GL Raina
The political exploitation of the Kashmiri Pandit community has long been a tragic subplot in the broader Kashmir narrative. From hollow gestures of inclusivity to outright marginalisation, political parties-particularly the National Conference (NC) and the Congress-have systematically used the community as a prop to bolster their secular credentials while doing little to address their historical suffering or systemic exclusion.
The National Conference, born out of the transformation of the Muslim Conference, strategically used Kashmiri Pandits to portray a secular image in the post-1947 era. However, the same party was quick to brand the community as “fifth columnists” the moment they questioned its duplicity-especially the contradictions between its constitutional commitments and ground-level communal politics. The Congress Party, meanwhile, wielded the community’s plight as a political tool-using it to attack opponents but never to uplift the victims.
Both parties held uninterrupted power in Jammu and Kashmir for decades post-independence. It was during their rule that the Pandits faced incremental isolation, systematic exclusion, and eventual ethnic cleansing in 1989. And instead of accepting responsibility for their acts of omission and commission, both NC and Congress resorted to scapegoating-crafting what came to be known as the “Jagmohan Theory,” blaming the exodus on the then Governor to deflect from their own failures.
Post-Exodus Silence and Shadow Play
Even after the forced displacement of the Pandits, the NC-Congress alliance continued to dominate the Kashmir discourse, ensuring that the real story of the genocide and displacement remained suppressed. Whenever Kashmiri Pandits independently attempted to expose the communal and criminal underpinnings of the separatist movement, these parties sprang into action to undermine and delegitimize those efforts.
The extent of this political callousness is visible in critical moments of governance. Consider two telling instances:
- The 1996 J&K Legislative Assembly Condolence Resolution:
After nearly a decade of political void post-1987 (arguably the most controversial elections after 1951), the J&K Assembly reconvened. In its inaugural sitting, it passed a condolence resolution, paying tribute to national and regional figures who had passed away in the intervening years. Shockingly, despite the documented assassinations of hundreds of Kashmiri Pandits-academicians, doctors, journalists, bureaucrats, and public intellectuals-not a single name from the community found mention. This glaring omission was not an oversight; it was a statement. - The 2008 UPA Government’s Working Groups:
Formed to recommend confidence-building measures in Kashmir, these groups, headed by former Vice President Hamid Ansari, clubbed the plight of Kashmiri Pandits with orphans of slain militants-suggesting welfare measures for both “as a goodwill gesture.” Equating genocide victims with families of terrorists is not just insulting; it’s morally indefensible.
Moreover, key recommendations-such as the establishment of a State Minority Commission and empowering the State Human Rights Commission with its own investigative wing-were never implemented, exposing the insincerity behind the rhetoric.
Tokenism Masquerading as Concern
The Congress has since mastered the art of tokenism. A case in point: the party’s 2023 Karnataka Assembly election manifesto, which promised Rs 15 crore to set up a “Kashmiri Culture Centre.” It also pledged a one-time grant of Rs 25 crore and an annual Rs 1 crore allocation via the Department of Kannada Culture. As of today, not a single rupee has materialised. The announcement was, like many before it, a headline without substance.
Fast forward to 2024, and the same political ecosystem is now scrambling to claim credit for a Private Member’s Bill on Kashmiri Pandits.
The Private Member’s Bill: Hope with Caveats
Senior Congress MP and Kashmiri Pandit, Shri Vivek Tankha, tabled the Kashmiri Pandits (Recourse, Restitution, Rehabilitation and Resettlement) Bill in 2022, which lapsed with the end of his Rajya Sabha term. He reintroduced it in February 2024. The President of India has now granted the constitutional recommendation required under Article 117(3) for financial bills, allowing the Bill to be considered in Parliament.
While this is a meaningful procedural step, one must remain realistic: only 14 private member bills have ever become law in independent India, with the last one passed in 1970. Passage of this Bill will require extraordinary political will, cross-party consensus, and sustained public advocacy.
Let it be clear-this is an individual initiative, not a party position. The Congress has yet to formally back the Bill. Organisations like GKPD (Global Kashmiri Pandit Diaspora) and individual community members played a pivotal role in pushing this initiative forward, not the Congress party machinery.
Where Does the BJP Stand?
In contrast, the BJP-led government has implemented many components of what this Bill proposes-especially in areas of financial support, documentation of atrocities, and institutional recognition. However, the most vital aspect-physical rehabilitation-remains incomplete.
In 2015-16, the Union Government initiated plans for townships to rehabilitate displaced Pandits. But these efforts were sabotaged by Kashmir-centric parties, including the NC and Congress, who outrageously dubbed the resettlement plan as a “Mossad-style” conspiracy. These parties continue to demand “scattered resettlement,” a model that has been unanimously rejected by the Pandit community for being insecure, unrealistic, and disrespectful.
Conclusion: The Duplicity Persists
Until the NC and Congress introspect on their historical role and current duplicity, their outreach towards the Pandit community will continue to ring hollow. Today’s optics-driven gestures cannot erase decades of betrayal, indifference, and silent complicity in the community’s suffering.
The path to justice for Kashmiri Pandits demands more than Bills and manifestos. It requires political courage, historical honesty, and above all, an unambiguous moral stance. Until that happens, the Pandit community remains right to be skeptical-and vigilant.
(The writer is a former Member of the Legislative Council of Jammu Kashmir)
