Plight of Kashmiri Pandit Minority

Dr Kulbhushan Warikoo

(Dr Kulbhushan Warikoo, founder secretary of Himalayan Research and Cultural Foundation, who has found mention in the columns of "Koshur Samachar" many a time, participated in the UNHR Commission Session in Geneva: January 30 to March 10, 1995: as a member of the Indian Institute of Non-Aligned Studies, a Non-Governmental Organisation. We reproduce hereunder his speech in the session on February 13, 1995 Editor)

Speech of Dr. K. Warikoo under Item No. 20- Rights of Persons Belonging to Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities

Mr. Chairman,

The universal declaration of human rights guarantees the basic human rights of all people irrespective of caste, creed, colour and religion. The UN General Assembly has in its 47th and 48th sessions focussed particularly on the rights of persons belonging to religious and linguistic minorities. This issue has also exercised the human rights commission, international human rights organisations, and NGOs. It is because of this emphasis of the international community that linguistic and religious minorities today feel that there is a forum where their voice would be heard and their concerns recognised. Sadly, however, the people whom I represent are, perhaps, not important enough for the international community and their concerns find only passing reference.

I am a Kashmiri and I want to present to this august gathering the plight of my people.

What is the problem in Kashmir? The basic problem is that Kashmir is identified in the common perception as just the valley of Kashmir and little attention is paid to the actual reality of the state of Jammu and Kashmir. In reality, the state is a three- storeyed edifice composed of three principal geographical divisions of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh bound together by history and linked together by a common destiny. Out of a total of nearly 84,000 square miles of territory, Ladakh constitutes the largest geographical division though it is sparsely populated, largely by a majority of Buddhists. The Jammu province has a predominant Hindu population with some of its districts evenly represented by both Hindus and Muslims. The valley of Kashmir, which accounts for only about 3000 sq. miles is predominantly Muslim but is inhabited by Sikhs, Gujjars and a significant Kashmiri Pandit minority which is the most ancient and indigenous community of the valley. But people who have made it a profession to represent Kashmir never refer to these realities. Unfortunately, these gentlemen are largely either non-Kashmiris or those who abandoned Kashmir for more profitable ventures decades ago.

Kashmir has been known through its history for the harmonious blend of cultures of Buddhists, Kashmiri Pandits, Sikhs, Gujjars, Muslims and others. This rich secular composite culture survived since time immemorial due to the fruitful interaction of Mahayana Buddhism, Shaivism, Sufism and the Rishi order-all of which stress the principles of social harmony and peaceful co-existence.

The small but beautiful valley of Kashmir has been turned into hell since 1989 when Islamic fundamentalists in the garb of an armed insurrection motivated and inspired from across the border from Pakistan erupted. Mr. Chairman, this type of religious crusade has already taken a heavy toll in terms of human lives and disruption of peace and harmony in a number of other countries.

In Kashmir the fundamentalists and mercenaries have indulged in ethnic-religious cleansing of the indigenous minority of Kashmiri Pandits. About 1500 members of this minority community have been brutally murdered and more than 3,00,000 have been forced out of the valley during the past five years. More than 6000 displaced Kashmiri Pandits have died due to exposure to hostile environments and other unnatural circumstances. During the same period more than 25,000 houses belonging to Kashmiri Pandits, hundreds of their business establishments, educational, cultural and religious institutions have been destroyed with the object of decimating all traces of the 5000 year old civilisation of this indigenous minority community. This ancient indigenous community of Kashmir is experiencing death and destruction due to denial of basic human rights of life, property, freedom to religion and culture. The Kashmiri Pandits are suffering from the trauma of loss of their homeland and rootlessness and are still not reconciled to their forced exodus from their ancient habitat in the valley.

International media and international organisations. have over the last two years increasingly documented Pakistani involvement in the training, arming and infiltration of fundamentalist terrorists and mercenaries into my state. The use of Pakistani soil for a Jehad which would destroy the very essence of Kashmir, the principles of peaceful co-existence and social harmony and its ancient and variegated cultural heritage, has been well documented by the Pakistani media itself.

Mr. Chairman, human rights and terrorism are intertwined. One can exist only if the other does not.

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Courtesy:- Dr Kulbhushan Warikoo and April-May 1995, Koshur Samachar