Students clash with army in Kashmir: Why govt is losing the plot in J&K

Govt needs new ideas and solutions rather than increasingly violent crackdowns

The Army chief’s weekend briefing for National Security Advisor Ajit Doval over poll-related violence in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) suggests that the government is sufficiently worried about the unravelling law and order situation in a state in which the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is a junior partner in government. But it is worth wondering whether South Block has worked out viable options for dealing with the almost unbroken cycle of violence in J&K since the July 2016 killing of Burhan Wani, a young militant and propagandist associated with the Hizbul Mujahideen. The 7 per cent voter turnout in the