Young guns turn poster boys of militancy in J&K Valley

Khalid, Burhan's elder brother was allegedly picked up during an operation by the security forces in 2011 and was made to do <g data-gr-id="43">squats</g>. Burhan, then about 15 years old, took it to heart and turned a militant, whose name now spells terror in <g data-gr-id="37">Tral</g>, the new training ground for terrorists in the restive valley. 

Khalid was gunned down by security forces two years back when he had gone to meet Burhan, who managed to escape.

Innumerable images of Burhan and posts extolling him were uploaded on social networking sites, which the security agencies have got <g data-gr-id="33">removed</g> but that has not erased his popularity.

"This town has had a presence of banned Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists always and recently Burhan Wani has emerged as the poster boy for the terror outfit," said a senior police officer.

Irshad Ahmed Ganai, 21, is another man about whom similar stories abound. From Kakapora in Pulwama district, Irshad, who is unemployed, took to arms a few years ago and rose through the ranks to become a commander of Lashkar-e-Taiba. 

The law enforcement agencies rubbish the "Bollywood-style" tale of circumstances, in which Burhan took to arms, saying he had Jamaat-e-Islami background and militancy was only a natural progression.

<g data-gr-id="47">Tral</g>, 12km from the National Highway connecting the Valley with the rest of India, has emerged as the new training ground for various terror outfits in south Kashmir. Boys do not need to cross over to Pakistan <g data-gr-id="45">any more</g> and get to know the basics of militancy and arms training in the thick jungles of Bujkamla surrounding the sleepy town, say police. They are sometimes taken to forests in the higher reaches of Shopian too.

Burhan and Irshad, with an appeal among the youth of the region, are now helping swell the militant ranks, a development close watchers of Kashmir feel, carry grim portents for the valley.  Some in the security establishments, speaking on the condition of anonymity, say the situation may worsen in the absence of an aggressive clampdown on militancy. 

"A few weeks back an operation was chalked out on the drawing board to apprehend some local youths. However, in the absence of an order the plan remained confined to papers," a police officer said.

Flanked by river Jehlum on the west and dense Bujkamla forest in the east, <g data-gr-id="42">Tral</g> was always considered a transit point for terror groups who infiltrated from north Kashmir before fanning out to the south.