Why Kashmir is outraged by Raj Bhawan’s action against top cop Basant Rath
By sacking the popular IGP (Traffic), the J&K Governor has sent a wrong signal at the wrong time.
The restive Kashmir is expressing some anger again, but this time for an unusual cause.
The people of this militancy-ridden region, especially the youth, have stood up in support of a top-ranking police official — who interestingly — is neither from the majoritarian Islamic-faith nor from their native state — Jammu and Kashmir.
The government’s decision to remove the highly-popular officer — Basant Rath, Inspector General of Police (IGP), Traffic, has caused a stir. News reports suggest that his social media spats with ace cricketer Virat Kohli, expressing admiration for former Pakistani skipper Javed Miandad, and calling the newly elected mayor of Srinagar a “cabbage” cost him the key chair.
Widely thought of as one of the most upright officers in the police force, Rath has been 'attached' to the Armed Police. He is succeeded as IGP Traffic by Alok Kumar — who was suspended in 2013 for allegedly demanding graft of Rs 10 crore from a liquor vendor.
Though transfers are routine administrative matters, and the public rarely reacts to such governmental decisions — Rath’s ouster has drawn unusual public concern.
On November 8, Rath had locked horns with the Indian skipper Virat Kohli over the latter's controversial 'leave India' remark in response to a cricket fan liking Australian and English batsmen.
Rath — quite popular on Twitter himself — had reacted thus:
Dear Virat Kohli, I love Javed Miandad. You please keep your cricket patriotism to yourself. And to your advertisement contracts.
— Basant (@KangriCarrier) November 8, 2018
The police officer subsequently took dig at the Srinagar mayor for allegedly undermining the ecological importance of water bodies.
Addressing his maiden press conference after taking charge as the mayor on November 6, Mattu had said that the wetlands could not be dedicated for “bird watching” but were to be explored for construction activities.
Rath — who calls Srinagar his second home — had responded on Twitter.
Wetlands are precious and a vital part of our ecosystem. Only a cabbage will think otherwise.
— Basant (@KangriCarrier) November 8, 2018
This was followed by an endless war of words between the two on the social media, till government ordered attachment of the public servant.
Credited with regulating the traffic in the state within eight months of taking charge, the competent officer has been removed from his post within a week of the Twitter spat.
However, since the news of the issuance of his transfers orders broke on November 13, the social media users have been widely expressing their anger against the government decision. From IAS topper Shah Faesal to the former DGP SP Vaid, to the common man down the lane — everyone has been showering appreciation for Rath.
Since February 2018, when he was posted as the traffic police chief, he has been an instant hit among the masses — mainly for his strict discipline and integrity, both linked to his basic duty -policing. Over the months, his presence on roads — even for inspections — has been drawing crowds, with many jostling with each other to take a selfie with their 'favourite' officer.
In a restive Kashmir — where the police have issued an advisory to its personnel to avoid visiting their hometowns following incidents of attacks by militants on their residences — Rath would even move around in public transport buses without any security.
Even as the Delhi is struggling to win the hearts of the Kashmiri people, this 2000-batch IPS officer from coastal Odisha was already ruling hearts and minds in the trouble-torn regions.
In the past three odd decades in Kashmir, people have often accused the police of being the "brute arm" of the government.
This particular police officer, however, had introduced such a makeover of the "brute arm" that even three days after his sacking, on November 15, a group of Kashmir youth staged a dharna against the government order.
The protesters, who staged a sit-in at Srinagar's press enclave said they didn't personally know him, but support him for his policing.
The unusual public support for Rath equally conveys that Kashmir faces a leadership crises. And, that this leader can even be someone who is not necessarily a Kashmiri Muslim or the one conventionally seeking "resolution to the Kashmir dispute".
However, Governor SP Malik has ended up replacing an officer reportedly known for integrity with the one with an allegedly tainted past — after apparently waging a war against corruption and favouritism.
In a state where public servants — including the ones working in Kashmir University and J&K Bank — often criticise authorities — even the Raj Bhawan — under their own byline on print and on electronic media, Rath has ended up as a scapegoat of his personal views on social media. The top cop was a new inspiration, for the otherwise 'aazadi-seeking' people in Kashmir.
In times of polarisation on communal lines, a Hindu officer from eastern India had emerged as an icon in the Muslim majority northern state. This new bond between the east and north had a message — Kashmir is not an Islamist issue, and that people admire good governance.
But those at the helm could not find that in Basant Rath.