Balidan Divas Observed

A report by Manoj Bhan General Secretary JKVM

From Delhi - NCR Region

A large number of Kashmiri Pandits gathered on September 13, 2015 on the eve of Balidan Diwas, organized by Jammu Kashmir Vichar Manch, in a calm, serene and stimulating environment of Bal Krishan Ganjoo Memorial Park, at Gole Market, New Delhi. The members of the displaced community from Delhi NCR region braved the humid weather conditions to pay homage to the martyrs who had to pay with their lives while fighting terrorism and religious fundamentalism in Kashmir valley. Mahant Adityanath, MP (LS) from Gorakhpur (UP) was the Chief Guest. Mata Shiromani Smt. Sarla Taploo, Shri A N Kaul Sahib, Shri T. N. Razdan, Shri M L Khushoo and Shri Ajay Bharti were also invited to share the dais.

Our community, as we all know, lost a brave and fiery leader Tika Lai Taploo, on 13th September, 1989, after being assassinated by militants from point blank range outside his residence in Srinagar. He was cremated on the following day - 14th September - and ever since, this day is being observed as Balidan Divas all over the country and abroad. The politically motivated killings of people from the minority Hindu community actually began in 1989 with the assassination of Tika Lai Taploo. It was followed by the savage annihilation of hundreds of other community members, who included jurists, lawyers, academicians, medical professionals, media personalities, women and kids. The handful of militants, equipped with massive arms and financial aid from Pakistan across the border, succeeded in their perverted mission that rendered us homeless. The message was loud and clear. Kashmiri Pandit was not an acceptable entity in the valley and the only way he could save himself was to seek shelter in other parts of the country. In spite of manifold problems that this community had to face, it refused to surrender and even now continues the struggle for return and rehabilitation in the land of its origin.

At the B K Ganjoo Park, JKVM had set up a temporary flex wall on which the names of all the slain community members were written with the date and place of their assassination. It was a tearful moment for all and people were seen in tears while scanning this list.

Young artistes Vanshika Bhat, Ritika Raina and Vansh Pandita, accompanied by other community artistes, paid musical tributes by singing patriotic songs on the occasion. Shri B L Kaul Deep and Shri Inder Kumar Zutshi recited their touching poems to offer their tributes.

Family members of many of the victims narrated those woeful moments when their near and dear ones were snatched by Islamist militants in Kashmir before their eyes. They included Sarvashir Ashutosh Taploo and Ravinder Pandita. Speaking on the occasion, Mahant Yogi Adityanath appreciated the efforts put in by the KP community to keep alive the memories of that biggest tragedy. He suggested that proper and systematic documentation of those horrific days was very essential in a country where human memory is very short and where there are enough elements who would like to bury all such shameful acts under the carpet. Yogi Adityanath, in his highly spirited and informative speech, made a mention about the extremely selective focus on the victims of violence by media and so- called human rights organizations. He criticized the deafening silence of these groups on the treatment meted out to the displaced community of Kashmir.

He cited several examples in the rest of the country where a similar practice is being followed. Yogi Adityanath asserted that it was due to this prejudice against the Hindu society that the population of Hindus is dwindling in the country as is reflected in census figures after each decade.

Appealing to the displaced community to firm up their resolve to reconnect the entire Kashmir, including the areas illegally occupied by Pakistan and China, with its glorious past, Yogi Adityanath said that this will be the real tribute to the martyrs who sacrificed their lives defending Kashmir. KP community demanded the setting up of a permanent wall in the Park on which these names could be engraved permanently so as to ensure that their new generation is able to visit it from time to time.
B.K. Ganjoo Memorial Park, now popularly known as the Raj Ghat of Kashmiri Pandits, has been named after that young and dynamic Kashmiri Pandit telecom engineer, late Bal Krishan Ganjoo, who was brutally assassinated right in his home in Chota Bazar Srinagar in front of his young wife and children. Shri Ganjoo was working in BSNL and was incharge of Srinagar BSNL Exchange when the militancy broke out. This was a highly sensitive sector which was vital to keep the communication network alive, despite many attempts made by militants to blow it up. This is the only place in the national capital dedicated to martyrs of the Kashmiri Pandit community. Balidan Divas is an occasion to rededicate ourselves to the ideals and ethos for which the martyrs sacrificed their lives.

-A report by Manoj Bhan General Secretary JKVM

Naad Bureau adds: On September 14, another rally was organised by Kashmiri Samiti Delhi and Panun Kashmir at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi to commemorate the Balidan Divas where several leaders of the community paid homage to the martyrs and offered floral tributes.

To commemorate the Balidan Divas at Bangalore Kashmiri Hindu Cultural Welfare Trust, organised an event when Pt. Tikka Lai Taploo’s bust, the first of its kind, was installed in the lawns of Kashmir Bhavan at the enclosure for Martyrs memorial. Three huge granite stones inscribed with the names of 387 martyrs, donated by Dr Vijay Challoo, a community activist, were also installed at the enclosure. The bust was unveiled by Shri Vijay Kumar BN, local BJP MLA.

Amongst the dignitaries who paid floral tributes were Shri Govind Naidu, Corporator, Shri H S Shetty and Shri Sai Malladi, industrialists and businessmen. Shri R K Mattoo, Chairman KHCWT welcomed the guests and paid rich tributes to all the martyrs. He also showcased the blueprint replica of Shankaracharya Temple, coming up in the lawns of the Bhavan. Shri Govind Naidu spoke at length on various issues like KPs’ return to Kashmir, Indian government policy towards their rehabilitation and resettlement and overall political and economic scenario of India vis-a-vis Kashmir. Shri H S Shetty and Shri Sai Malladi, while paying rich tributes to martyrs, said that Kashmiri Pandits have been uprooted and their rehabilitation and resettlement back in Kashmir has been knuckled under the swathes of political and terror rivetting.

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Courtesy: 1st October 2015, Naad