intelligence agencies need to operate their back channels to access the common man to gauge his mood and then devise methods to manage the perceptions. The misdeeds of separatist leaders should be driven home to save the gen next from radicalisation. A timely reversal of fortunes at Sumbal needs to be built upon by aggressive outreach programme. At any cost, the Kashmir issue should not be allowed to degenerate into an ISIS campaign run by self - radicalised youth and Pak-orchestrated militancy.

Read more at: http://www.millenniumpost.in/opinion/opinion-245932

Myth, Reality, and CRPF

http://epaper.millenniumpost.in/epaper/delhi/2017-05-02/delhi02may2017#page=8&zoom=page-width,-45,943

CRPF is in the line of fire – literally and figuratively. Its officers and men are engaged in a bitter battle with the Naxals in the Red Corridor carved out in the forested areas of a dozen states affecting over a hundred districts. Being a specialised and the most experienced force in the country in dealing with the Naxal scourge, its members are naturally deployed in the worst affected areas considered strongholds of the outlawed organisation in the states of Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and Bihar. Every day is a day of judgment for the troops that go out on a patrol in the jungles without any guarantee of safe return. They are in the line of fire from the Naxals who are inhabitants of that area and are quite adept in the guerilla warfare.

The violence levels in the LWE areas have come down significantly but a few successful strikes here and there, bring the CRPF bravehearts in another line of fire from the security experts, defence analysts, intelligentsia, academia and veterans who lose no time in picking holes in the strategy, HR practices, deployment and execution without ever thinking about the morale of the officers and men who go out to perform in the same area the very next day without having much knowledge about the terrain and grimness of the situation where their brethren had shed their blood hours ago. It has also become fashionable to settle private scores through media columns by raising inter-services rivalry, mostly out of context. The silence of human rights’ activists and those who champion the cause of tribal rights and democratic values is disturbing, to say the least over these killings by the ultras.

It needs to be known to the readers that Naxal violence has been managed quite effectively by CRPF and sister central and state armed police forces and the civil police over the years. The role of local level and central intelligence agencies has also been praiseworthy. No gainsaying that there is scope for improvement in this effort. The security forces accounted for 222 LWE cadres in 2016 compared to 89 in 2015. In the first two months of this year, 50 LWEs have been neutralised in the police action. Fatalities of security force personnel have also reduced drastically from 2007 onwards. In the last two years, the figure has hovered around sixty. March and April this year have been cruel to CRPF personnel in which 37 troops have been martyred in two separate gruesome incidents. Incidentally, this is the period when CRPF remained headless.

2017 is going to be a tough year for the forces deployed in the LWE affected states for this year the Maoists are observing 50 years of their movement and have vowed to regroup themselves and come hard at the security forces and suspected police informers. The figures of civilians killed at the hands of Maoists have shown an upward trend. In 2016, more than 200 civilians mostly on the suspicion of being informers were butchered by the Naxals. The figures may be unfortunate but point to a positive trend of local population’s willingness to report Naxal movement and oppression. More and more people want access to developmental schemes, education and health services, which have long been denied to them because of the kangaroo rule of the Maoists in the tribal hinterland. Both the unfortunate incidents that have taken place in the last two months have occurred in Sukma district which is considered the last bastion of the Naxals in the state. Construction of road will surely make the whole region accessible to development and security forces which will weaken the stranglehold of the ultras in the rural areas as well. Resistance to this road project in Sukma is central to both sides for different reasons. The Maoists do not want the road which will adversely impact their writ in the region whereas the road is vital for the state to break the back of the militant outfit to usher in an era of development and resultant peace in the region. It is quite paradoxical that the Maoists who militate against the state on the ground of governmental apathy and indifference to the common man, pose the biggest hurdle to developmental activities in the region. Their mentors have also shown a conspicuous lack of an implementable roadmap for the development of the tribal populations except reinforcing vendetta and overthrowing the democratically elected government. And what were these slain CRPF personnel doing? They were merely providing protection to the labour engaged in the task of building a vital road link for the tribals giving them access to development and modern amenities!

Over 100 battalions of paramilitary forces particularly CRPF are deployed in the LWE affected states. COBRA battalions which can operate independently for a few days at a stretch are also deployed in the region. Contrary to some uninformed comments in a section of media, CRPF has a robust HR practice for the LWE areas. No one above 35 years of age is inducted in COBRA units and sustained pre-induction training is mandatory for all troops and battalions assigned to LWE duties. These units are backed by the unit level dedicated intelligence teams, local police and central agencies. The battalions and higher formations are led by highly motivated officers who have proved their mettle over the years in similar situations. In spite of all this, the adversary is sometimes able to breach our defences, be it in the Naxal areas or near the LoC. Yes, there is a case for increasing the number of COBRA battalions and a separate dedicated central armed police force (CAPF) to deal with the Red menace which this writer does not see withering away in a hurry. Also, there is merit in the argument that stronger intelligence network needs to be established through local participation. So far as the firepower is concerned, the Maoists are no match to the CAPFs. The only element that goes in favour of the Maoists is the element of surprise and use of IEDs. The aggressor will always have the benefit of surprise and initiative and the state forces can never use IEDs against their own people. The CAPFs also do not have the protection of a statute like AFSPA. The limitations of the CAPFs should not be lost on some of the commentators deriding the training, HR practices, deployment and operational acumen of the men in khaki. It may be reminded that the only state in the country which was successfully brought back to normalcy after bloody militancy was Punjab and credit for it lies with our police forces.

There is absolutely no doubt that whenever an army unit is attacked by a handful of militants from across the border or a company level patrol is waylaid by the Naxal militia numbering in hundreds, the commanding officers can be hauled up for breach of security protocol and drills. I suppose it is part of the package. We have to take it on the chin and move on. Abundant caution needs to be exercised before commenting on such incidents because incomplete knowledge of the facts and pitting one force against the other can play havoc with the morale of the force and inter-departmental synergy and overall security scenario of the country.