South Asia Terrorism Portal
Punjab: Terrorised Minorities Tushar Ranjan Mohanty Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management
On January 11, 2021, a four-year-old Christian girl Eshal was abducted, raped and killed in Malkhanwala village in Waras Pura tehsil (revenue unit) of Faisalabad District.
On January 9, 2021, the dead bodies of two Christian girls were found in a sewer near Makhan Colony in the Kahna area of Lahore. They were abducted and killed by Muhammad Mumtaz and Naeem when the girls refused to convert to Islam.
According to partial data compiled by the Institute for Conflict Management (ICM), Punjab has already recorded three incidents of attacks on religious minorities resulting in three deaths in 2021, so far (data till February 14).
During 2020, there was a considerable increase in incidents of the persecution of minorities in comparison to previous year. At least 37 such incidents were recorded, resulting in six deaths and 12 persons injured in Punjab in 2020, as against seven incidents in 2019. No casualty was reported in 2019.
Scores of women from minorities were forcibly converted to Islam. During an online consultation on “Forced conversion complaints and religious freedom” organized on November 28, 2020, by the Center for Social Justice (CSJ), a Pakistan-based organisation, CSJ Director Peter Jacob noted that there had been a rise in incidents of forced conversion of women, and specifically of underage girls from the religious minority communities.
Moreover, minorities are also bearing the brunt of the ‘blasphemy law’. On February 4, 2021, CSJ released data for incidents between 1987 and December 2020, which showed that at least 1,855 people had been charged with offences related to religion, Section 295-B of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), (blasphemy against the Holy Quran) was introduced in 1982, and Section 295-C, PPC (desecration against Prophet Muhammad) in 1986. Punjab has had the most blasphemy complaints (76 per cent of all complaints), followed by Sindh (19 per cent). As of December 2020, Punjab’s prisons were holding 337 prisoners for blasphemy, both those convicted and those awaiting trial. The largest number of inmates are in the Lahore district jail (60). Some of the prominent blasphemy-linked incidents in Punjab in 2020 include:
Adding more weaponry to the armoury of religious bigots, the Punjab Assembly passed the Punjab Tahaffuz-i-Bunyad-i-Islam Bill 2020 on July 22, 2020. The law makes the publication of objectionable material punishable by a maximum of five years in prison and up to PKR 500,000 fine. In its editorial of July 29, 2020, Dawn noted,
Earlier, on July 24, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) in a release asserted that HRCP was
Meanwhile, terrorism-linked fatalities continued to decline in Punjab, as in the rest of the country. Fatalities fell from 28 (12 civilians, nine Security Force, SF, personnel and seven terrorists) in 2019 to 16 in 2020 (three civilians and 13 terrorists). At peak, there 392 overall fatalities in Punjab in 2009. A high of 296 civilian fatalities was recorded in 2010.
However, the growing presence of religious extremists/fundamentalists and the state’s encouragement of such elements, is worrisome. These elements have the potential to provide a breeding ground for more violent and terrorist formations.
Moreover, there are no signs of genuine efforts to tighten the grip against terrorist groups such as the Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), the front organisation of Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), and the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) – the ‘foreign oriented’ terrorist groupings that have strong bases in the Province. The leadership elements of these outfits continue to comfortable enjoy state hospitality, despite being convicted in several terrorism-related cases – the convictions primarily forced by international and particularly Financial Action Task Force (FATF) pressure. JuD chief Hafiz Saeed who was officially arrested in July 2019, and should have been servicing his sentence in jail, continues to live at his Johar Town house in Lahore, from where he continues to freely run his terrorist organisation. Most recently, on December 25, 2020, an Anti-Terrorism Court sentenced Hafiz Saeed to 15 years and six months imprisonment, without significant impact on his living conditions. Similarly, JeM chief Masood Azhar, who is facing several cases of terrorist funding, lives in a "safe place" in his native town – Bahawalpur. All proof enough to further establish that the arrests and sentences are superficial and only intended to bring Pakistan out of Financial Action Task Force’s ‘grey list’.
Meanwhile, the global terrorist Islamic State (Daesh) remains a challenge. On May 17, 2020, Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) personnel killed four Daesh terrorists, while another three managed to escape during a security operation carried out near Azam Chowk in Bahawalpur city (Bahawalpur District). The CTD spokesperson confirmed that the terrorists were planning to carry out an attack at a religious minority’s place of worship.
Former Minister of Interior, Senator Rehman Malik, in his column in The Nation on September 24, 2020, wrote,
Despite Prime Minister Imran Khan’s false claim of a safe Pakistan for all minorities in ‘Naya Pakistan’, persecution of religious minorities continues in Punjab and across Pakistan. The growing radicalisation which is encouraged by the Government has undermined the achievements reflected in declining terrorism-linked fatalities and incidents. Rising extremism, moreover, threatens future the security in the province and the country.
Maharashtra: Deceptive Lull Indrajit Sharma Research Associate, Institute for Conflict Management
On January 5, 2021, Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres killed a civilian, identified as Vinod Madavi (25), on suspicion of being a ‘Police informer’ at Kothi Tola village in the Bhamragad tehsil (revenue unit) of Gadchiroli District. The Maoists barged into Madavi’s house, forcibly took him away to a forested area and hacked him to death.
The previous civilian killing in the State was reported on July 10, 2020, when CPI-Maoist cadres killed Munshi Tado (28), after accusing him of being a ‘Police informer’ at Bhamragad Village in Gadchiroli District.
Through 2020, four civilian fatalities were recorded. There were 19 fatalities in this category in 2019. Civilian fatalities, a key index of security, thus registered a 78.94 per cent decline.
The Security Forces (SFs) secured a much stronger position on the ground, with SF fatalities falling dramatically from 15 in 2019 to three in 2020. Maoist fatalities also fell from 17 to nine. The SF:Maoist kill ratio worked out at 1:3 in 2020, a significant improvement over 2019, at 1:1.13. Meanwhile, at least 10 Maoists were arrested in 2020, in addition to 12 such arrests in 2019. Three Maoists surrendered in 2020, in addition to 34 such surrenders in 2019.
In terms of overall fatalities, according to partial data collated by the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), Maharashtra recorded 16 fatalities through 2020 as compared to 51 fatalities in 2019, registering a decline of 68.62 per cent. So far, just one (civilian) fatality has been recorded in 2021 (data till February 14).
Other parameters of Maoist-linked violence also indicate significant improvement in the security situation. Overall Maoist-linked incidents fell from 60 in 2019 to 26 in 2020. Incidents of killing fell from 22 in 2019 to 11 in 2020.
Fatalities in 2020 were recorded from one District – Gadchiroli, while two Districts – Gadchiroli (50 fatalities) and Gondia (one fatality) – recorded fatalities in 2019.
On January 28, 2021, the Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, during his visit to Gadchiroli District, stated,
The Minister also granted an increase in the special allowance for the C-60 commandos, working in Naxal-affected areas, from INR 4,000 to INR 8,000 per month.
As part of the anti-Naxal campaign, on December 15, 2020, the Maharashtra Home Department sanctioned INR 500 million to strengthen infrastructure across the State. Out of the sanctioned amount, a first instalment of INR 56.2 million was released to build 20 additional Police Stations in Gadchiroli District.
Moreover, to consolidate improvements in the security scenario, the State Police have undertaken several initiatives focusing on the empowerment of tribal masses in the affected areas. including the Gadchiroli District.
According to a February 5, 2021, report, as a part of its ‘Agri Tourism’ project, the Gadchiroli Police flagged off a bus with 42 women from the Maoist-affected Kotmi and Etawahi villages of Etapalli taluka in the District. The project envisages empowering farmers with the knowledge of best farming practices. The project is aimed at poverty alleviation of a population that the Maoists target as their potential recruitment base. Gadchiroli Police had earlier sent villagers, especially students, on tours with a view to expose them to government-propelled development and growth elsewhere in the State. However, the Police have broadened their concept to theme-based tours, incorporating exposure to best farming practices.
According to an October 14, 2020, report, Police enrolled as many as 95 farmers in groups of 15 to 20 per batch from villages of Pomke Yerkad, Murumgaon, Savargaon, Katezari and Gyarapatti in the Maoist-affected and tribal areas of Gadchiroli, to teach them modern farming techniques. The initiative has been taken by the Gadchiroli Police in order to ensure that government benefits reach sensitive areas that have been living under the Naxal threat. Ankit Goyal, the Superintendent of Police (SP) of Gadchiroli, thus observed,
Nonetheless, the improved security situation in the State does not imply that the Maoist threat is over.
Worryingly, three Districts – Gondia, Nagpur, and Gadchiroli – in Maharashtra fall into what is designated as the CPI-Maoist’s ‘Maharashtra-Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh (MMC) zone’, where the Naxalites have been engaged in efforts to set up a base similar to ‘Dandakaranya (DK) Special Zonal Committee (DKSZC)’ in the Bastar Division of Chhattisgarh. Establishment of such a ‘zone’ would make the area suitable for guerrilla warfare.
According to a June 15, 2020, report, the ‘MMC zone’ is presently headed by a ‘central committee (CC)’ member of CPI-Maoist – Milind Baburao Teltumbde aka Deepak Teltumbde aka Jeeva – and he has been entrusted to create a new territory that allows Maoists easy passage from east to west and vice-versa, and a safe haven for senior rebel leaders. The report further revealed that Teltumbde had been visiting the ‘MMC zone’ regularly and had recruited about 200 locals for a ‘commando unit’, called ‘Vistaar Dalam’ (expansion squad), of ‘MMC’.
Moreover, a document seized by Gadchiroli Police, during an anti-Maoist operation (date unspecified) Maoist suggests that the Maoists have no plans to shift their base from the forested and hilly Abujhmadh region (Abujhmadh literally means 'unknown terrain') close to the 'MMC zone'. The seized document stated, that "last blood would be shed at Abujhmadh", implying the Maoists' plan to make their last stand in the region. Gadchiroli covers parts of Abujhmadh, which remains a forest fortress of the Maoists, from where 'CC' members manage the rebel movement, and the apex body members meet their various formations, to plan and strategize during their plenum. Former Gadchiroli SP, Shailesh Balkawade, thus opined,
Of late, the alleged use of drones by Maoists has been one of the latest challenges faced by Police in affected areas bordering Chhattisgarh. On at least two occasions (September 14, 2020, and October 10, 2020), drones were sighted hovering over sensitive areas including remote Police outposts in Gadchiroli District, causing the Police to raise an alarm.
A recent report on December 9, 2020, observes that the 'Central Military Commission (CMC)' of CPI-Maoist issued a letter to its cadres, urging them to the celebrate' 20th anniversary of its armed wing - Peoples Liberation Guerrilla Army (PLGA) - from December 2020 to December 2021. The Maoist leadership also asked its cadres and front/mass organizations to take up "propaganda, resistance, and consolidation activities for one year according to the conditions of various States." Commenting on the development, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Sandip Patil, Gadchiroli Range, declared,
Three Districts – Chandrapur, Gadchiroli and Gondia – out of the State's 36 Districts still find place among the 90 Districts in 11 States considered Left-Wing Extremism-affected by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA). These 90 Districts are covered under the UMHA’s Security Related Expenditure scheme. Besides, Gadchiroli falls among the ‘30 worst Maoist-affected’ Districts identified across seven States in the country.
Meanwhile, despite some of the promising security and developmental components, there remain certain significant loopholes in the capacities and deployment of security personnel in the State. According to Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) data released as on January 1, 2020, although The Maharashtra’s Police-population ratio, at 174.87 per 100,000, is significantly higher than the national average of 155.78, it remains substantially lower than the minimum of 220:100,000 regarded as desirable for 'peacetime policing'. The sanctioned strength of the States’ Police is 243,326, but 214,776 personnel were in position, yielding a vacancy of 28,550 (11.73 per cent). Further, the number of Policemen per 100 square kilometres for Maharashtra is 69.80, as against the sanctioned strength of 79.08. In addition, the sanctioned strength of the apex Indian Police Service (IPS) Officers in the State is 317, but just 259 officers were in position, with 58 posts vacant, considerably wakening executive supervision of the Force.
The Maoists are currently engaged in creating new passages and corridors in their effort to engineer a resurgence in the State and the wider region. Sustained operational focus, coupled with capacity building measures by the State government, are a must for the SFs to consolidate the gains achieved in past years.
Weekly Fatalities: Major Conflicts in South Asia February 8-14, 2021
Civilians
Security Force Personnel
NS
Total
AFGHANISTAN
INDIA
Jammu and Kashmir
INDIA (Left-Wing Extremism)
Bihar
Madhya Pradesh
INDIA (Total)
PAKISTAN
Balochistan
KP
Sindh
PAKISTAN (Total)
Taliban controls 52 per cent of territory in Afghanistan, says a survey: A survey by Pajhwok Afghan News Agency shows that the Taliban controls at least 52 per cent of territory in Afghanistan while 59 per cent of the population lives in areas under the Government's control. The survey was conducted between November 30, 2020 to February 3, 2021. During the survey, 1,266 people were interviewed through questionnaires and telephonic conversations. Tolo News, February 13, 2021.
Taliban's 'hard stance' not helping situation, says Chairman of High Council for Afghan Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah: The chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation (HCNR), Abdullah Abdullah, on February 10 said that the hard stance adopted by Taliban in the ongoing Doha negotiations is not helping the situation. Chairman Abdullah said "At this moment, the Taliban has taken a hard stance, which unfortunately is not helping the situation." Tolo News, February 12, 2021.
Targeted attacks by Taliban and Daesh has increased both within and outside Kabul, says SIGAR report: The US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) said in a report released on January 30 that the Taliban and Daesh have increased targeted assassinations outside of Kabul and that the Taliban attacks in the Afghan capital are on the rise. "Five journalists were killed in the last two months of 2020, as well as a number of civil-society leaders," the report says. Tolo News, February 11, 2021.
'Taliban continue to resort to extreme violence', says Central Command commander General Kenneth McKenzie: Commander of the United States (US) Central Command, General Kenneth McKenzie in conversation with the Middle East Institute said Taliban continue to indulge in violence in Afghanistan. General McKenzie said, "The Taliban continue to resort to extreme violence and targeted killings across the country and frequent attacks on the Afghan forces. While they have mostly avoided attacks on US and coalition units, the level of violence is just simply too high and so that is an action that we look at". The Khaama Press, February 9, 2021.