They Need Rehabilitation Back in Kashmir as Early as Possible
Er. P.L.Khushu
The new legislative assembly of Jammu and Kashmir has started its working with full fervor, when in its second sitting after coming into existence the Budget session has started. The new budget for this union territory was presented by Sh. Omar Abdullah the Chief Minister. It is a welcome step for the erstwhile militancy torn state of Jammu & Kashmir, which is now reduced to the status of a union territory, when Ladakh is separated from it. It shows that the boundaries of Jammu & Kashmir have been curtailed to a larger extent. Kashmir as a “paradise” on earth is now without Ladakh, a synonym of Buddhist legacy and culture is detached from it.
The poet Amir Khusrau is said to have used this couplet to describe the Kashmir valley. “Agar firdaus bar-rue zamin ast, hamin asto, hamin asto, hamin ast” is a Persian couplet that means “If there is a paradise on earth, it’s here, it’s here, it’s here”. The poet Amir Khusrau is credited with saying this about Kashmir. What should be his impressions about Kashmir now?
What has been happening to this paradise of Kashmir and why? Who is responsible? The non arguable reply is that “Jehadi” militancy, tainted with fundamentalism of religious hate imported from across the border and unfortunately abetted by some vested Islamic fundamentalists of Kashmir, has made this paradise to lose much of its sheen and fervor to be called as a “paradise. ” The dynasty based politicians of ages in Kashmir and the ritualistic long duration politicians of Kashmir with an eye to remain clubbed to the power and governance of Jammu and Kashmir, have mercilessly exploited it to their advantages, when these elements are still doing so, rendering great harm and damage to the basic existence of Jammu and Kashmir as a respectable entity within the overall contours of India , which as of now is a great country of highest democratic values. Their slogan mongering about Jammu and Kashmir having a special status, without any logic of matured prudence when enough water has flown down Jhelum and Tawi rivers, is now a tale of past. Article 370 is now a history and mystery of past, which kept the pot boiling about Jammu and Kashmir being a special entity within the demonian of India.
While coming back to the budget presented in the legislative assembly of Jammu and Kashmir, with the crypto critical style of the speeches of some of the members of the legislative assembly, it appears that they are still following the monarchy styles considering J&K as their personal property and colony, when it is not so now.
Though various sectors of development and society have been given a special financial attention which is certainly needed, yet, no mention of the forcibly displaced Kashmiri Pandit’s, is there in this budget for their honorable rehabilitation back in Kashmir with honor and dignity, even after the 35 years of their exile, genocide and devastation due to their forced displacement at the hands of the terrorist and the jehadi groups, which unfortunately includes some people from the local population of Kashmir too.
Kashmiri Pandits have been listening to the hallow slogans of the leaders of various political parties for long about their rehabilitation back in Kashmir, yet, nothing has so far been done in this behalf. This budget is a significant proof about it, when it is not expected from this majority ruling party ruling presently J & K, which is the fundamental political party responsible for the forced exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from Kashmir, because of its vote bank politics. This political party while being in power in 1990, witnessed the genocide of KP’s through the terrorists and chose to be silent and as helpless viewers. In fact such an ethnic cleansing of Kashmiri Pandits from Kashmir, started right from 1947, when the reins of administrative and political power of Jammu and Kashmir were handed over to Sheikh Mohamed Abdullah by the congress party headed by Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, the then prime minister of India.
While referring to the recent statement of the foreign minister of India about the abrogation of Article 370, who had said that it is dead and finished, one of the senior members of the legislative assembly linked to the Communist Party of India (Marxist) & considering Jammu & Kashmir still a Colony for such politicians, taunted the statement of the foreign minister of India about the abrogation of Article 370, by saying that the ghost of Article 370 is still haunting the minds of those who are in authority, when his reference pertains to the central leadership governing India. Such politicians are keeping the people of Jammu and Kashmir, particularly that of Kashmir region ignorant about the hard facts of the Article 370, which was a temporary provision in the constitution of India and has been removed, which has been VETTED by the apex court of the country through one of its recent judgments about the same. No breast beating by such politicians in the assembly or outside the assembly can bring Article 370 back. In his continued utterances in the assembly, this assembly member further said that if the foreign minister says that we will bring back PoK (Pakistan-occupied Kashmir), why was Ladakh separate Ladakh from us ? Why was the region divided?” he said.
A good question by this assembly member, when its answer lies in the question itself. Let him introspect and accept that the two regions of Jammu and Ladakh akin to the region of Kashmir constituted Jammu and Kashmir as a full state, when the governance of Jammu and Kashmir always remained with the dynasty based politicians of Kashmir. While such dynasty based politicians always considered Jammu & Kashmir a personal colony never allowed Jammu and Ladakh to grow fully as per norms and always had step motherly treatment with these two regions in the issues of proper development of these two regions. These two regions remained backward in every field of development. The people of Ladakh raised their voices against it and thus Ladakh got separated from Jammu and Kashmir. It should sound as an eye opener for the governing political party of Jammu and Kashmir and the valley based assembly members like the one who has allegiance to the communist party of India, that if such an attitude again continues with Jammu region, when Jammu region has already suffered enough due to the apathies of the dynasty based politicians, who have been ruling Jammu and Kashmir for decades, it may result in the alienation of Jammu from the reaming part of Jammu and Kashmir, which is a union territory now. Will it be another disaster for the great paradise of Kashmir.
Some comments emerged about Maharaja Hari Sigh and his role about the accession of Jammu & Kashmir with India. In this regard it is necessary to mention here that Maharaja Hari Singh the Dogra king, was not an outsider to Kashmir and had as many rights in the Kashmir Valley as anyone else. Every other sane Congress leader of 1945-46, understood the absurdity of replicating the ‘Quit India’ call against colonial British with a ‘Quit Kashmir’ call against a Kashmiri Hindu ruler. Yet, Nehru plunged headlong in support of Abdullah and even landed up in Kashmir to support him. Hari Singh had asserted in the House of Lords as Vice-Chancellor of Chamber of Prince’s: “I am an Indian first, and then a Maharaja.” Hari Singh was, thus, obviously pleading to join India in 1947 on multiple occasions but was thwarted on each occasion till Nehru’s agenda was fulfilled, to bring in Sheikh Abdullah to power in Kashmir. While there was a tribal attack sponsored and abetted by newly created Pakistan in the northern regions of the Kashmir valley, in which mass massacre of Hindus and Sikhs was carried out, Maharaja Maharaja Hari Singh appealed the Lord Mountbatten the Governor-General of India for Indian military aid. In his Accession Offer dated 26 October 1947 which accompanied the Instrument of Accession duly signed by him on 26 October 1947, Maharaja Hari Singh wrote “I may also inform your Excellency’s Government that it is my intention at once to set up an interim Government and ask Sheikh Abdullah to carry the responsibilities in this emergency with my Prime Minister.” It is apparent that signing of the instrument of accession with India was loaded with a condition from the central government of that time headed by Jawaharlal Nehru, that this accession with India will be accepted by the government of India, only after Sheikh Abdullah is given a place in the administration of Jammu and Kashmir. Subsequently, Sheikh Abdullah was appointed head of an emergency administration by an order issued by the Maharaja which was undated except for the mention October 1947 in place of the date. Sheikh Abdullah took charge as Head of the Emergency Administration on 30 October 1947 and subsequently became the prime minister of Jammu and Kashmir with the blessings of Nehru and Maharaja Hari Singh was ousted.
It was also said by the MLA as referred to above that after Sheikh Abdullah took over the reins of power of Jammu and Kashmir, he ended the phases of Jagirdhari and enacted the land to tiller act in Kashmir, when the lands of the Jagirdharas were given to the common people of Jammu & Kashmir. The situation is different, which he has shied away to express.
Sheikh’s rule in 1947, embedded the seeds of “Pseudo Secularism, viz half truths about the real concept of true secularism, in Jammu and Kashmir, for which the main suffering population of Jammu and Kashmir were the Kashmiri Pandits. It was in this time only when the Land to Tiller laws were enforced which in particular made Kashmiri Pandits the main targets as most of the Kashmiri Pandits were well established “Zamindars” and their agricultural lands were snatched from them and given to the tillers who were Muslims, with a biased base of communal tinge. Apart from this enough of partialities occurred during that time when KP’s were refused proper representations in the government jobs, educational trainings, etc. This is the period, viz, 1947, when the first mass exodus of Kashmiri Pandits occurred towards the plains, for earning their bread and butter with dignity and honor. Subsequent governments in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir followed suit to destabilize the base of the KP’s from the valley, under a well knit plan, when mass exoduses of KP’s took place from time to time, thus limiting the population of KP’s to just to a miniscule one in Kashmir. This respected MLA who spoke at length about the abrogation of Article 370 and end of Jagirdhari rule with Sheikh Abdullah’s taking over the reins of governance of Jammu and Kashmir, should very politely know that with Sheikhs taking over, when the rule of Maharaja Hari Singh needed it started the another dynasty rule in J&K which is still in operation. Sheikh Sahib ruled up to 1953 and subsequently remained in detention etc, till 1975. He again aspired to come back to power, forgetting his slogans of plebiscite for Jammu and Kashmir, thus eluding the people of Kashmir on false and fake promises. He came back in power with a marginalized status of Chief Minister from his original status as the Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir. What a meltdown for power after 22 years of neglect and an oblivion state. Since then it is now the dynasty family rule in Jammu and Kashmir in one form or the other. He, His son, his son in law, his second son and then the grandson. Can it be disputed? What next who knows.
The plight of the forcibly Kashmiri Pandits may continue to remain the same under the circumstances’. The respected MLA who advocated the cause of restoration of Article 370 back, did not utter even a single word about the plight of Kashmiri Pandits regarding their mass forced exodus from Kashmir, due to their genocide in the shape of mass killings, loot, arson and the like through the terror acts of the Islamic fundamentalist militants, mostly abetted by the local population of Kashmir. Should he and the government of the day feel shy and sorrowful about the shameful act of brutally gang raping and torturing a young Kashmiri Pandit woman named as Girja Tickoo before being murdered in the most inhumane way possible. She was dismembered alive using a mechanical saw. Her remains were discarded near the Jhelum River. This respected MLA with a communist base is seeking the restoration of Article 370, when if some prudence of decency is left in him and others, they should first seek apology from the entire KP community for such brutalities.
The January month of each year after the 19th January-1990, haunts each and every Kashmiri Pandit, living in forced exile across the country of the horrors and woes of this month, when they were forced to flee from Kashmir due to the terror dragon of the Islamist fundamentalists on this day. Screaming from loud speakers from mosques 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 35 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.
Under such conditions of terror and fanatic fundamentalists approaches in Kashmir, Kashmiri Pandit’s will aspire that no statehood should be given back to J&K, unless the KP’s are not rehabilitated back in Kashmir with dignity and honor. It is their right.
Let the present legislative assembly under the leadership of Omar Abdullah pass a resolution declaring such acts of terror as barbaric acts against the norms of human rights and ensure the return of Kashmir Pandits back in Kashmir with dignity and honor and prepare proper ground for the same.
Equally the Jammu regions and its people should not be deprived of their basic right of growing equally at par with Kashmir in every field of the development of Jammu and Kashmir. In the alternative, Jammu may become another Ladakh to seek separation form J & K. In that case Kashmir the paradise will be reduced to a paradise without limbs. Let us not see that day.
(The author is a chartered consultant civil engineer)
