Ajit Doval in Kashmir (PTI photo)

SRINAGAR: An innocuous query from a Gujjar shepherd in terror-ravaged Anantnag to visiting national security adviser Ajit Doval on where Drass is during an interaction over his sheep left him pleasantly surprised when he was told of Doval’s identity on Saturday.

Doval had dashed to the southern part of the Valley in a second visit to the tumultuous region for random interactions with civilians to exchange views and hear their grievances and concerns after J&K was stripped of its special status and bifurcated into two Union Territories.

“Yeh kitne ka hai, kitna wajan hai iska? Kya khilate ho? Kitne lekar aaye ho bakre, aur kitne bech diye (How much is the sheep for, what does it weigh? What do you feed it? How many have you brought and how many have you sold),” Doval asked the shepherd in Anantnag’s “bhedu mandi”.

The shepherd promptly replied, “Ek 36 kg hai. Kargil, Drass se aaya hai yeh. Drass jante ho? (This one is 36 kg. I’ve brought them from Kargil, Drass. Do you know Drass?)”

After a short exchange about sales and revenue, Doval smiled and shook his hand with a smile. One of Doval’s escorts then informed the trader that he had just spoken to India’s NSA.

Over 2,000 sheep had been brought to the market, out of which around 1,200 had been sold by the afternoon, the NSA was later told.

The NSA got off his car in Anantnag’s main chowk to enquire from people about the difficulties they had faced since the lockdown. He walked around and extended festival greetings to the people.



In Video: NSA Ajit Doval interacts with locals in Anantnag