Once romanticised, militancy again moves back to secrecy in Kashmir

Till his killing on this day in 2016, Burhan Wani uploaded dozens of pictures and videos to glamorise and attract youth towards militancy

Five years after the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani, militancy in Kashmir has once again moved back to secrecy from the heydays of glamorisation on social media.

It was in the spring of 2015 that young commander Burhan, face of tech-savvy militants in the valley, took to social media to influence the minds of youth in Kashmir and attract them towards militancy. Marking the arrival of new-age militancy in Kashmir, Burhan posed with 12 associates, carrying assault rifles and with faces unmasked.

By posting pictures and videos of his outings in the woods with his coterie, he made militancy an attractive proposition for youngsters caught in the throes of abuse and perpetual violence, drawing more and more recruits. Till his killing on this day in 2016, Burhan uploaded dozens of pictures and videos to glamorise and attract youth towards militancy.

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The trend did not stop even after his killing as his successors, including Riyaz Naikoo, continued to use social media for recruitment and romanticising militancy. This paved the way for a popular wave where militants gained the status of societal leaders. Burhan’s funeral attracted thousands from across Kashmir and the region instantly slid into five-month long unrest and street protests in which nearly 100 protesters were killed.

However, since the last year or so, Kashmir insurgency’s days in the sun are apparently over as the militants have again withdrawn into the shadows. They have abandoned a key tool in their arsenal: the social media that propelled them to the centre stage, captivating the public.

On July 5, five Lashkar-e-Taiba militants, including its district commander, were killed in a gun-battle with security forces in Hanjin Rajpora area of south Kashmir’s Pulwama district. None of the five slain militants had featured in any viral videos or pictures.

“In the first six months of this year, at least 40 local youths have joined militancy, while over 40 others remain missing, many of whom are suspected of having joined the militancy. But unlike the past, most of these new recruits have not announced their joining on social media,” a senior police officer told DH.

He said from 2015 to 2019, announcing the joining of militancy on social media had become a signature style of local militants in Kashmir. “But as social media accounts have come on the radar of security agencies, militants have realised that they are being traced online which may have pushed them back into secrecy,” the officer added.