The Persecuted Hindus of South East Asia

Recently, I was re-reading Sarat Chandra's 1926 immortal classic -Pather Dabi (loosely translated: Claimants of the Path; Hindi: Path Ke Davedar), a novel about India's freedom struggle based in Yangon (Rangoon, the capital of Myanmar (Burma). Burma had a strong Hindu presence till the 20th century, mostly people of Bengali and Tamil ethnicity according to 1931 census, 55% of Rangoon's (Yangon) population were Indian migrants, mostly Hindus. Today, the Hindu population in Myanmar is down to 0.5- 1.7% only! also recall having witnessed the Annual Bali Jatra Festival at Cuttack (Odisha) on Kartik Poornima when thousands of paper boats (Boitas) with lamps are set afloat in the Mahanadi River, symbolizing the departure of Odia sailors to celebrate the ancient maritime trade with Southeast Asia (Bali, Java, Sumatra, Sri Lanka etc). To anyone traveling to what once was known as Indochina, the civilizational and cultural influence of India becomes obviousacross Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Far East - Malaysia and Indonesia; we find a strong imprint of Hindu and Buddhist heritage, of Indian origin in these countries! Not just in the Indian subcontinent countries, but also in neighbouring countries like Afghanistan, Myanmar, Hindu-Buddhist presence becomes obvious. Arabs captured Sind in 712 CE and with it, the floodgates opened for hordes from WestCentral Asia (Turks, Mongols), Persians, and Afghans who attacked from across the Hindukush Mountains and did considerable damage to Hindu-Buddhist societies across India over a 1000-year period! India saw considerable conversions to Islam, mostly forced, during this period. India gained political independence from the British in 1947 but faced an immediate catastrophe- a religion-based partition of the country. Sind, NWFP, Baluchistan and western parts of Punjab became Pakistan; Bengal also got bifurcated - the Eastern part became a part of the newly created Pakistan while the Western part remained in India. Partition led to massive population transfer - an estimated 12-20 million people were displaced following the creation of an Islam based country. It is estimated that up to 2 million people perished in the communal violence following partition. However, partition remained incomplete in terms of population transfer - a big chunk of Muslim population continued to live in India (9.8% as per 1951 census). East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) had a Hindu population of about 22% in 1947. Likewise, West Pakistan, in 1947 had a significant non-Muslim population, primarily Hindus and Sikhs, estimated around 15-20% of the region's total, with Hindus being about 14.6% (1941 census). What is the population status today? Population of non-Muslims in West Pakistan, as per 1951 census had fallen to 1.61%. It remains and, later forcibly married off to older men. In its Feb 2023 report, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan expressed "considerable alarm" over the state of religious freedom in the country. The report highlighted several developments during that period that "belied the state's commitment" to freedom of religion and belief, specifically the incidence of forced conversions in Sindh [particularly of kidnapped Hindu women and girls being forced to marry Muslim men] has remained worryingly consistent. Bangladeshi Muslims, too, have consistently. exhibited their anti-Hindu bias over the years. The stepmotherly treatment meted out to Hindus in East Pakistan became apparent soon after independence. Mr Joginder Nath Mondol, a wellknown Dalit Bengali lawyer, sided with Muslim League and was appointed as the first Law Minister of Pakistan by Jinnah (only Hindu in his Cabinet) in 1947. He submitted his resignation to Liaqat Ali Khan, then PM of Pakistan on October 8, 1950 after getting thoroughly disgusted with the treatment meted out to Bengali Hindus, including Dalits, in East Pakistan. In his 14-page resignation letter, Mr Mondol has brought out the religious discrimination and persecution Hindus were facing in Pakistan. Mr Mondol returned to India in 1950 and died unsung on Oct 5, 1968! A streak for Islamic orthodoxy: East Bengal/ Bangladesh always has displayed a prominent streak for Islamic orthodoxy. Muslim League, the communal party that worked for partition of India, was born in Dacca on Dec 30, 1906. People like HS Suhrawardy and Mohammad Ali Bogra led the communal movement in the 1946 elections when Muslim League captured 113 out of 250 seats. HS Suhrawardy became the Chief Minister of Bengal and earned the sobriquet "Butcher of Bengal' for his negative role during the partition. There were major Anti-Hindu pogroms in East Bengal/ East Pakistan, in 1960, 1964 and 1970-71 (by the Pakistani Army). Post Independence (1971): Bangladesh continued to exhibit periodic outbursts of communal violence, directed mostly against the hapless Hindus. While under Awami League, the anti-Hindu & anti -India venom was mostly kept under control, ALL other political outfits had to play the anti-India/ Hindu card for sake of power! By now, Bangladesh, like Pakistan, has become another hub of Jihadi Islam. The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council reported over 2,000 to 2,442 incidents of violence against minority communitiesprimarily Hindus-between August 2024 and June 2025. Incidents have included the burning of houses, looting of businesses, vandalism of temples, and targeted killings. Violence has been widespread, with significant incidents reported in 52 districts. Between November 26, 2024, and January 25, 2025, over 76 attacks were reported, resulting in 23 deaths and over 150 assaults on Hindu temples. Can Muslims Coexist with Non-Muslims? From the trends visible all-over South-East Asia and even Europe, it is becoming clear that Muslim majority societies find it difficult to coexist with people of 'other' faiths. Till Muslims are in a minority, the slogan is "Islam is in Danger;" the moment Muslim population becomes substantial, they start demanding Sharia Law and Nizam-e-Mustafa for EVERYBODY! Britain and several European countries are facing this ugly situation. Even while Muslims constitute just 6% of British population, there are open demands for Sharia Law in Britain. As a result, countries like Austria, France, Belgium, Bulgaria, Portugal, Germany, Italy, and Spain are seeing some kind of pushback (banning of burqa/ niqab). Hindu populations in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan have shrunk dramatically over the last 30 years due to severe discrimination by the Muslim community! The Kashmir Case Study: In Kashmir, we have a unique case study - within less than 5 centuries (1339-1819 CE), the blessed valley got converted from a Hindu majority to a Muslim Majority one. Most of the conversions were due to the persecution by the Sultans of Shahmir dynasty, Mughal kings (particularly Aurangzeb) and, later under the Pathan rule. In 1947, KPs constituted about 6% of Kashmir Valley's population (after 6 Exoduses)'; after the 7th Exodus in 1990s, numbers of KPs living in the valley have reduced to maybe less than five thousand (a charitable count, excluding the Govt employees working in the valley!). What was our QOL in Kashmir? Kashmiri Pandits were gradually reduced to living as second rate citizens post 1947. On the technical education and job front, State Govt went out of its way to discriminate against KPs. Post 1970s, as the ideology of an aggressive Islam permeated the Kashmiri society (courtesy Jamat-e-Islami and Moulvis from UP-Bihar who penetrated Kashmir valley), harassing KР women by the roadside urchins with rude comments became a regular feature of life. KPs were openly and derisively called Kafirs & Hunood! KPs unfortunately had learnt to accept the slurs and insults without reaction (a hangover from the Pathan Raj era?). When there was war between Israel and Muslim countries in the Middle East, our houses were stoned, as if KPs were responsible. When Zia-ul-Haq got Bhutto hanged (April 1979), KP houses were on the receiving end; when the tyrant Zia himself got blown up in an air accident (Aug 1988), again our houses were stoned. Renaming of Kashmiri names of towns, rivers and even personalities started. Vitasta was already called Jhelum; Hari Parbat became Kohi Maran in official records, Shankaracharya became Takht-e-Suleimani, Anantnag became Islamabad and even Lal Dyed, the 14th century saint was renamed LallaArifa. Post 1983, defiance of authority became common -several Muslim men unzipped their pants openly before Mrs Indira Gandhi during an election rally. Resurrection of Frankenstein like Qazi Nissar in Anantnag led to open defiance of Govt authority and ultimately, to communal 22 riots in Anantnag, resulting in destruction and desecration of several temples and Hindu properties. As per Prof Satish Ganjoo, "The 1986 Anantnag communal riot was not a spontaneous outburst of communal anger but a calculated exercise in symbolic humiliation. It was designed to psychologically break the Kashmiri Pandits, undermine their cultural sovereignty and normalize their marginalization. By the mid1980s, Kashmir was entering a dangerous transition. Centuries of syncretism were eroding under the weight of sectarian mobilization. The March 1986 riots in Anantnag, instigated by Islamist clerics like Qazi Nisar Ahmad, marked the first organized communal violence against Hindus in the Valley's history. This was the real rupture, where Kashmiri Muslims were mobilized to destroy Hindu shops, homes and temples under the banner of "Islam in danger." It conditioned the social psyche to view Kashmiri Hindus as legitimate targets. The Anantnag episode of August 1986 did not emerge in a vacuum but represented the symbolic intensification of this campaign. If March was the physical assault, August was the semiotic assault-a civilizational insult staged in broad daylight. For the Pandits, it was the unmistakable message that humiliation and erasure would define their future; for Islamists, it was a declaration of intent." My uncle, after migration in April 1990, was posted to Jaipur; he commented,"I had forgotten what 'normal life' meant. In Kashmir, we were living tense, uncertain lives. We were living in constant fear, were supressed and had learned to accept insults and maltreatment. It was only when I started living in Jaipur that I realized that I could live without fear as a Hindu"! On our recent Exodus Day (19.01.26), I was discussing the KP situation with a Bengali friend. One of his comments came as an eye opener," You KPs should thank God that you left Kashmir en-masse in 1990. Your community, while coming out alive, saved its dignity, its honour and respect. Look at what is happening in Bangladesh. At least you are not, for last 36 years dying a daily death, are not living in fear like my relatives in Bangladesh!" My friend, whose family migrated from Anandapur in Sylhet Distt (East Bengal) in 1947, still has one branch of family living in their native village. The details he shared were unnerving for me. In late December 2025 and early January 2026, a series of violent incidents, including mob lynchings and murders, targeting members of the Hindu minority community occurred in Bangladesh. At least six Hindu men were killed in targeted attacks within an 18-day period districts: across different On December 18, 2025, in Mymensingh district, a Hindu garment worker was lynched by a mob over unproven allegations of blasphemy. He was beaten, hanged from a tree, and his body was set on fire. On December 24, 2025, another Hindu man was beaten to death by a mob in the Rajbari district. On December 29, 2025, a Hindu security guard and Ansar member was shot dead by a colleague inside a garment factory in the Mymensingh district. On New Year's Eve, a 50-year-old Hindu businessman was brutally attacked, stabbed, and set on fire by a mob. He died from his injuries in the hospital on January 3, 2026. On January 5, 2026, a 45-year-old factory owner and newspaper editor was shot and had his throat slit in the Jashore district. On Jan 5, 2026, a 40-year-old grocery shop owner was attacked with sharp weapons and killed in the Narsingdi district. I had no response to my friend's observations. Loss of habitat, loss of moorings, loss of property all dwarf before one single entity-LIFE. That we are alive and free to live our lives the way we want is probably more precious than anything else. Would life under 'undeclared' Nizam-e-Mustafa have been worth living? Would we have succumbed to the pressure of Ayesha Andrabi for our womenfolk to wear Burqa? During my childhood years, young women and girls would rarely use Chaddars to cover their heads and bodies, the way we see womenfolk in Kashmir doing today. Return to Kashmir today would be akin to Hindus living in an Islamized Bangladesh! It is natural for us KPs to miss our homeland. Lamenting loss of habitat is also a normal human emotion. I recall, in 1982, my landlady at Ludhiana would often talk about her hometown Sargodha -a town she had left in 1947. That there is a Sargodha Colony in Ludhiana City where probably migrants from that area have settled post partition speaks of the strength of nostalgia. "Not for a day, my Bengali friend recalls, did my grandmother reconcile to her. life in Kolkata - she always missed the 'Amar Sonar Bangla' of her native Anandapur." Kolkata used to have feuds between supporters of East Bengal Football Club (founders were from East Bengal) and those of Mohan Bagan (considered to be more of a Westen Bengal club. These supporters forgot that East Bengal was only a memory after the 1947 partition - their rivalry just lived on. The Seventh Exodus (1990) was one of the cruellest cuts our community received because it came after 171 years of relative peace (1819- 1947), at a time when India was free from foreign rule and had a 'Secular' Constitution that failed to protect this ethnic religious minority! Exodus of this scale obviously dealt a serious blow to the KP Community. People lost their homes and hearths overnight; families got scattered in quest for survival. Worst affected were those who sold their properties for a pittance since survival was at stake, people with private businesses, people who were self-employed. Exodus has been a socio-cultural cum religious shock for KPs. The uprooting has been like an amputation. We lost our 'tiraths' and temples, our sacred spots that have been the cornerstones of our existence for last 5000 yrs. We lost our moorings, our roots. Currently, we are in the fourth decade of our Seventh Exile! We all are desirous of going back, of reviving our connect with our roots! It is, therefore important for the community to keep the flame alive in the hearts of our younger generations, those born post Exodus. It is important for parents to help keep our language, our cultural practices, our samskaras alive - no matter what the odds are! Till the political conditions become conducive to our return, KPs must focus on shoring up and renovating our damaged shrines and tiraths, on rebuilding our cultural traditions, of reviving our connect to the valley thru religious tourism. We must remember that another persecuted community, the Jews of Palestine, hounded from the land of their forefathers for almost 20 centuries, kept the name alive in their kids' heart. At every Jewish wedding celebration, one of the toasts would be "Next Year in Jerusalem" (L'Shana Haba'ah B'Yerushalayim) - no matter where they lived, which language they spoke; Jews in exile had taken up the language of the land they were living in. One of the marriage rituals was crushing of a wine glass by the bride and the groom, symbolically mourning the breaking of the Second Temple in 70 CE by the Romans. One part of a wall in a Jewish home was left unpainted to mourn the Fall of the Temple in Jerusalem. Return to the Land of our Forefathers shall take some more time because the local 24 conditions in Kashmir have not changed. KMs remain unapologetic, unrepentant of what happened in 1990 - a look at the recent utterances of Farookh Abdullah should be enough to dispel any romantic ideas our people are harbouring. Every KM political leader pays lip service to our cause but no progress towards our return and rehabilitation has been 'allowed by the ordinary man on the street! Global geopolitics today is in midst of a huge churn. The powers that plotted our ExodusPakistan funded by the oil rich Shiekhs of the Middle East is fighting for its survival. India is emerging as an economic powerhouse and our position as a military power is only going to strengthen further in the next decade! Am sure that next 5 years shall see defanging of Pakistan - whether it retains its current geographic form remains a question mark. As the funding from Gulf dries up, our Kashmiri Muslims too might find radicalization an expensive preposition. That time might be much nearer than what we can perceive today! Some of our KP brethren were expecting the BJP Govt to paradrop KPs into Kashmir once Art 370 was abrogated in 2019. Many of us are getting impatient at the perceived 'lack of progress' in our rehabilitation. They to0 need to remember the lesson from Old Testament - the Jews who became impatient at the base of Mount Sinai had to walk in punishment for 40 years before Moses led them to the Promised Land! So, as a community, it is important to remember that we survived this catastrophe. Over 5L KPs are alive today is important! Over 1400 KPs sacrificed their lives for the privilege of seeing their brethren live in freedom! That we have not given up on Kashmir - is important! Life itself is more important than property! Jews have a greeting "L'chaim" - a Toast to Life itself! We KPs, too, need to remember and respect life! L'chaim!

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Courtesy:   Sanjeev Munshi and Koshur Samachar- February, 2026