Kashmiri Hindus mark 31 years in exile from their homeland

Kashmiri Pandits have been protesting for 100 days in Jammu for the government to resettle them in Kashmir Valley with government jobs. Photo by Zaffar Iqbal.

SRINAGAR — Paras Pandita, 17, has never seen Kashmir. He was born many years after his family migrated to the Southern city of Jammu from Anantnag when separatist violence erupted in Kashmir Valley in the early nineties.

They were first allotted a one-room tenement in a migrant camp for Kashmiri Hindus, also known as Kashmiri Pandits, on the outskirts of Jammu. But 10 years ago, the family of five shifted to an apartment in a township built for Kashmiri Pandits at Jagti, 30 kilometers from Jammu. The thought of a home still eludes Pandita, born and brought up in Jammu. But the idea of returning to Kashmir is overcast with fears of violence. It’s the most militarily-occupied region in the world.

On Jan. 19, Kashmiri Pandits marked 31 years since their migration. In the 90’s, an estimated 300,000 Kashmiri Hindus fled for their lives amid separatist violence and settled outside Kashmir in places like Jammu and Delhi. Many Pandits today are eager to return to Kashmir. Some see Kashmiri Muslims as their neighbors and don’t blame them for their exodus. Others are angry at Kashmiri Muslims for their displacement and loss of property and lives.

Kashmir had acceded to India at the time of India’s independence in 1947 rather than merging with a Muslim Pakistan. Nearly 7 million people live in the Kashmir Valley today, 97% of them Muslims. About 50,000 people have been killed in conflict in the last three decades, mainly between Indian security forces and Kashmiri militant separatists (some funded by Pakistani terror groups), according to government figures.

The Himalayan region is divided between India and Pakistan. India rules the Valley of Kashmir, the Hindu-dominated Jammu region and the Ladakh region bordering China. The territory in the west is ruled by Pakistan. Both India and Pakistan claim the region in full.

Pandita along with other Kashmiri Pandit friends have formed a volleyball team at the Pandit Township. They have been playing the sport together during the coronavirus lockdown period. Their conversations mostly revolve around Kashmiri language, culture and separation. Growing up away from Kashmir has meant that they have been cut off from their roots. Most of them have never visited Kashmir and can barely speak the Kashmiri language. A sense of loss is evident, but they are proud of their identity. 

A Kashmiri Hindu woman fills a bucket with water outside her home in a Pandit colony in Budgam, Kashmir. Photo by Taha Zahoor.

“At the moment it is difficult for us to return to Kashmir given the security situation there. But if the situation improves we will definitely move back,” Pandita said. “The exodus has meant a loss of culture and given us an uncertain future.” 

On Aug. 5, 2019, the Indian parliament ended Kashmir’s semi-autonomous rule, splitting the region into two territories under the direct rule of the central government in New Delhi, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The Indian government imposed an unprecedented communication blackout for more than six months, blocking the Internet and phone lines for millions of people under the guise of security, an attempt to shut down protests. High speed Internet remains blocked. 

The Indian government also introduced new land laws to pave way for non-Kashmiris (Hindus) to settle in the country’s only Muslim-majority region. But for the indigenous Pandit population, today living outside of Kashmir, nothing really changed. Thirty-one years since they left Kashmir, there is still a lack of clarity about a government-sponsored return. Every time there are elections, political parties come up with new promises for their return, but there is no roadmap on the ground.

Chand Rani, 85, whose husband is 90, says her last wish is to return to Kashmir, the land where she was born and spend the best years of her life. Her family of four migrated to Jammu in 1990 from Anantnag at the height of militancy in the Kashmir valley.

They were among more than 4,000 families that moved into the township at Jagti a decade back. They were allotted two-room sets which were meant to make their lives a little more comfortable. But the colony of Kashmiri Pandits presents a picture of neglect. Some of the houses are dilapidated. The walls are damp with water seeping from blocked pipes.

Rani says the family owned two houses in Kashmir but none exists now.

“Our exodus was God’s wish,” Rani said. “Nothing will come out by merely thinking about returning to Kashmir.”

The plan for resettling Kashmiri Hindus was launched during the Congress Party-led government 10 years ago and is seen as the most significant effort made for a return of Kashmiri Pandits to the valley. Three thousand Kashmiri Pandits were given government jobs to settle in Kashmir with their families in colonies, and 1,200 Pandits returned and live in migrant colonies in Kashmir. The government decided to give 3,000 additional government jobs and 6,000 transit accommodations to Kashmiri Pandits returning to the valley.  

But the ones who have moved to Kashmir already say if those planning to come to the valley were to see their poor quality of life, they may not be as optimistic. More than security concerns, it's the day to day problems that are most worrying. They say the government should create the right conditions and facilities for their return. And in Jammu, people living in migrant camps say jobs are secondary, but they are too scared to return to the valley. However, for some like Bharti, livelihood issues dominate over everything else.

Bharti is among the 45 Kashmiri Pandits who have been protesting in Jammu for the last 100 days demanding the fulfilment of the government promise of jobs in return of their going back to Kashmir. She had applied for a government job under the scheme 10 years back and is still waiting for employment. She says their non-selection smacks of injustice with them and with their families.

“Our families are suffering due to unemployment,” she said. “We want to return to Kashmir and serve with our Muslim brothers and sisters. On one hand, the government says it is serious for the return of Kashmiri Pandits to Kashmir, but on the other hand people like us who want to genuinely want to go back and work there don’t get an opportunity to do that.”

For the first time since Kashmir’s changed status, a local election last month voted out BJP candidates. Sunil Pandita, a Kashmiri Pandit, won a seat as an independent candidate in the Panchayat (rural) elections from a segment in his hometown of Kupwara in North Kashmir, even though he lives in Jammu in a migrant camp.

He says his heart is always in Kashmir, and distance can’t separate him from his fellow Kashmiri Muslims and to serve the people there.

Zaffar Iqbal is a journalist based in Kashmir, India. He has reported for 18 years on armed encounters, environmental issues, crime, politics, culture and human rights. He’s formerly the bureau chief of Jammu and Kashmir for NDTV.