Village Defence Guards (VDGs) formerly known as Village Defence Committees is a civilian militia first established in the mid-1990s in the Chenab Valley area of Indian-administered territory of Jammu and Kashmir for the self-defence of locals, especially Hindus, in remote hilly villages against militancy. It consist of villagers as well as police officers.[4] The VDGs have been accused of numerous human rights violations including dozens of cases of murder and rape.[5][6]
On 15 August 2022, Government of Jammu and Kashmir accorded sanction to the creation of the VDG.[7] VDG members are paid a monthly remuneration of 4,000-4,500 Indian rupees (US$48-$54).[5]
In the 1990s, according to official data, at least 221 cases[6] including nearly two dozen related to murder, seven to rape, and 15 cases involving rioting were registered against the village defence guards.[5] However, fewer than 2 percent of the defendants were convicted.[8]
As recently as 2019, the Jammu and Kashmir police set up new VDCs in Kishtwar district,.[4] which has over 3,251 VDC members out of which 800 are armed.[4] In Jammu and Kashmir, there were 4,125 VDCs as of December 2019.[9] The Indian Army conducts training camps for VDCs consisting of weapons training and intelligence gathering basics. On 15 September 2019, the Army trained VDCs in Doda sector.[10] They were mainly set up to protect Hindus and Muslims.[11][12] Following the killing of a Kashmiri-Hindu Sarpanch in June 2020, former Jammu and Kashmir police chief said Shesh Paul Vaid that Hindus and Muslims could be armed and Village Defence Committees could be set up with proper planning.[12] As of 28 February 2023, there are over 100 Hindu men armed and provided weapons training in Dhangri, Rajouri.[13] The first VDC was set up under Shesh Paul Vaid when he was a Superintendent of police in Bagankote village, Udhampur (now Reasi) in 1995.[12]
See also
References
- ^ "SP Vaid Removed As Jammu And Kashmir Police Chief". NDTV.com. Retrieved 2018-09-06.
- ^ "Jammu and Kashmir police chief SP Vaid removed, Director General of Prisons Dilbagh Singh to take over". The Financial Express. 2018-09-06. Retrieved 2018-09-06.
- ^ "Doda Police Briefs Heads of VDGS About Their Charter of Duties". The Chenab Times. 7 January 2023. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
- ^ a b c Sharma, Arun (2019-07-17). "J&K cops overhaul village defence committees, PDP says Centre design to arm RSS workers". The Indian Express. Retrieved 2020-06-16.
- ^ a b c "Why India's revival of civil militias in Kashmir is raising fears". Al Jazeera. 13 March 2023.
- ^ a b Nanda, Showkat; Loke, Atul (8 March 2023). "India Is Arming Villagers in One of Earth's Most Militarized Places". The New York Times.
- ^ "J&K Govt launches Village Defence Guards Scheme-2022". Greater Kashmir. 16 August 2022.
- ^ "India arms Hindu militias to combat Kashmiri fighters". DAWN. 29 April 2023.
- ^ "J&K village defence committees protest over pending salaries in Jammu, seek L-G GC Murmu's intervention". Firstpost. 5 December 2019. Retrieved 2020-06-16.
- ^ "Indian Army organises training sessions for village defence committees in J-K". ANI News. 15 September 2019. Retrieved 2020-06-16.
- ^ "J-K: Police to revamp village defence committees to curb terrorism". Business Standard India. Press Trust of India. 2019-07-21. Retrieved 2020-06-16.
- ^ a b c Bhat, Sunil (13 June 2020). "Give arms training, weapons to minority Hindus, vulnerable Muslims in Kashmir: Former J&K DGP Vaid". India Today. Retrieved 2020-06-16.
- ^ "India revives civil militia after 7 Hindus were killed in disputed region of Kashmir". Associated Press. 2023-02-28. Retrieved 2023-03-02.