NEW DELHI: National Conference patron Farooq Abdullah, whose party is in favour of doing away with the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (Afspa) from parts of Jammu and Kashmir, said the Army was not the master of the people of the state and its job was to guard the border to contain terrorist infiltration.
Describing Afspa as a 'draconian law', he said local police and CRPF were capable enough to handle the security responsibilities from areas where the Act was likely to be lifted. He also made it clear that there was no proposal to withdraw Afspa from bordering belts or areas in the Valley where terrorists were still in large numbers.
"Army is not our master. Just remember that. People of Jammu and Kashmir are masters of the state. Army is not the master. Army is only to protect. They will continue to protect the interest of nation," the National Conference leader said in an interview to a television news channel. Questioning the role of the Army in the state, he asked how terrorists managed to enter the state if the Army was successful in dealing with the situation. "What do they handle? If they are able to handle, how the hell do these terrorists come?" he said when asked if the political leadership of the state was better equipped to tackle the situation.
However, to a question whether he was hinting at infiltrations being the result of the Army's failure, he said, "its not the question of Army. It's the failure of entire system. It's intelligence failure. We have intelligence. We have internal intelligence, we have external intelligence. There must be a failure somewhere if they are coming in."
He said it was not a war between the Army and the Abdullahs and that issues like Afspa were of concern for all, the Army and civilians.
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