Skip to main content

Non-migrant Kashmiri Pandits, Sikhs, secular Muslims now insecure: Plea to Lt Governor

Counterview Desk
An online petition floated by well-known human rights organisation, Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP), has asked Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Lt Governor to "protect minorities in Kashmir Valley", insisting, Union territory administration should protect "Hindus, Sikhs and other vulnerable groups" from terrorists, who kill seven people.
Floated jointly with the Kashmiri Pandit Sangharsh Samiti (KPSS), the petition by CJP, which is led by Teesta Setalvad, who has fought several cases of 2002 Gujarat communal riots victims, says, not only vulnerable minorities like Kashmiri Pandits (KP) and Sikhs have been targeted, the terrorists are "also not sparing patriotic and secular Muslims."

Text:

Terrorism has raised its ugly head in the Kashmir Valley yet again. Terrorists have gunned down seven people in just five days.
  • On October 2, terrorists killed Majid Ahmad Gojri and Mohammad Shafi Dar for their alleged links with the security forces in Srinagar.
  • On October 5, militants killed well known businessman Makan Lal Bindroo, whose family set up a medical shop in the Valley back in 1947. He was gunned down at his shop in the high-security zone of the Iqbal Park area. Others killed include Virendra Paswan a street food vendor originally hailing from Bhagalpur in Bihar, and Mohammed Shafi Lone a resident of Naidkhai village, who headed an association of taxi owners in Shahgund village in Bandipora.
  • On October 7, two teachers, Deepak Chand, a Kashmiri Pandit and Satinder Kour, a Sikh woman, became the latest to fall to bullets of militants.
This spate of killings shows that terror groups, out to destabilise the region, are once again targeting people hailing from vulnerable minorities like Kashmiri Pandits (KP) and Sikhs. They are also not sparing patriotic and secular Muslims.
In light of this new round of bloodletting, Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) and our partner organization in the Valley – Kashmiri Pandit Sangharsh Samiti (KPSS), demand that security be stepped up to protect our fellow Indians in Kashmir – be they Kashmiri Pandits, Sikhs or Muslims. We cannot allow terror groups to dictate terms to us, and especially not tear us apart along religious lines.
Kashmir has always been a particularly volatile region and minorities such as Kashmiri Pandits and Sikhs have suffered disproportionately, especially those families that chose to stay back. The story of the forced exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the Kashmir valley in 1990 is well known. But what few people know, is that even today 808 KP families are still living in 242 locations spread across the Valley. At least 150 of these are Below Poverty Line (BPL) households where people struggle for food and medical care.
Apart from economic challenges, over 500 youth from these non-migrant KP families who are eligible for government’s employment schemes are yet to be given these benefits. Earlier, the number was 600, but due to delays in implementation of the employment scheme, almost 100 of them have now crossed the age limit to be eligible!
 Today 808 KP families are still living in 242 locations across the Valley. At least 150 of these are Below Poverty Line
In an even more shocking move, security that was earlier provided to members of the community, was withdrawn, and Kashmiri Pandit families, especially vocal community leaders are now left to their own devices to protect themselves. Over 100 memoranda by the KPSS failed to elicit any concrete response and a heartless regime also ignored two hunger strikes by the KP group.
All of these factors have snowballed into the carnage that we see in the Valley today.
Therefore, CJP and KPSS demand:
  • The immediate restoration of security cover to these vulnerable people who appear to be the main target of terror groups aiming to destabilise the region.
  • Swift action against terror groups, without persecuting innocent civilians.
  • The Lt Governor meet with representatives of groups like KPSS and other minorities, to not only discuss security measures, but also to set into motion political and administrative rehabilitation of minorities in the Valley.
  • Preservation of cultural and religious sites of these minorities in the Valley.
We urge the Lt Governor to immediately look into and respond to these demands to prevent further blood from being shed in the Valley. We urge all Indians to sign this petition to protect our fellow Indians in Kashmir.

Comments

TRENDING

'Enough evidence' in Indian tradition to support legal basis for same-sex marriage

By Iyce Malhotra, Joseph Mathai, Sandeep Chachra*  The ongoing hearing in the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage provides space for much-needed conversations on issues that have hitherto remained “invisible” or engaged with patriarchal locker room humour. We must recognize that people with diverse sexualities and complex gender identities have faced discrimination, stigma and decades of oppression. Their issues have mainly remained buried in dominant social discourse, and many view them with deep insecurities.

Savarkar 'criminally betrayed' Netaji and his INA by siding with the British rulers

By Shamsul Islam* RSS-BJP rulers of India have been trying to show off as great fans of Netaji. But Indians must know what role ideological parents of today's RSS/BJP played against Netaji and Indian National Army (INA). The Hindu Mahasabha and RSS which always had prominent lawyers on their rolls made no attempt to defend the INA accused at Red Fort trials.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Victim of communal violence, Christians in Manipur want Church leadership to speak up

By Fr Cedric Prakash SJ*  The first eleven days of May 2023 have, in many ways, been a defining period of Indian history! Plenty has happened in a rapid-fire stream of events. Ironically, each one of them are indicators of how crimes and the criminalisation of society has become the ‘new norm’; these include, the May Day rallies with a focus on the four labour codes which are patently against the rights of workers; the U S Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its Annual Report on 1 May stating that conditions for religious freedom in India “continued to worsen in 2022”; the continued protest by the Indian women wrestlers at Jantar Mantar for the expulsion of the chief of the Indian Wrestlers Federation on very serious allegations; the Elections in Karnataka on 10 May (with communalism and corruption as the mainstay); the release of the fake, derogative and insensitive film ‘The Kerala Story’; the release of World Free Press Index on 3 May which places India

Delhi HC rules in favour of retired Air Force officer 'overcharged' for Covid treatment

By Rosamma Thomas*  In a decision of May 22, 2023, the Delhi High Court ruled in favour of petitioner Group Captain Suresh Khanna who was under treatment at CK Birla Hospital, Gurugram, between April 28 and May 5, 2021, for a period of eight days, for Covid-19 pneumonia. The petitioner had to pay Rs 3,55,286 as treatment costs, but the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) only reimbursed him for Rs 1,83,748, on the basis of government-approved rates. 

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Unlike other revolutionaries, Hindutva icon wrote 5 mercy petitions to British masters

By Shamsul Islam*  The Hindutva icon VD Savarkar of the RSS-BJP rulers of India submitted not one, two,or three but five mercy petitions to the British masters! Savarkarites argue: “There are no evidences to prove that Savarkar collaborated with the British for his release from jail. In fact, his appeal for release was a ruse. He was well aware of the political developments outside and wanted to be part of it. So he kept requesting for his release. But the British authorities did not trust him a bit” (YD Phadke, ‘A complex Hero’, "The Indian Expres"s, August 31, 2004)

India joining US sponsored trade pillar to hurt Indian farmers, 'promote' GM seeds, food

Counterview Desk  As many as 32 civil society organisations (CSOs), in a letter to Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and India joining the trade pillar, have said that its provisions will allow the US to ensure a more favourable regulatory regime “for enhancing its exports of genetically modified (GM) seeds and GM food”, underlining, it will “significantly hurt the livelihoods of Indian farmers.”

Savarkar 'opposed' Bhagat Singh's, Netaji's dream of India, supported British war efforts

By Shamsul Islam* In a shocking development, the student wing of the RSS put the busts of martyrs Bhagat Singh and Subhash Chandra Bose with Savarkar's on one pedestal at the University of Delhi late in the night on August 20, 2019. Bhagat Singh sacrificed his life for a socialist-democratic-secular republic and Netaji raised Azad Hind Fauj (INA) consisting of people of all religions and regions for armed liberation of India.

Undermining law, breastfeeding? Businesses 'using' celebrities to promote baby food

By Rajiv Shah  A report prepared by the top child welfare NGO, Breastfeeding Promotion Network of India (BPNI), has identified as many as 15 offenders allegedly violating the Indian baby food law, the Infant Milk Substitutes Feeding Bottles, and Infant Foods (Regulation of Production, Supply and Distribution) Act 1992, and Amendment Act 2003 (IMS Act), stating, compliance with the law “seems to be dwindling by the day.”