- Terror eco-system crippled in J&K
- Security forces praised
- Govt committed to lasting peace and end of terrorism
New Delhi, Jan 8: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday chaired a high-level meeting on Jammu and Kashmir in New Delhi to review the security situation, directing security agencies to continue counter-terror operations targeting terrorist infrastructure and terror financing in a mission mode.
This was the first high-level meeting of 2026 chaired by Amit Shah to review the security scenario in Jammu and Kashmir.
Speaking during the meeting, Amit Shah said that under the leadership of PM Modi the government is committed to establish lasting peace in Jammu and Kashmir and completely eliminate terrorism.
Reiterating the zero tolerance policy against terrorism, he said that due to sustained and coordinated efforts of the Modi Government, the terror eco-system in Jammu and Kashmir has been crippled.
He appreciated the efforts of the security agencies for strengthening security scenario of Jammu and Kashmir. “Counter Terror (CT) Operations targeting terrorist infrastructure and terror financing in a mission mode should be continued,” he said.
The Home Minister directed all security agencies to remain alert and continue to work in synergy to ensure that the gains achieved after abrogation of Article 370 are sustained and they achieve the goal of ‘terror free J&K’ at the earliest. He assured that all the resources will be made available in this endeavour.
The meeting took place a couple weeks ahead of the 76th Republic Day celebrations across the country, including Jammu and Kashmir. The meeting also comes at a time when security forces have launched aggressive counter-terror operations in mountains and remote areas of the Jammu region to hunt down terrorists.
An official said that seniors officers apprised the chair about the coordinated strategy to eliminate terrorists hiding in difficult, inaccessible areas of J&K while ensuring zero infiltration on the LoC and the IB.
During the past few months, security forces have engaged terrorists in several encounters in the upper reaches of Kishtwar, Doda, Udhampur and other districts of the region as the infiltration attempts by the terrorists have been foiled on the LoC and the IB during this period.
He also said that the meeting deliberated on the current momentum and coordination among various security agencies, and ground-level operations with special focus on making 2026 a decisive year in the complete elimination of terrorism from Jammu and Kashmir.
Centre to resume dialogue with Ladakh leadership
High-powered committee to meet late January, says MHA
New Delhi, Jan 8: In a significant development, the Union Home Ministry is set to convene a meeting of the high-powered committee it constituted to deliberate on issues of Ladakh.
In a letter, the MHA has informed Ladakh’s Chief Secretary that the next meeting of the high-powered committee-comprising representatives of the Union Home Ministry, the Ladakh administration, and leaders of Ladakh-will be convened in the last part of January.
The Chief Secretary of Ladakh has been asked to consult the members of the high-powered committee regarding their convenient dates and inform the MHA accordingly.
The MHA has decided to hold the meeting at a time when leaders of the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA)-the two conglomerates spearheading the agitation for statehood and constitutional safeguards for the region-have expressed resentment over the inordinate delay in convening the panel’s meeting.
Talks between Ladakh’s leadership and the Government of India were last held on October 22, 2025, in New Delhi.
The Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) had submitted a 29-page draft proposal to the Ministry of Home Affairs, seeking statehood, Sixth Schedule status for Ladakh, and amnesty for people arrested after the September 24 protests.
Apart from four deaths, nearly 100 others including police and paramilitary personnel were injured on September 24 when protesters went on a rampage, vandalising buildings and setting a BJP office and a police vehicle on fire. The clashes erupted over demands for statehood and constitutional safeguards on the 15th day of a hunger strike led by activist Sonam Wangchuk, who has been booked under the NSA and lodged in Jodhpur jail.
