STATEHOOD TO JAMMU & KASHMIR Homeland for forcibly Displaced Kashmiri Pandit

 

The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019 which is an act of the parliament of India has spitted the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories, Ladakh and the residuary Jammu and Kashmir, which became effective on 31 October 2019. A bill for this act was introduced by the Minister of Home Affairs, Amit Shah, in the Rajya Sabha on 5 August 2019 and was passed on the same day. It was then passed by the Lok Sabha on 6 August 2019 and received the president’s assent on 9 August 2019. The act consists of 103 clauses, extends 106 central laws to the union territories, repeals 153 state laws, and abolishes the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council, among other things. The act was challenged in the Supreme Court through a number of petitions. On 11 December 2023, the court declared the act and the related orders to be valid and constitutional, ordering to restore statehood “as soon as possible”. Since then the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state continues to be a union territory, when most of the relevant administrative powers of governance are with its Lieutenant Governor. This union territory is working well so far as the overall development of Jammu & Kashmir is concerned. It resulted in the annihilation of militancy and terrorism in Jammu & Kashmir, to a larger extent, which was otherwise being nurtured through proxy by the dynasty, based political parties as its governing bosses, for their vote bank politics. Who does not know that these self-styled dynastic political ambassadors of Jammu and Kashmir have often been heard speaking the language of Pakistan in Kashmir and would often say “Talk to Pakistan”, to get permanent peace in Jammu and Kashmir as also for ending the militancy in Jammu and Kashmir. Such pro militancy slogans of theirs were serving them with golden goose of permanent governing political and administrative bossing of Jammu and Kashmir since decades, in one form or the other. This golden goose of these dynasty based politicians got snatched away from them for their ill doings due to the application of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019 of Parliament of India, which was a right step for the development and other security related factors of Jammu and Kashmir, taken by the government of India for the better development of Jammu & Kashmir. Prior to that it is they who responsible for the genocide, murder, loot and arson with the Kashmiri Pandits of the valley of Kashmir. It is a hard fact that these very dynasty based politicians are responsible for the uprooting of Kashmiri Pandits from Kashmir under the onslaught of terror with its guns. This happened on the sad night of 19th January 1990, when Islamic jihad and terror made Kashmiri Pandits the pointed targets for no fault of theirs. National conference was in power in Jammu & Kashmir. The dark night of January 19, 1990, shivering with cold, is remembered by all of them, as it was the worst nightmare for the Kashmiri Pandits living in the valley. Screaming from loud speakers and crowded streets was a message for KP’s living in Kashmir, which said, Ralive, Tsaliv , Neti- Galiv. (It meant that either convert to Islam or leave Kashmir and in the alternative face death). Even after about 31 years, Kashmiri Pandits shiver remembering the night which forced them into exodus and a life of exile within their own country. Jehadi cum communal speeches from mosques were put on loud speakers meant for “Azan & Nimaz”, which would say (“Yeti- Bani Pakistan, Bhatov Bhegeer the Bhatenen-San”), meaning there in that the Kashmir will become a Pakistan without male Kashmiri Pandits, but including women folk of Kashmiri Pandits. The prominent prey in this regard among Kashmiri Pandits were the persons of immense repute, writers, community elders, legal luminaries, press and media personalities, government officers/officials who were on prominent positions in the state administration or were known prominently. The spurt to militancy had actually given birth in the year 1989 itself, which was taken very lightly by Pandits of the valley, presuming that the brother hood and compassion between the majority community and the Pandits had never received any serious jolt in the past. But it was a myth. On 14 September 1989, Pandit Tika Lal Taploo, who was a lawyer and a prominent leader of KP’s, was murdered by the JKLF in Srinagar. Prominent lawyer Sh. Prem Nath Bhat was gunned down on 27th December-1989 in South Kashmir. Soon after Taploo’s death, Pt. Nilkanth Ganjoo, an imminent judge who had sentenced Maqbul Bhat to death, was shot dead. On 29 April 1990, Sarwanand Kaul Preemie, a veteran Kashmiri poet was gruesomely murdered. His young son was also killed gruesomely. On 2nd February 1990, Satish Tikoo, a young Hindu Pandit social-worker was murdered near his own house in Habba Kadal. On 13 February 1990, Lassa Kaul, Station Director of Srinagar Doordarshan, was shot dead. This is only a small tale of KP’s who were killed brutally, because of being Kashmiri Pandits. In March 1997, terrorists drag out seven Kashmiri Pandits from their houses in Sangrampora village and gunned them down. In January 1998, about 23 Kashmiri Pandits, including women and children were shot dead in cold blood in Wandhama Village. In March 2003, about 24 Kashmiri Pandits, including infants, brutally shot dead in Nadimarg Village. More than 4, 00,000 Kashmiri Pandits left the Valley and took refuge in Jammu and elsewhere, leaving their entire properties and belongings in the valley to the mercy of militants and Jehadi’s. One can understand the agony of this exodus along with travesty of having lost everything in life, like one’s property, one’s belongings, agricultural lands and orchards, commercial establishments, means to earn a living honorably and above all our own culture which was unique for all of us and was very much dear to us. Kashmiri Pandits continue to remain away from their home land Kashmir since January 1990, which is now more than 35 years of forced exile for them for no fault of theirs. Of late when a so called popular government came to power in Jammu & Kashmir after the recent assembly elections, its constituted Cabinet passed resolution for the restoration of Statehood to J&K, ignoring the fundamental fact that according a statehood to Jammu & Kashmir in the absence of its aboriginal residents the KP’s will be a big joke with the forcibly displaced KP’s, as for as the democratic processes of governance of Jammu & Kashmir are concerned. In this regard while the Jammu and Kashmir Cabinet passed a resolution urging Union Government to restore the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir, the Cabinet which met under the chairmanship of Omar Abdullah, Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, passed a unanimous resolution for restoration of statehood in its original form. The resolution said that the restoration of statehood will be a beginning of a healing process, reclaiming the constitutional rights and protecting identity of people of Jammu and Kashmir. It further said that the Protection of Jammu and Kashmir’s unique identity and constitutional rights of people remains the cornerstone of the newly elected government’s policy. Should Omar Abdullah and his political party know that Jammu and Kashmir does not belong to National conference or the majority Muslims of Kashmir only? Apart from belonging to the people of Jammu which constitutes a big chunk of the population of Jammu & Kashmir, it is the “ Birth Place”--- Janama-Bhoomi”, of Kashmiri Pandits, who have been uprootedfrom their birth place Kashmir though the Islamic terror gun and are living lives of refugees in their own country. So how can the protection of the unique identity of Jammu & Kashmir and the constitutional rights of its people remain the corner stone of the newly elected government’s policies, ensured without the actual and factual presence of the aboriginal Kashmiri Pandits of Kashmir in Kashmir. Let this new so called democratic government know that Jammu & Kashmir is barren without the Kashmiri Pandits. This government should ensure immediate return of Kashmiri Pandits back to Kashmir with honour and dignity. Without Kashmiri Pandits in Kashmir no state hood should given to this union territory of Jammu & Kashmir. The administrative set ups both at the central government and the state government levels never bothered enough to address seriously such a devastation of the KP’s till date. Reason being that we the Pandits are not a vote bank entity for anybody or any political entity in Jammu & Kashmir or outside Jammu & Kashmir. Such an approach on the part of the power corridors of the governance are not only depriving this community of their fundamental rights, but is an extreme act of human rights violation. Kashmiri Pandits want a return to their “homeland”, but not to the servitude of terrorists. Actions initiated by the government of India in the past for the return and rehabilitation of the KP’s to the Kashmir valley were taken just notionally and not with safe and a sound mission of actually settling them back in Kashmir, with full dictates of law. As soon as such a news with regard to government moves for the rehabilitation of KP’s, becomes public, Muslim leadership across the political divide in Kashmir valley rejected the return of KP’s to any kind of secured settlements in the valley. This unanimous rejection of the return of KP’s to the Valley by the entire majority populace of Kashmir along with their leadership and the pseudo secularist political leaders of Kashmir, clearly shows that the forced migration of Kashmiri Hindus was not only an act committed by a few, but an organized off shoot of “Islamic Jehad”. It is now a full-fledged ethnic cleansing of the Pandits from the valley? Is someone in the governance particularly the ministry of home affairs observing it? What is the remedy? Do they want to retain Kashmir at the cost of the cleansing of KP’s from Kashmir? The writing is on the wall. Let the government of the day meet this challenge with resolute might and force. KP’s are the aboriginal residents of Kashmir. They will go back to Kashmir at all costs. Government of India has to keep it in mind that no solution will be perpetual for Jammu & Kashmir unless the Kashmiri Pandits do not get their due which is a “Home Land” for them within Kashmir, their mother land, with full security. It is their fundamental right and fundamental demand. At the same time it is the fundamental and a constitutional responsibility of the government of the day to ensure it as early as possible. Does it need further consensus? Why so. There can be no other alternative about it. As such before considering the grant of Statehood to Jammu & Kashmir, the central government of the present day should think of giving a proper Homeland to the forcibly Displaced Kashmiri Pandits, for their safe and dignified rehabilitation and survival back in Kashmir. According statehood to Jammu & Kashmir and ignoring the creation of a Homeland for the safe and dignified rehabilitation of forcibly driven out KP’s from Kashmir, will mean adding further salt on their bleeding wounds due to extreme militancy and terrorism in Kashmir which made the KP’s to flee from Kashmir after facing severe acts of genocide, murder, arson and disaster of sorts. The present government of Jammu & Kashmir aspiring for statehood should bear it in mind, that Ladakh is already snatched away from Jammu & Kashmir and now is the turn of Jammu. Jammu & Kashmir as a “paradise” on earth is now without Ladakh, a synonym of Buddhist legacy and culture is detached from it. The people of Jammu will be having their own aspiration for a separate identity as a region. Why should they subject themselves to the dictates from the dynastic political leaders of Kashmir to rule them? Under such circumstances if Jammu region too is separated from Jammu & Kashmir, what will remain then? Kashmir will remain a bracketed paradise from “ Khanbal” to Khadinyar”, or “Mattan” to “Pattan”. Let these dynastic politicians from Kashmir think coolly about it. They should compromise with what they have now before it also goes away from them and forget about statehood for Jammu & Kashmir and concentrate on creating a Homeland for the forcibly displaced KP’s for their dignified return back to Kashmir.

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Courtesy:  ER. P. L. KHUSHU and Spade A Spade,2025