TTK: A RAW ploy to divide Kashmiris and discredit Pakistan

“TTK must be understood for what it is: not a grassroots movement, but a psy-ops tool in India’s broader campaign to delegitimize Pakistan and suppress Kashmiri resistance”

“The Guardian noted during earlier unrest in IIOJK, India has mastered the craft of information warfare—sponsoring groups, shaping media narratives, and funding unrest abroad while draping itself in the garb of democracy”

Humayun Aziz Sandeela
On May 10, 2025, a new and suspiciously timed militant outfit—Tehreek-i-Taliban Kashmir (TTK)—announced its existence from Sopore in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). At first glance, TTK parades itself as a movement for “complete independence of Kashmir from both India and Pakistan,” appealing to youth through ideological and religious rhetoric. But peel back the layers, and it becomes clear that TTK is no indigenous resistance movement. It is a deceptive creation—likely another proxy in India’s long-standing strategy, orchestrated by its intelligence agency RAW, to destabilize Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and undermine Pakistan’s role in the Kashmiri freedom struggle.
Just as India has backed the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) to stoke unrest in Pakistan’s Balochistan region, the emergence of TTK follows a disturbingly familiar pattern. This group, much like the BLA and Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), is being used to push disinformation, launch false flag operations, and discredit Pakistan’s security institutions, while conveniently ignoring the grim reality of Indian state terrorism in IIOJK.
According to Al Jazeera, more than 1,500 Kashmiris were arrested following the April 2025 Pahalgam attack, as India intensified its military grip on the region. That same attack—initially claimed by The Resistance Front (TRF) and later retracted—sparked widespread suspicion about whether the entire event was orchestrated to justify repression and internationalize blame toward Pakistan. The New York Times and The Guardian have in the past exposed how India often uses such attacks to manipulate international opinion and drown out legitimate Kashmiri voices calling for freedom.
TTK’s rhetoric is bizarrely misaligned with the Kashmiri cause. While Indian forces commit daily human rights violations in IIOJK, TTK chooses instead to accuse the Pakistani military of following “an Indian agenda,” absurdly claiming collusion between Pakistan’s ISI and India’s RAW. This narrative not only insults the sacrifices made by Kashmiris over decades but dangerously distorts the ground reality—one where Pakistan has consistently stood with the Kashmiri people, advocating for their right to self-determination at global forums including the UN.
What’s more telling is TTK’s near-total absence from the ground. The group’s social media handle (@ttkashmir) is inactive, its leadership unverifiable, and its statements suspiciously aligned with anti-Pakistan narratives. Its invocation of Maqbool Bhat’s name, a symbol of Kashmiri resistance, to justify its anti-Pakistan tirades is a crude attempt to co-opt historical legitimacy while promoting India’s strategic objectives.
India’s track record of such duplicity is long and well-documented. From the creation of Mukti Bahini in East Pakistan to its covert support of BLA and TTP, RAW has consistently employed proxies to weaken Pakistan from within. According to Reuters, on May 7, 2025, India even carried out missile strikes on a madrassa in Muzaffarabad, killing civilians, under the pretense of targeting “terrorist infrastructure”—another desperate ploy to project aggression as self-defense.
The broader goal behind the TTK façade appears twofold. First, it seeks to damage Pakistan’s international image by manufacturing dissent in Azad Kashmir and projecting it as evidence of instability. Second, it aims to fracture the Kashmiri liberation movement by confusing the youth with ideological misdirection, leveraging religion and the concept of “neutrality” to attack Pakistan while India continues its colonial chokehold over IIOJK.
TTK is a digital-age mirage—a ghost group meant to divert attention from India’s atrocities and revive the false equivalence that both India and Pakistan are oppressors. But Kashmiris are not naïve. They have long recognized who truly stands with their struggle and who benefits from their suppression.
The emergence of TTK must be understood for what it is: not a grassroots movement, but a psy-ops tool in India’s broader campaign to delegitimize Pakistan and suppress Kashmiri resistance. As The Guardian noted during earlier unrest in IIOJK, India has mastered the craft of information warfare—sponsoring groups, shaping media narratives, and funding unrest abroad while draping itself in the garb of democracy.
Kashmiris and Pakistanis must not allow this propaganda to divide them. TTK is not a voice of resistance—it is a RAW-orchestrated whisper campaign designed to sow doubt, fear, and conflict where unity and purpose must prevail. Its silence on Indian aggression, its attacks on Pakistan’s institutions, and its implausible claims are all red flags.
As we move forward, it is essential to challenge these narratives with truth, facts, and unity. Pakistan’s support for Kashmiris remains unwavering, even as India tries to undermine that bond through deception and digital warfare. Kashmir’s destiny lies in freedom—not in false dichotomies peddled by puppet entities like TTK.