Nothing can be achieved with gun: Gen Rawat to deviated youths

By Anish SinghnnNEW DELHI: Expressing hope that the situation in Jammu and Kashmir will come into normalcy, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat on Sunday said that the youth who have deviated from the mainstream will soon realize that nothing can be achieved with gun in hands.nnWhile speaking at the Commemoration of seven decades of Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry (JAKLI) Regiment here, Gen Rawat said, ?Some of youths have been deviated from the right track. Time is not far when they will realize that their mission would not get success with guns.?nnOn bringing peace and tranquility in the valley, the Army Chief added, ?We believe that we will be able to bring peace and tranquility in the state very soon.?nnHe also maintained that the ?Kashmiriyat? cannot be diluted when the areas like Baba Rishi, Baba Shukruddin, Amarnath and Singh Pura are there.nnHe also appreciated the Regiment for their commendable services to the nation since last 70 years.nnEarlier, Colonel Commandant of the JAKLI Regiment Lt Gen Satish Dua shared his experience and shed light on its raising and how it was included into the Indian Army.nn?Seventy years ago, when the raiders from Pakistan came and attack Jammu and Kashmir. Several volunteer groups stood up to give resistance to them, they were not part of police force but they acted like home guard and border force. After the war, they all were formalized as militia with the name J&K Militia. It was a paramilitary force in the state only. They did so well because they were the son of soil. In the 1971 war, three battalions of J&K Militia received battle honours. In 1972, they were made part of Indian Army. In 1976, it was renamed as Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry.?nnStating that his regiment has a distinct feature, Lt Gen Dua said there is a confluence and harmonization of regions, religions and cultures. We have 50 per cent Muslims and 50 per cent non-Muslims. Out of 50 per cent of non-Muslims, 40 per cent are Dogras, Sikhs and a small share of Ladhaki population. That is why we called it Kashmiriyat.?nnJAKLI was the first battalion of Army to be raised during post independence. The battalion has deep roots in J&K and was once part of the J&K State Forces.nnRising on April 15, 1948 during the turbulent days of cross border raids into the state, as a voluntary force then called as the First Jammu and Kashmir Militia Force.