Since 2012, there had been no fatalities among civilians or security personnel due to terrorist activities in Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi. However, this changed on June 9, when terrorists killed nine pilgrims and injured 41 others, signalling a new focus on the Jammu region by Pakistan-sponsored terrorists.
According to data compiled by India Today and the New Delhi-based Institute of Conflict Management (ICM), since January 2023, there have been 42 fatalities among civilians and security forces in 29 terrorism-related incidents in the Jammu region. This is nearly double the number of such deaths in the Kashmir division. The South Asia Terrorism Portal of the ICM indicates that up until June 13, 2024, 24 civilians and security personnel were killed in terrorism-related incidents in the Kashmir districts of Anantnag, Srinagar, Baramulla, Kulgam, Pulwama, and Shopian.
During the same period, 17 civilians were killed in Rajouri district, while 25 security personnel lost their lives in encounters and ambushes in the districts of Poonch, Rajouri, Kathua, Reasi, and Udhampur. Additionally, 53 civilians and 29 members of the Army, CRPF, and Jammu and Kashmir Police sustained injuries in terror-related incidents during this timeframe.
The shift in terrorist strategy to target the Hindu-majority Jammu division became clear when terrorists killed five people in Dhangri village, Rajouri, on January 1, 2023. This attack also included an IED blast that claimed the lives of two children. Subsequently, nearly a dozen armed personnel died in extensive anti-terror operations in the Pir Panjal range.
Another grievous incident occurred in April 2023 when terrorists ambushed and killed five soldiers in Poonch. These attacks have persisted and spread to additional districts following the attack on June 9 this year.
This has led many Indians to question why terrorists are now targeting the Jammu region. One reason is that it has become increasingly difficult for them to operate in Kashmir due to intensified crackdowns on the terror ecosystem and its funding. Additionally, the forests of the Pir Panjal provide a natural hiding space for intruders.
Lt Gen (retired) Syed Ata Hasnain, former commander of the Srinagar-based Chinar Corps, noted, "Obviously, Kashmir is difficult to go to today."
Strategic affairs expert Sushant Sareen commented, "The center of gravity has shifted to this region. We should have woken up to this many years back."
In an interview with India Today TV, Lt Gen Hasnain explained that the terrorists’ attack on the pilgrims’ bus in Reasi was timed to coincide with Narendra Modi's grand oath-taking ceremony in Delhi, intending to send a message.
“One or more layers of (Pakistan’s deep state) decided that they needed to convey a message to the world that while the NDA government may be talking about its achievements, it has not got Jammu and Kashmir under control,” Lt Gen Hasnain said.
