On Wednesday, the Indian Army conducted one of the largest combing operations in Kashmir, reported the Indian Express (IE). “A cordon operation of this magnitude has not been undertaken in Kashmir in the last 15 years,” an official from the army told IE. The operation was an attempt to “exert pressure on militants and force them to move out of their comfort zone”.

According to the report, the operation involved close to 4,000 personnel including eight companies of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), four battalions of Rashtriya Rifles and five platoons of the Jammu and Kashmir police with 30 women constables and Indian Reserve Police.

The army conducted house-to-house searches in Sugan, Turkwangam, Heff, Shirmal and other villages where many people were suspected to have joined militant outfits. During the operation, the personnel involved in the operation were allegedly attacked by militants near Imam Sahib area killing a civilian and injuring four soldiers.

Speaking to reporters in Delhi, Army Chief Bipin Rawat said that the operations were carried out to bring peace to the valley. “The combing operation is going on as some banks were looted and some policemen have been killed. It has been launched to ensure that the situation is brought under control. These operations are carried out regularly,” he said. Another senior official from the army told IE that the operation had been planned a month back and the delay in the operation was due to Anantnag by-poll which was scheduled for May 25. “Once the bypoll was cancelled, police and the CRPF have moved from ‘law and order mode’ to ‘CT (counter-terrorist) mode’. It has little to do with any immediate provocation,” the official said.

Locals expressed discomfort at being subjected to such operations. “Soldiers came to our village around midnight. In the morning, dozens of soldiers and policemen entered my house and searched every room. They conducted similar searches in other houses of our village,” Gulzar Ahmed, a villager from Sugan was quoted as saying.