Armies don't take hostages

As the confrontation in Kashmir grows more vicious, it will require all of the army's focus

It testifies to the resilience of Indian public debate that four weeks after Major Nitin Leetul Gogoi, an army officer in Kashmir’s Budgam district, tied an innocent civilian to his jeep as a human shield against stone-throwing mobs, criticism continues despite official justifications. This is an important debate. In question here is not just an isolated incident of military misjudgement, which happens in moments of extreme stress in operations. Instead, with the government and army establishments publicly justifying and condoning the actions of the officer, the question is more fundamental: Were Major Gogoi’s actions in line with the ethos and