Pakistan has widespread support in Occupied Kashmir, admits ex-Indian general

Lt Gen (retd) DS Hoda insists Indian forces carried out ‘surgical strike’ in Azad Kashmir

A retired Indian general has admitted that Pakistan has widespread support in Jammu and Kashmir – a disputed Himalayan region which, New Delhi calls its integral part.

Lieutenant General (retd) DS Hoda has also conceded that there is no military solution to the Kashmir issue which has bedevilled relations between Pakistan and India since their independence from the British colonial rule in 1947.

“This [Kashmir] is an internal and multi-dimensional issue. There is also a lot of support for Pakistan. The [Indian] army’s role is to bring the security situation at a level conducive for political activity,” Hoda told BBC Urdu in an interview.



Delhi accuses Pakistan of being behind a long-drawn separatist insurgency in the disputed region – a charge Islamabad vehemently denies.

Gen Hoda also spoke about a so-called surgical strike that Indian forces claimed to have carried out to neutralise militant bases in Azad Kashmir last year.

The so-called ‘surgical strikes’ had supposedly been carried under the supervision of Gen Hoda, who was then commander of the northern command of Indian army.

“Detailed consultations were held before the ‘surgical strike’ and we concluded that it would not trigger an all-out war with Pakistan. We pored over the plan and then decided to take some risk,” he said.



“I cannot go into details, but a lot of discussions were held. It [surgical strike] was not so simple … You just cannot think about conducting [such] strikes on a whim. We [spent] many days preparing [for surgical strike].”

After the Indian army claimed carrying out the surgical strike, the opposition Congress party insisted similar actions had also been carried out in the past under its watch, which were never made public.

Gen Hoda agreed similar strikes had been carried out in the past. “After these actions (at that time), we could exercise the option of plausible deniability. This time it was different, the government formally announced the action.”



Asked how India benefited from the surgical strike, he said: “We wanted to deliver a message that we can enter your territory and carry out such actions. Pakistan did not acknowledge the strike. This resulted in a kind of small psychological and moral win.”

He said that every situation was different. “Not necessarily you carry out a cross-border action all the time,” he said. “Similar actions could possibly be carried out in future – but in a different manner.”

Gen Hoda also acknowledged widespread resentment against India and its army among the Kashmiri people. “This is a major headache. Carrying out an army operation [Kashmir] has become a major challenge,” he said.

Kashmiris have long demanded that the Indian government lift the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) which gives its troops unbridled freedom to unleash a reign of terror in the disputed valley.

Gen Hoda said AFSPA removal would deprive the army of the authority to carry out ‘appropriate action’.