Kathua terror attack: What’s behind the spike in violence in Jammu? Explained in 5 points

Five soldiers were killed, as many others injured, after terrorists attacked an army truck passing through a village in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district on July 8. The attack at Badnota village in the Jammu region was a reminder of a similar attack in Rajouri in which four soldiers were killed in December 2023, marking an uptick in terror attacks on troops in the Union Territory.

The July 8 attack comes 24 hours after eight people, including six terrorists, were killed in twin encounters in Kulgam district of Kashmir region. The encounters, which began on Saturday, also claimed the lives of two soldiers, including a para-trooper, while another soldier sustained injuries.

Terror attacks in Jammu concerning

The spike in terror attacks, particularly below the Pir Panjal range in Jammu, has raised concern among security establishments.

June saw a series of attacks in the region. On June 26, three terrorists were killed during a gunfight with security forces in the Gandoh region of Doda district in Jammu. On June 9, the day of the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, unidentified terrorists fired upon a bus ferrying pilgrims, resulting in the death of at least 10 people and injuries to 33 others in the Reasi district of the Jammu region.

The region was rattled by three back-to-back attacks within a span of three days after the Reasi attack. Overall, the attacks in the Reasi, Doda and Kathua districts of Jammu left nine civilians and a CRPF personnel dead, besides leaving 49 others, including seven security personnel injured. Two terrorists were also killed in the Kathua attack.

Deployment on China border

Lieutenant General BS Jaswal (retd), a former Northern Army commander, told the Hindustan Times that troop density in areas south of the Pir Panjal range had reduced because forces were being pulled out for deployment in the Ladakh sector amid the ongoing standoff with China along the Line of Actual Control.

“The terrorists want to exploit the void created by the redeployment of forces. Also, the Jammu region is reporting more terror incidents because infiltrators are looking at using ingress routes into the Kashmir valley from this side,” Lieutenant General BS Jaswal (retd) was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.

When compared with Kashmir Valley, Jammu had been relatively terror-free over the past two decades until 2021, when the region witnessed a spike in terror attacks.

IEDs dropped on Air Force Station in 2021

In February 2021, Jammu and Kashmir police seized 15 sticky bombs (magnetic IEDs) in Jammu’s Samba district along the International Border. In June of the same year, in a first-of-its-kind attack in India, low-flying drones dropped IEDs on the Jammu Air Force station.

On August 6, 2021 two terrorists were killed in an encounter in the Pangai forests of the Thanamandi area of Rajouri district of Jammu region.

Jammu attacks fewer, but bloodier

Although Kashmir witnessed a higher number of terrorist-initiated incidents and civilian casualties, the country’s security establishments are concerned that attacks in the Jammu region were fewer yet of high impact, ending up inflicting the maximum damage, according to an Indian Express report.

Speaking to India Today after the June 9 Reasi attack, Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (Retd) said the terrorists want to convey a message that while PM Modi has been speaking about his government’s success, he has not got Jammu and Kashmir under control.

“They want to convey a strategic message to the world, that while India speaks about all its success and achievements, it hasn’t got Jammu and Kashmir under control,” Lieutenant General Hasnain (Retd), former General Officer Commanding 15 Corps (Srinagar), said.

Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir

Some reports suggested that terror attacks have shifted to the Jammu region after the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir’s Article 370 in August 2019 by the PM Modi-led government following a crackdown on terror groups and the separatists in the Kashmir Valley. The attacks are also happening while the annual pilgrimage to Kashmir’s Amarnath Shrine is underway.

Assembly elections are scheduled to be held in Jammu and Kashmir later this year. The erstwhile state has been administered by a Lieutenant Governor since 2018.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in the Parliament last week that the fight against terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir is in its last stage. “We are moving with a multi-pronged strategy to eliminate the remaining terror network there,” PM Modi informed the House.

Last month, Home Minister Amit Shah directed the administration and security forces in the Union Territory to adopt similar tactics in the Jammu region as they did in Kashmir to contain terrorism.