In its proxy war against India in the Kashmir valley, Islamabad is using narco-terrorism as a new weapon in order to target youths and provide funding for terrorist activities supported by Pakistan.
According to Ayjaz Wani’s writing in the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), Kashmir has seen an alarming rise in narco-terrorism, and religious leaders’ apathy and silence on the subject have only made matters worse.
Heroin abuse has increased by 2000% in Kashmir Valley during the past five years. Pakistan has now turned to use drones to smuggle significant quantities of drugs into Kashmir. Dilbag Singh, the chief of the Jammu and Kashmir police, referred to Pakistani narcoterrorism as “the biggest challenge.”
Pakistan has been successful in dismantling the traditional systems of informal control for the past 30 years by introducing contesting religious doctrines like Jamat-i-Islami, Salafism, and Tableeg.
People’s adherence to these ideals has subsequently divided society at the local level, encouraging youth deviant behaviour.
The mullahs and religious leaders have adhered to their own teachings rather than the Quranic teachings and prophetic sayings against drug consumption during such religious meetings, choosing not to confront drug abuse and the role of Pakistan in a serious manner.
On Fridays and special days, the mullahs associated with these contesting philosophies give speeches at mosques. They have never spoken out against drug misuse in society, despite the fact that they are still firmly committed to their teachings and that people take their speeches extremely seriously.
In addition, Wani claimed that the almost complete lack of recreational activities in Jammu and Kashmir has drawn the young impressionable minds of the region to the risks of drug addiction.
The Valley has witnessed an alarming increase in drug addiction in all socioeconomic classes of the region. A new drug user inevitably enters Kashmir’s drug rehabilitation facility every hour.
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