POONCH, JULY 19: `Pakistan will involve Kargil and it may fall.' This report was sent to the Union Home Ministry in December 1997 by none else than the intelligence wing of a para military force which had been monitoring Pakistani moves in Jammu and Kashmir from across the Line of Control (LoC).Significantly, the same intelligence agency sent nearly half a dozen missives about the related developments in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) even thereafter. However, none in the Home Ministry took serious note of these messages, until some local shepherds informed the Army about the presence of Pakistani troops in Kargil during May 1998.The Indian Army lost over 400 officers and jawans during the two month old conflict.Giving a sequence of events, well placed sources said that the report about Pakistani plan was prepared on the basis of intelligence inputs from across the LoC, as also the related developments taking place there. However, before the report sent to the Union Home Ministry in December 1997,the 9 Paras had already apprehended a militant on a Drass ridge near Kishtwar during July 1996.Identifying the apprehended militant as Abu Hamza, sources said that he hailed from Skardu.The infiltration by militants from Skardu was also revealed by AL DAWA - a monthly magazine published by Pan Islamic Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), in an article carried out in its December 1998 issue. It mentioned about the launching of a militant Yousuf Shaheed alias Abu Yaar of Chak Puriyan (Gujjranwalla) through Skardu after the completion of his training in June 1997.He along with his three accompliaces was killed during an encounter with Army troops in Surankote (Poonch) on July 26, 1998. The article also revealed about LeT having launched 30 to 40 highly trained militants into Kashmir Valley from Skardu during 1997.Thereafter, the intelligence officials informed about the movement of 4, 5 and 6 Northern Light Infantry along with Special Services Group (SSG) commandoes from high altitudes opposite Poonch to Skardu.This information along with a copy of the article was also sent to the Home Ministry, but it failed to awake anybody.Giving details, sources said that the 4 NLI was deployed in Kallar area (PoK) on a height of 12,000 ft to 14,000 ft across the LoC in Mandi sector for the last four years. Similarly, 6 NLI was posted at Haji Pir opposite Poonch sector.The first unit of 4 NLI moved to Skardu on October 15 1998, and the entire battalion along with SSG commandoes and militants was out of the area by March 15, 1999. The other NLI battalions also moved to Skardu from their respective places in the meantime.This was certainly a tactical move by Pakistan as no where in the military history, a unit already deployed at high altitude is asked to move to another high altitude after the completion of its tenure at the previous place, sources said. However, this was done as the NLI battalions, during their four year tenure at high altitudes across the LoC in Poonch district, had got acclimatized to the weatherconditions and experience to push in militants.Apart from this, they had also developed a sort of ground coordination with the SSG commandoes during the period. Moreover, the NLI mainly comprised of Shia Muslims and the Pakistani authorities appeared to have thought that they could easily win over the local Muslims of Kargil.However, the lid was taken off the intrusion by local shepherds, who informed the army about their presence during early May.
