A letter to J&K CM Mehbooba Mufti

 

Madam,

I wish to remind you about the plight of the Kashmin. Pandit community for the last about three decades. I hope: that you would invite your attention towards it’d genuine issues and demands, as highlighted below as well as those pending with the State and the Central governments since long.

Three lac and fifty thousand Kashmiri Pandits. constituting 99% of the total population of Hindus living in the Muslim-majority area of the Kashmir Valley, were forcibly pushed out of the Valley by separatist Muslim terrorists, trained in Pakistan and their agents in the valley Since the end of 1989-90 we have been forced to live the life of exiles in our own country, outside yhr "Kashyap Bhoomi", by unleashing a systematic campaign of terror, murder, loot and arson. The genocide of Kashmin Pandits reached its climax with Muslim terrorism succeeding in 'CLEANSING the valley of this ancient ethno-religious community

With the completion of 27 years of our forced exile, this peace-loving, culturally rich community, with a history of more than 5,000 years, is still fighting a grim battle to save itself from becoming extinct as a distinct race and culture, which has suffered with brutal strategies of separatists, terrorists and fundamentalists of Kashmir against us.

 

Most unfortunately, the J&K Government and the Government of India failed to protect the Kashmin Pandits against the Islamic terrorism and other grave human right violations Jammu and Kashmir being the only Muslim majority state in the whole of India, the protection of minorities and their living peacefully, in their "Kashyap Bhoomi", is crucial for India to remain as a secular democratic country. The Kashmiri Pandits (Hindus) from the Kashmir valley are the crucial failure of the Indian state, including the J&K state and politicians running its polity, to uphold its commitment to the people of India, and, in particular, the minorities of the J&K State, as enshrined in the Indian Constitution which provides the right to live with dignity and honour to every citizen, irrespective of caste, creed, religion or colours.

Even leading international human rights organisations, like Amnesty International and Asia Watch, have yet to take proper cognizance of the genocide perpetrated on Kashmiri Pandits. Their representatives have, so far, failed to assess the correct situation that has emerged at the hands of Pakistan and local separatists and other fundamentalist Muslims in the valley, who forced the KP community to leave its homes and hearths and is now residing as refugees in camps in Jammu, Delhi and other parts of India for the last 27 years. The gradual extinction of this civilised community is yet to shake the conscience of the world and the KP victims are waiting for justice .

Nobody cried or helped when thousands of displaced persons of the KP community died in camps and elsewhere after their forced exodus from the valley. They died of sun strokes as most of them were used to a cold climate of Kashmir and could not acclimatise to the extremely hot temperatures of the rest of India. Heart attacks and accidents, which have been mainly attributed to extreme psychological trauma and mental pressures, by the doctors, of gastroenteritis and typhoid epidemics, snake bites etc.

The cohesiveness of the displaced families has broken as they were to undergo Diaspora for finding livelihood in various parts of the country. The whole displaced KP community, the original inhabitants of Kashmir, with a distinct culture, is facing the threat of extinction after losing its natural habitat,when they have always been devoted to spiritual

and academic pursuits During their history of more than 5.000 years, they nurtured values of peace, co-existence and tolerance, but alas! They have been deceived.

We and our innocent children have been murdered; we have been looted, ransacked, deceived in various ways and thug-ed with distress sale, forcible occupation of our land, temples and other religious properties we were forced to live in tented and rented accommodations, just on a meagre relief assistance. Our over-aged youths have reached a point of frustration for having a financial crunch, our P.M. Package female employees are unheard, unattended and totally cut off from their small children, old and ailing parents as well as from their life partners, just for the sake of their adjustment in the Jammu areas, where they actually live at present. We have been discriminated by the State Govt. by delaying and denying the passage of the Temple Bill in the J&K State Assembly We have been discriminated and denied to have our religious pilgrimage to our Kul-Devi Shardha Temple and the shrine located in Shirdi, PoK, when at the other hand Muslims of both parts of Kashmir are frequently visiting one another, to their shrines, mosques, tourist places in Pok and in our part of Kashmir. So, the Victim KPS question? Why so much discrimination, why are we not being permitted to have our pilgrimage to the Shardha Temple, located in Sadri, PoK.

The above-mentioned gist of the plight, miseries and discrimination faced by the victim Kashmiri Pandit community, in exile for the last 27 years, volumes about the failures of the State and the Central governments towards this community, which now needs immediate redress to provide some solace to it.

This hapless community hopes that you, now being the Chief Minister of the J&K State, would take the problems, plight and genuine demands of this victim unheard community seriously, with a sincere commitment to redress its burning problems and also declare a policy of one place settlement of Kashmiri Pandits at the "land of Kashyap", in the Kashmir valley, as free and proud citizens of the Indian nation with all rights and privileges enshrined in the Indian Constitution. Also steps need to be taken to Indianise the situation in the valley, debate and discussion to be started over merits and demerits of Article 370 in order to pave the way to abolish it in the interest of the people of the state as well as for the unity and integrity of the country.

Besides, terms and conditions laid down in the BJP PDP Agenda of Alliance, in respect to the return of KPs to the valley, may please be got deleted. This has, already, been rejected by the KP community in general and the KPC in particular.

 

Madam, I hope for your serious consideration and attention towards the miserable plight of the community and its genuine demands as mentioned above. With great regards,

 

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Courtesy: Kundan kashmiri   Koshur Samachar 2016, May