Dear Officers and Jawans of Jammu and Kashmir Police,
As we move into the new year with a sense of joy and hope, we need to take a few moments to reflect on the year that has gone by and make an assessment as to where we stand, so that we set our priorities absolutely right.
Dear officers and Jawans, upholding the sovereignty and integrity of our great nation is at the heart of every Indian citizen. While there is no doubt that each and every citizen is ready to do their best for this sacred cause, their hopes always lie first with the police among other security forces of the nation.
With confidence, as also with a great sense of pride, let us assure each and every citizen residing in Jammu and Kashmir and beyond that J&K Police has remained, and will continue to remain, at the forefront to uphold the sovereignty, integrity and the honour of Bharat. More than 1600 J&K police personnel have made the supreme sacrifice of laying down their lives at the altar of duty. This proud professional force has given enormous sacrifices to get J&K out of the clutches of sponsored terrorism and ensuring an enabling environment for fostering peace and development. I pay homage to each one of these Bravehearts who did not cower down under intimidation while performing their duties whether in active combats or while investigating cases or protecting lives and guarding properties or maintaining order on streets. They did not flinch when it came to the choice of living or attaining martyrdom in the service of the motherland. I also salute the family members of these fallen heroes for their sacrifices and resilience. To the mother and father who lost their son, the wife who lost her husband, the child who lost his father, to the sister who lost her brother, I would say that the nation salutes you and I assure you that we, the JKP family, stand with you always.
My dear fellow policemen and policewomen, we are a unique police force in the country and perhaps among all security forces in a way that we have the onerous responsibilities of fighting terrorists and simultaneously of maintaining law and order on streets, of battling the terrorists with guns and those without, combating the enemy who is invisible and also the enemy within. We are also very challengingly placed because we have to fight terrorism and crime with minimum loss to the innocent. While undertaking this joint national and societal fight alongside other partners we have the difficult challenge of doing it within the constraints of law, under the gaze of new age media and our accountability to the courts and quasi-judicial bodies and answerability to law making bodies and elected representatives in them. I am acutely aware about the pressures of pull and push you and your families have faced in the past, and continue to face in varying degrees even today, in the villages and towns and neighbourhoods you live, and at the hands of the bullies and goons working secretly on behalf of the terrorist and secessionist networks sometimes under the guise of ‘respectables’.
While I and all members of the senior leadership of JKP commit ourselves and solemnly affirm that we will do everything possible to fight any attempt to vilify you only because you are a member of JK police, by constantly exposing their duplicitous behaviour, I would urge every single member of J&K police to don the mantle of the fearless, upright and incorruptible neighbourhood friend always available to the innocent law-abiding citizens without coming under fear or seeking favour. Let us remember we are the law keepers and the adversary is the law breaker. No one else, but J&K police alone is responsible to listen to the complaints of the common innocent man when he comes to us as a victim. No one knows better than J&K police when it comes to making a difference between the innocent and the offender and between the offenders who are masterminds and the offenders who are used as pawns by the masterminds. It is the officers and men of Jammu and Kashmir police alone know that they are the first responders in matters of establishing truth and upholding rule of law. The enemy and those falsely critical of us must know that while we do policing as a livelihood, we are not available for sale. Policing is an article of faith for members of Jammu and Kashmir police.
The fact that J&K Police has been relentlessly pursuing the goal of uprooting the terrorist ecosystem can be gauged by the fact that in 2023, 55 foreign and 21 local terrorists including top commanders of different terror outfits were neutralized, 89 terror modules & 18 terror hideouts were busted and 291 terror suspects/associates arrested.
The valour displayed and the sacrifices made by our officers and Jawans do not go unrecognised either by the Government of India or by the Government of J&K, UT. It is a matter of pride for me to note that SgCt Rohit Kumar’s martyrdom was recognized with Kirti Chakra and the supreme sacrifices of SgCt. Safiullah Qadri and Const Mudasir Ahmad Sheikh was honoured with the Shaurya Chakra on last Independence Day (2023). Eighty of our JKP personnel were awarded gallantry medals by the President of India. As many as 242 officers and men were awarded gallantry medals at the J&K government level by the Hon’ble LG.
Dear officers, policemen and policewomen of this proud force, I extend my hearty congrats to you for playing a lead role for realising the vision of ‘Naya Kashmir’ as envisaged by Honourable Prime Minister. The record low number of active terrorists, successful hosting of mega events like G20, Tiranga Yatra, Air Show and Shri Amaranth Ji Yatra, all point towards the honest and relentless efforts made by officers and men of J&K police in complete synergy with other organs and departments of the government.
Notwithstanding the progress made, let me remind you all that there is no room for complacency. We still face challenges. Terrorism is down but not completely wiped out. We just cannot afford to lower the guard. The enemy is and will continue to try different tactics to derail peace. We have to defeat any such move before it takes roots.
Remember we are already in the era of AI warfare and this threat is going to get stronger in the near future. So, while we continue to improve upon the traditional methods and practices of maintaining peace as well as counter terrorism efforts, we need to keep honing our skills in technology and AI backed policing with an urgency.
As mentioned earlier, while there has to be zero tolerance towards any activity or person posing threat to the peace and stability of the nation and safety of the local communities and their fear-free living, we have to show real empathy and compassion for our fellow peace-loving citizens.
Till yesterday, the challenge was to dismantle the terror eco-system in which significant progress has been achieved, and now the new challenge is not to let it take roots or re-surface even marginally in any form. We are facing the challenge of drug menace and narco-terrorism. It is a security threat as well as a social evil. We need to work relentlessly to uproot it. We owe it to the society that J&K police shall keep our future generations free from this menace. Taking along the religious leaders, community elders, local grassroot elected representatives and village-block-district level officers of the civil administration, I am sure our collaborative efforts will ensure an environment where our young generation will be filled with the hope and promise of a prosperous future where he or she is genuinely free from bullying and intimidation of any type from any quarter.
We need to be fully prepared to ensure a peaceful environment so that investments take place, young men and women can setup startups to create wealth and employment, new enterprises are established that nurture dreams and incubate innovations and an environment where ordinary young men and women without pedigree, but committed to transparent governance and wellbeing of their electorate, feel free to vote as voters and compete with each other to be voted to power as candidates without the fear of the lurking gun of the separatists and the soft separatists used through the hapless terrorists.
As we step into the New Year, we reaffirm our commitment for safeguarding the people of J&K and for upholding the values enshrined in our Constitution.
Wishing you and your families a year of safety, prosperity, and collective success.
Jai Hind
R.R. Swain, IPS
Director General of Police, J&K