Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti, will chair the Unified Command  meeting today to discuss the security scenario in the state in the wake of spate of protests in Kashmir and the Army using “ harsh’’ means against the youth to quell the prevailing unrest.

Mehbooba will meet the Army top brass as well as the senior officers of state Administration and the CRPF officers to review the security scenario. CM is likely to express her displeasure over the recent videos which surfaced in Kashmir in which one youth was shot dead by paramilitary force personnel, while as another was tied to an army jeep and paraded through different areas. 

The meeting will begin in the afternoon and among others who are expected to attend include Deputy Chief Minister, Dr Nirmal Singh, Northern Army Commander, Lt Gen Devraj Anbu, Western Army Commander, Lt Gen Surinder Singh, GOC 15 Corps, Lt Gen JS Sandhu, Chief Secretary, B R Sharma, Director General of Police, S P Vaid, and senior paramilitary officers. In the meeting, CM will ask the security forces to maintain a restraint in dealing with the unrest.

A top government official said that the Unified Command meeting is being held after a gap of six months and “ overall’’ security scenario will come under review. CM had earlier sought report from the police over the videos that have surfaced and the PDP has already issued the statement condemning the use of force on students. 

The protests by students continued even today after the colleges were re-opened. During the meeting the strategy to tackle the current unrest will be discussed, while the CM will emphasize that during the anti-militancy operations it should be ensured that the civilian lives are not lost.

Special Director General of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), S N Srivastava, confirmed that the meeting was being held tomorrow. 

“Basically the meeting will chalk out the strategy for ensuring better co-ordination between different security agencies,’’ he said.  

Government has been caught in the tight spot after the spate of student protests and fears that the situation may turn worse and this could be the beginning of another summer unrest. After the recent violence in the parliamentary polls, election on Anantang seat has already been deferred to May 25. 

During the meeting the need for allocation of government land for army’s field firing ranges and the strengthening of the security along the  Line of Control (LoC) and International Border (IB) with Pakistan will also come up for review.

Guest