SRINAGAR: Within days after the conclusion of Lok Sabha elections, in a fresh crackdown by the security agencies in Jammu and Kashmir on June 8, four government employees were terminated from their service for “anti-national” activities, residences of militants were sealed and a school teacher suspended for criticizing the government online.
The employees targeted included two lower-rung police officials, a teacher, and an employee of the Jal Shakti Department. An official handout circulated by the local news-gathering agencies in Srinagar said that the employees were terminated under some Sections of Article 311 of the Constitution of India “for their involvement in anti-national activities”. The terminations were ordered based on the reports filed by the security agencies and without holding any formal inquiry.
The government order said, “The activities of these employees had come to the adverse notice of law enforcement and intelligence agencies, as they found them involved in activities prejudicial to the interests of the State, such as involvement in terror-related activities.”
Militancy-related involvement
The sacked employees have been identified as Abdul Rehman Dar, a selection grade constable in the police department from Larmooh, in Pulwama; Ghulam Rasool Bhat, a constable from Lalgam, in Pulwama; Shabeer Ahmad Wani, a teacher in the education department from Bungam, in Kulgam; and Anayatullah Shah Pirzada, assistant lineman in the Jal Shakti department from Watergam, in Baramulla.
“Dar was involved in not only carrying illegal arms and ammunition from one place to another for their delivery to the terrorists, but also providing camouflage uniform cloth and other material to them. Bhat was also involved in carrying illegal arms and ammunition from one place to another for delivery to the terrorists. He was linked to the eco-system through a network of Over-Ground Workers (OGW), operating at the behest of terrorists based in Pakistan,” the government order said.
The order said that Mr. Wani, a government teacher, was an active member of the banned Jamat-e-Islami (JeI). “He played a substantial role in strengthening JeI and creating a network of people among JeI sympathisers. Various FIRs have been registered against him because of his direct involvement in inciting and leading an unlawful assembly of mob instigating rioting and violence in D.H. Pora, during the 2016 unrest,” the order said.
‘Zero tolerance to anti-national activities’
In its order, the Lieutenant Governor’s administration said, “Wani continued to be a hardcore OGW of banned terror outfits, in particular the Hizbul Mujahideen, and was collecting information for facilitating attacks.”
The order said that Mr. Pirzada was a terrorist associate and OGW of the Al-Badr Mujahideen. “He had direct association with dreaded terrorists like Yousuf Baloch and Tameem, who were the commanders of Al-Badr Mujahideen, operating at different times in Kashmir. He has been involved in various FIRs pertaining to the recovery of satellite phone, hand grenades etc communicating with the terrorists of Al-Badr Mujahideen based in Pakistan,” the government order said.
The order said that the administration has adopted “a zero tolerance policy towards anti-national elements taking advantage of being in government service”.
Teacher suspended for critical video
In Doda district, a teacher was suspended for criticizing government policies. Officials said that Fiaz Ahmed had highlighted the bad road conditions and “shabby accommodation” of Government Middle School, Draman, in a video that was widely shared across the region.
A two-member committee found his explanation “not satisfactory” before he was suspended. All government employees in J&K are barred from criticising the government on social media.
J&K police also attached the properties of two militants in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district. An official said that the properties, including eight kanals and four marlas of land that belonged to two terror handlers based in Pakistan, were attached. These handlers were identified as Jaleel Ahmad Rather and Mohammad Ashraf Mir, both residents of Tilgam, Baramulla.
57 dismissals till March 2024
Jammu and Kashmir administration has terminated at least 57 government employees, including individuals holding various influential positions such as a college principal, professors, a Public Relations Officer of University of Kashmir, police personnel, and doctors from their positions over the past two years on allegations of involvement in anti-national activities till the end of March this year.
Among the dismissed employees till the end of March this year, 21 were associated with the Education Department, comprising 13 school employees and eight university employees, including senior professors, lecturers, and principals. Additionally, from the Jammu and Kashmir Police, high-ranking officers, including deputy superintendents of police, were among the 11 individuals sacked. Furthermore, three senior doctors were among the six individuals dismissed in the Health Department.
Other departments seeing dismissals include the Revenue Department, Public Works, Jal Shakti, Rural Development, Agriculture, Power Development, Forest, Prisons, Industries and Commerce, and Social Welfare departments. Notably, employees from institutions such as the Industrial Training Institute, Sher-i-Kashmir International Conference Centre, J&K Bank, and the state cooperative bank also faced termination.
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