Security forces and police are conducting a “Census” in Jammu and Kashmir, which seeks to know, in addition to names and phone numbers, whether a family member has terror links, has visited a foreign country, the latitude-longitude of the property, whether CCTV cameras are installed on the premises, and whether any encounters have occurred at the house. For the last week, the police have sent a one-page unsigned document labelled “Census Form” and “Village X Ray” to every family in Srinagar.
The form has parts such as terror linkages, encounter, family member settled abroad, travel to foreign nation, photograph of the house, photograph of the head of family, photograph of other family members, car registration number, Aadhaar number, mobile number, etc. Residents have been requested to fill out the form and submit it to the local police station.
“All the households in our locality have been directed to fill up the questionnaire and return it to the local police station. It has worried me but we are helpless also,” the resident, who wished to remain anonymous fearing reprisal from authorities, told The Wire. According to a government source, the ‘census’ exercise will “minimise property damage and protect locals” in the event of a shootout between security forces and terrorists or a law-and-order issue.
Previous Incidents of Census
For decades, the Army has conducted similar drives in rural regions of Kashmir, where houses are alphanumerically tagged by troops from the local unit of Rashtriya Rifles, the Army’s counter-terrorism squad, and house owners are cautioned not to erase the marks. The CRPF conducted a similar study in portions of Kashmir last year, reportedly upon the orders of the Union Home Ministry. This year, the central force was apparently directed to collect information in their separate areas of operation.
A resident of Srinagar stated on the condition of anonymity that they have previously filled out such papers, but this time the information requested are extensive. The news follows the December 21 incident in the Poonch-Rajouri district of Jammu, in which four troops were murdered in an ambush by suspected militants. Following the event, three residents detained by the Army for questioning turned up dead with numerous injuries. According to army reports, residents were sheltering the terrorists. While officials have characterised these exercises as necessary for keeping an eye on problems, many Kashmiri residents and rights activists have expressed concerns about invasions of privacy and data exploitation.
