Although the BJP-led Centre is in the midst of the most elaborate ‘anti-terror’ operation ever launched by New Delhi against militants and separatists in Kashmir, the ugly turn taken by the law and order situation in the Srinagar parliamentary constituency while polling was taking place on April 18, Thursday, should be taken as an eyeopener by the policymakers who have been pushing a militaristic agenda to deal with an essentially political problem in Jammu and Kashmir. According to an official statement, dozens of policemen including two middle rung officers were wounded in clashes with anti-election protesters who attacked security forces with stones at dozens of polling stations in the central Kashmir constituency. Interestingly, the statement conveniently mentioned clashes at only those places where police or other security personnel were injured and omitted those areas where day-long clashes took place amid a complete shutdown but there were no injuries on the side of security forces. The situation took this turn at a time when the so called ‘financiers’ and ‘mentors’ of the separatists and militants have been held in a series of charges ranging from waging war against the country to raising illicit funds, and thrown behind bars in jails outside Kashmir. In the words of the officials, the ‘secessionist’ elements in Kashmir have been stopped from fanning anti-national ideology. With the mass arrest spree of activists and leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami, Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front and other ‘anti-national’ groups and elements, we are being told that all is going to be well in Kashmir. No one other than the prime minister of the country on April 18 declared that the militancy in Jammu and Kashmir has been confined to two and half districts. Interestingly, the PM’s statement came on the same day when a dismal 14 percent voter turnout was recorded in the second phase of Lok Sabha elections in Kashmir. Also, after a brief period of calm, militancy may be on revival trajectory in Kishtwar where a senior RSS affiliate and his security officer were gunned down. So if the situation has normalised and all the troublemakers identified by the security agencies have been incarcerated, why aren’t the effects of this crackdown being felt on the ground? It is because the issue in Kashmir is essentially political and it is time to catch the bull by its horns.