Kashmir: a simmering, sometimes brutal small war

[davidbfpo]

An unusual critic a former Indian Army officer asks questions what is happening in Kashmir, where 500k security personnel are deployed, a 1 to 25 ratio and with extra-ordinary powers, let alone weaponry:http://blogs.economictimes.indiatime...ed-in-gujarat/

A sample:

Wani, a Hizbul Mujahideen commander, was gunned down by security forces, and Kashmir erupted, leaving 50 protesters dead, thousands injured, many blinded for life, with curfew in the Valley for more than 25 days. The CRPF continues to use pellet guns. Our most disciplined force, the Indian Army, was even accused of firing at elderly women. On Wednesday, an ATM security guard Reyaz Shah was shot at point blank range by security forces. He had 360 pellets in his body. I still hear many cases of the ‘midnight knock’. This has to stop. There has to be some accountability. No one can touch the security forces, thanks to the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), a “dirty word” to quote former R&AW chief A S Dulat.

Not familiar with the issues this very short polemic helps; it is from Aljazeera:http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/...094424509.html

Post 193 on the Indian insurgency thread explains AFSPA:http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/...t=2248&page=10