Remembering The Mass Exodus: Kashmiri Pandits Endless Wait For Justice Even After Three Decades

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The Logical Indian Crew

Remembering The Mass Exodus: Kashmiri Pandits' Endless Wait For Justice Even After Three Decades

Thirty-two years ago, what took place in Kashmir on January 19 night has been labelled by most community members as a time of complete terror and hostility, which was not seen before anywhere.

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The date January 19 is not just a regular date for many but is an occasion to remember a bitter truth from the past of India's secular politics and polity. The date is widely observed as a Remembrance Day by the Kashmiri Pandit (KP) community annually, a day where they mourne the loss of lives, livelihood, home, culture, etc. The day is also significant to remember the failure of the administration and civil society during that time.

Thirty-two years ago, what took place in Kashmir on January 19 night has been labelled by most community members as a time of complete terror and hostility, which was not seen before anywhere.

An entire population slept or kept its eyes and ears shut even as fanatics rained hell on the Valley streets and roads, threatening to kill and rape the 'kafirs' if they did not leave Kashmir.

What Had Happened?

At that time, no one stood up to stop the mobs that took charge of everything in the Valley; none ended the hateful speeches. While the administration themselves had withered away, the cops became non-functional as well.

Meanwhile, leaders like late Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, Farooq Abdullah, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Saifuddin Soz and others-- who have claimed to be the votaries of secularism, were also quiet. The then Chief Minister of J&K in 1986-1990, Farooq Abdullah and Union Home Minister (1989-1990) Mufti Mohd Sayeed, under whom terrorism in Kashmir witnessed a significant uprise.

The majority number of targeted killings of Sikhs, Kashmiri Pandits and all of those who were marked as 'pro-India', brutal killing and gang-rapes of Pandit women, kidnappings, attacks and harassment of the Valley's minority, desecration of temples were all taking place when the above-mentioned two were at the helm.

Furthermore, no human rights organisations were pointing out towards the community's plight, who were left to flee or perish. A community that provided India with its first Prime Minister and numerous top bureaucrats, intellectuals, and diplomats were left to fend for itself.

Also, January 19 further exposes the hollowness of India's top constitutional institutions, which failed to take note of the investigation, atrocities and prosecute all the individuals involved in the exodus and persecution of their fellow citizens.

Kashmiri Pandit Still Waiting For Justice

Even after three decades of the mass exodus, no one of the successive governments at the Centre or in the state managed to set up a commission or construct an SIT to investigate the exodus.

When more than five lakh people had no other option but to leave behind their land, shouldn't it be the natural course of action for top legal institutions or the government to probe the matter and punish the perpetrators?

In 2019, the central government -- for the first time in three decades -- had agreed that a mass genocide had taken place in the Valley and imposed a ban on the JKLF. According to Deccan Herald, Rajiv Gauba, the then Union Home Secretary, had commented: "JKLF chief Yasin Malik was the mastermind behind the genocide and exodus of Kashmiri Pandits."

Gauba further stated that the murders of Kashmiri Pandits by the JKLF in 1989 had also triggered their exodus from the Valley.

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Writer : Snehadri Sarkar
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Editor : Shiva Chaudhary
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Creatives : Snehadri Sarkar

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