The crisis of Kashmiri Pandit Identity

19 January 2012 will complete 22 years in exile for Kashmiri Pandits(KP).This minority community of Kashmir were forced to leave their hearth and Homes 22 years back as there was total anarchy and oglocracy in Kashmir. some rabid , religious fundamental zealots were on rampage and Target shooting of KP’s had become their Hobby.In this whole chaos KP homes were plundered and some pyromaniacs set many KP houses on fire. All this happened on the name of Jihad.

At least 4 lakh KP’s left their homeland in the chilling nights of jan 1990 to safeguard their lives, honor and dignity. Today this beleaguered community is scattered all over world-Thanks to Govt. Apathy-with majority of Kp’s dwelling in India particularly Jammu and Delhi Region.

Even after 22 years GOI has no blue print to bring back KP’s to their Homeland-Kashmir. GOI has negated the fact that KP’s are refugees in their own country, they better call KP’s Internally Displaced. Technically or terminologically they may be right but this terminology is more of a Hogwash, a misnomer as “Internally displaced” tag of KP’s misleads one to think that Govt. is going to reverse the migration of KP’s from Kashmir. Till today-even after 22 years nothing has happened.

Post 1990,The successive governments led by either National conference or PDP, came to power in J&K with the support of congress(i), have been pre-occupied with other things and most of their activities are executed with one thing in mind-to increase the vote bank-Unfortunately KP’s do not form any sizeable vote bank and thus the Rights of KP’s have been depredated from time to time, especially since Jan 1990.

Jammu region has a majority of Hindu population and overall in J&K, Hindus constitute around 30% of the total population. Being a Muslim majority state most of the policies are majority centric. Hindus of J& K have felt disadvantageous at many times, particularly in Govt. employments, they also don’t get the subsidies which their counterparts enjoy in Kashmir. Till today there has not been a single Hindu who has made it to become the chief Minister of J&K.

Religion and Culture are the bipods of healthy community, Jammu being a Hindu majority Region has given ample scope to everyone to practice their religion and Culture unlike Kashmir where KP’s faced the brunt of religious apartheid.
Today, K.P’s stand at crossroads, their homeland is so near still so far, their culture and religion is at the brink of extinction, their identity is being erased slowly by the polity of that Nation for which they were killed, raped, hounded and exiled. The need of the Hour is to preserve the unique culture and identity of KP’s, the unique identity that was soul of Kashmir, all that can happen only when KP’s come back to Kashmir-Their motherland .

The million dollar question arises,” can they come back to Kashmir and live as they used to?” the answer is a big “NO”. Most of the houses belonging to KP’s have been either sold out in distress, or they have been burnt down or they have been illegally captured by nefarious elements backed either by Govt. Machinery or Pakistan backed terrorists. The fact is they have nowhere to go if they come back to Kashmir.

Government knows this important point, they have in fact built some ghettos for KP’s where some Kp’s are residing, particularly those who were given jobs in Kashmir, Some of these KP’s have alleged that 4-5 people share a common room in these Ghettos and many basic facilities are missing in these government flats. These temporary ghettos are not a answer for reverse migration of KP’s. This way religious freedom and cultural identity of KP’s cannot be preserved. Anyways Ghettos give a feeling of being a alien.

The other viable solution is a separate homeland which is most popularly known as “Panun Kashmir”. This Homeland can preserve the religion, culture and identity of KP’s for generations. Panun Kashmir is a Homeland demand of KP’s that will enjoy a union territory status like Chandigarh and all those will be welcomed here who believe in India and Indian constitution.

For some reasons the present Govt. is opposing this demand also. Some of the govt. agencies have twisted the concept of Homeland of KP’s as sacrilegious and projected this demand akin to accession of Kashmir with Pakistan.

In either ways the Govt’s apathy is driving KP’s to oblivion. Govt at State or at center should make it a point that KP’s are brought back to Kashmir.22 years has passed and nothing concrete has been done to preserve the identity of Kashmiri Pandits. These 22 years have made me believe slowly but steadily that in future also Govt. will not do anything except wait and watch.

Tibetans have been given infrastructure, environment and everything else by the Indian Govt. just to protect their identity whereas KP’s have been deprived everything that can preserve their religion and culture. I have come to this conclusion that Govt. should now do one last favor to KP’s- Declare KP’s as Refugees and let KP’s reach out to other countries who have laws to protect the religious freedom and culture. At least that way cohesiveness of KP’s will prevail and their culture and religion will be saved.

I will be more than happy if my conclusion will be proven wrong by Govt’s deeds in coming 365 days.

Jews and HIndus: Building A Passage to India

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/11102#.Tw6VhYHU5hw

Jews and HIndus have both been victims of attempted extermination by Islamics. Of course, not all Muslims are terrorists. But today, most terrorists are Muslims. A speech to Hindu youth in Pune.

On January 8, 2012, I delivered a rather passionate speech in Pune, India via skype. I was invited to do so by “Youth 4 Panun Kashmir.” The organizers were especially interested in my drawing parallels between Israel and India, Jews and Hindus both of whom have, historically, been genocidally exterminated and driven out of their holy places.

I was approached to speak partly because I have written about Islamic terrorism in India before and partly because I recently took up the case of Dr. Subramanian Swamy, an Indian political leader and economist, who was wrongfully dismissed by Harvard after twenty years for daring to take a “controversial” stand against Islamic terrorism in India.

 Here is part of what I said. I think it will be of interest to the readers of Israel National News and perhaps to Israeli diplomats who are in touch with their counterparts in India, because Dr. Swamy was the highest ranking Indian leader to first visit Israel in the early 1980s. His visits led to the establishment of an Indian Embassy and an Israeli Embassy in Israel and India.

My speech:

 It is my great pleasure to be with you today. Namaste. There should be an international outcry on behalf of the near-extinction of the Hindus of Kashmir, an outcry at the United Nations about the Hindu refugees who were forced to flee Kashmir to escape horrific Islamic violence.

 The Indian government is also afraid to confront the growing threat of Islamic terrorism. Now, only two-three thousand Hindu Kashmiris dare to remain; they are in a very dangerous situation.

 Why is the world utterly indifferent to this—your—tragedy?

 Because today, there is only one refugee group in the world that matters. It is the utterly imaginary group known as the “Palestinians.” This group is composed of four to five generations of Egyptians, Syrians, Jordanians, Iraqis, Bedu, and tribes who once lived in the Holy Land under the Romans, the Christians, the Turks, and the British but who themselves claimed no nationality until well after World War Two, when their so-called nationality became the justification for a terrorist campaign against the only Jewish state in the world.

This privileged group of refugees has been living on enormous world sympathy and on UN, European, and American funding; rather, their leaders have been living well on UNRWA funding and using the excess monies to wage a ruthless war against Israel.

The UN does not care about your people, the Hindu Kashmiris, who are facing extinction and who wish to return to peacefully practice their religion where their ancestors once lived and flourished. You are not demanding the exile of Muslim Kashmiris. But, like Jews and other infidel groups, you have been terrorized and persecuted by the intolerant practices of Islamic religious apartheid.

 The UN is a morally bankrupt organization of tyrannies. Neither India, nor Israel, nor the United States should be supporting it. As you may know, Western thought has grown exceedingly “politically correct,” but in a way that only George Orwell or Lewis Carroll could fully comprehend. The world is, quite simply, completely upside down and not all “pigs” are equal. The democratic West, Israel, and India all value freedom, a free press, separation of religion and state, and individual rights. This is one of the reasons that free countries are demonized as quintessentially evil. America and Israel are repeatedly accused of imperialism, colonialism, racism, “occupation,” and apartheid.

 University professors at the most distinguished institutions have absolutely no idea about Islam’s long and terrible history of colonialism, imperialism, forced conversion, racism, slavery, and both gender and religious apartheid. Islamic culture practices gender and religious apartheid for which they are never held accountable; Israel is falsely scapegoated as an “apartheid” state when it tries to defend itself from terrorism.

This is something that you in India, especially those of you who are longing to live safely and proudly as Hindus in Kashmir know a good deal about.

We now know that Muslims mass-slaughtered Hindus and buried them in mass graves in the 1990s in Kashmir. As of 1989, Pakistan funded the terrorists to do this. Sixty thousand people died. Kashmiri Hindus fled in droves to India. But they yearn for Kashmir and for Kashmir’s holy temples, many of which have been turned into mosques and masjids.

 When one tries to talk about Islamic religious and gender apartheid or about Islamic terrorism, one is immediately demonized as an “Islamophobe” and a “racist.” One loses one’s reputation as a “good” person. One also loses one’s friends and employment possibilities.

This has just happened to one of India’s true heroes, Dr. Subramanian Swamy at Harvard University. I have recently written about this and will say a few words about this travesty shortly. Today, a person may find herself on trial for committing the crime of “hate speech” by telling the truth about certain Islamic practices. This is happening all over Europe. One is censored. One begins to censor oneself. Cartoons that offend, criticism, however accurate, that offends…Muslim fundamentalists and their western supporters, are simply not published.

The speech, the illustration, is seen as the “provocation.” The violent response is overlooked. Let me be clear. Not all Muslims are terrorists. But today, most terrorists are Muslims. Many Muslims wish to live in peace, yearn for peace. And yet, they do not risk standing up to their Islamist leaders. Those who do are in prison or have already been tortured or murdered.

But let the facts be known. Eighty million Hindus were slaughtered by Muslims in only five centuries. Hindu Temples became mosques and masjids. Even today, Muslims are entering India illegally and carrying along with them both criminals and terrorists.

The Indian government, including the police, is afraid to stop them. The Indian government certainly does not want to fight Muslims and Islamists and terrorists for the sake of Kashmir. They are allowing these illegal immigrants to kidnap, rape, forcibly convert and marry Hindu girls to Muslims. They are also allowing illegal takeovers of land.

Jews—my people—were also persecuted and genocidally exterminated. We lived in exile, mainly suffering, sometimes flourishing, never giving up our longing for the Holy Land. Through religious practices, prayer, and culture, we found the strength to return again and again to our homeland, our roots. We now have the only Jewish state in the world: Israel.

The Muslim Middle East cannot abide an independent Jewish presence, however small, in its midst. Israel has been at war, militarily since its birth in 1948. It is still under existential siege. It is scapegoated for the sins and crimes of the Arab and Muslim aggressors—who are seen as “victims,” noble, pure, innocent.

 Kashmiri Hindus are not welcome in Kashmir, their legendary birthplace. The numbers of Kashmiri Hindus who are willing to live there under dangerous conditions, has dangerously dwindled. Barbarian Islamists have committed atrocities. The United Nations has not weighed in against this. It is a useless organization of tyrannies. Kashmir is the symbol of Muslim genocide and Muslim imperialism.

That is why Dr. Swamy has called for the Indian government to revoke Article #370. It represents a policy of appeasement towards Muslim Pakistan at the time of partition Memories linger, fester. There is no one who is willing to stand up to Islamic aggression on behalf of Hindus who have the same right to live in Kashmir as Muslims may have.

 Dr. Swamy has pointed out the numerous and egregious crimes committed by Muslim fundamentalists in India: terrorism, kidnapping, religious and gender apartheid, colonialism, imperialism, barbarism. Identifying and stating the problem is the first necessary and courageous step in this battle for human justice. We need to retain and develop a collective mindset to stand against the terrible and increasing threat of Islamic terrorism.

 As you may know, the dismissed professor—the shame is entirely Harvard’s to bear—I am talking about Dr. Swamy, is also something of a swashbuckling hero. In 1976, Dr. Swamy exposed and challenged corruption in Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s “emergency authoritarian” rule in India and had to flee the country twice as a result. However, due to his campaign Gandhi allowed long overdue elections. In 1972, Swamy lost his professorship at the Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi, due to his crusade for both academic freedom and for the union rights of non-teaching Institute employees. After twenty years of litigation, the courts reinstated Swamy with full honors.In 1987, Dr. Swamy undertook a fast unto death to demand an inquiry into the illegal killing of Muslim youth by the police in Hashimpura, Meerut. The government finally yielded to his demand for which Swamy was hailed by India’s minorities.

I am especially glad that Dr. Swamy initiated a normalization of relations between India and Israel. This is an important alliance for many reasons.

I am reminded of a quote by Mahatma Gandhi: “One needs to be slow to form convictions, but once formed they must be defended against the heaviest odds.” Similarly, Ben-Gurion said: “Courage is a special kind of knowledge: the knowledge of how to fear what ought to be feared and how not to fear what ought not to be feared.”