Lal Ded

Lalded or Lalleswari has dominated the linguistic, cultural and spiritual landscape of Kashmir since the last 700 years. Born in early 14th CE, she cultivated the moral and ethical tapestry in the minds and hearts of people. Her out pouring in the form of vaakhs, are part and parcel of Kashmiri day to day life. She can be called the pioneer of Kashmiri language, whose contribution to Kashmiri cultural and literary field remains unmatched and unparalleled.

While reassessing the life and times of Lalded, it is important to go through the journey of her life, which is arduous and uplifting at the same time. Her vaakhs are based on her own self experience; at one place she says;
*yim pad lali vany tim hridi ank
Brand on your heart what Lalla spoke in verse!*

Early Life

Lalded was born to a learned Brahmin family and after receiving her early education she was married off quite early as per the practice in those times. Her married life was short-lived and painful. This tragedy turned her towards spirituality. She found her Guru in Siddha Srikantha, from whom she learned Kashmiri Shaivism, also known as Trika and took upon herself the goal of self-realisation. Under her preceptor she mastered the ‘Oneness with Supreme Consciousness’, i.e, the union of Jiva with Siva. Once she got fully realised, she embarked on her mission to educate her fellow countrymen on the essential nature of Reality which she had duly understood. Her Guru gave her the Trika upaya, that was the mantra to focus within; a mantra that enabled her to master herself. She says;
*andryum prakash nyabar tshot um gati rot um tu karmas thaph!*
I diffused outside the light that lit-up within me And in that darkness I seized Him and held Him tight!

Coming of Lalded as Yogini

Lalded followed the same path which was earlier followed by Bhatta Narayana and Utpaldeva who lived in 8 CE. Their outpourings resonate and reverberate with the experience of divine presence in their personal lives. Lalded’s verses are original and authentic which gives us an idea of her pain, vairagya, struggles and the power of mystical wonders. It seems that Lalla had an intimate desire for divine servitude which was the goal of her earthly existence. Lalded must have followed the Shakta School of Kashmir Shaivism where the female ascetics, also known as Yoginis, were easily initiated. Her vaakhs give us an insight into Sthan Kalpana, i.e., to meditate on breath and awaken the latent kundalini shakti, that she practiced. This method of realisation in Trika is known as Shaktopaya, where external objects are not worshipped but one is withdrawn inside.

Om-kar yeli laye onum
Wuhi korum panun pan
Shwot trovith ts sath rotum
Teli Lal bah wotchut prakash sthan.
When by concentration of my thought I brought the Pranava (Omkar) under my control, I made my body blazing coal, The six paths I traversed and gained the seventh, and then did I, Lalla, reach the place of illumination.
In this verse Lalla is explaining about the practice of awakening of kundalini and activating of the seven chakras which ultimately merge in Sahasrara Chakra which is the final beatitude. As per Trika praxis, yogis offer themselves to the blazing fire of consciousness to terminate the devouring gross and subtle forms of differentiation’s and seek the undifferentiated nectar of oneness with Siva. On her self-realisation, She says,
*Suh yeli dyuthum nishe panas , Soruy suy ta boh no keh*
When I beheld him, that He was near me, I saw that all was He, and that I am nothing.

Appropriation of Lalded

There is a well-orchestrated attempt to appropriate Lalded into Islam. Fictitious claims are made that Lalded was influenced by Sayyid Mir Ali Hamdani and she accepted Islam. This ill-conceived view is presented by Muslim scholars who cannot accept that someone like Lalded who, even today, dominates the cultural and spiritual landscape of Kashmir, can be a non-muslim. Imaginary references are attributed to Lalded meeting Sayyid Hamdani which is deliberately floated to hurt the Hindus. According to Mohammad Azam Dedamari’s work, “Waqiyat-e-Kashmir”, Lalded died during the rule of Sultan Shihab-ud-Din that ruled Kashmir between 1355 to 1373 CE. By then Sayid Hamdani was nowhere near Kashmir. On similar lines, Prof Jiyalal Kaul in his seminal work has mentioned the visit of Sayyid Hamdani in 1380 to 1386 CE. Therefore, in these investigative works, both the scholars have refuted the so-called meeting between Lalded and Sayyid Hamdani. However, some self-proclaimed scholars made another attempt to convince people that she was influenced by Sayyid Hussain Samanani. False and misleading constructs are being made to show that Lalded accepted Islam so as to change the whole narrative. The false agenda does not stop here, but goes to another level when the vaakhs are twisted and distorted and then attributed to Lalded with the aim of appropriating her legacy. One is piqued at the fallacious claims but we have a task to keep Lalded alive as it is our duty not only to resist this subversion but also counter this malafide design.

Lalded as Liberator

The political and social landscape of Kashmir was in doldrums during the lifetime of Lalded. She, being a mystic, could see the moral degradation of society and the compassionate soul in her forced her to convey her anguish in whatever possible way she could. Hence her vaakhs are reflection of the society of her times. Therefore, Lalded acted as a moral compass to awaken the society around her and warned the people about the temporary nature of human life. Her vaakhs at the same time are terse and prophetic. These challenged the orthodoxy and the way of life. She gave a voice to women and deprived sections and that is why her legacy is still alive in the collective conscience of the people. Her teachings represent the precepts of Trika philosophy as enunciated by predecessors of Trika theology. She conveyed the same so that people revert to their roots and revive their spiritual inheritance bequeathed to them by mystics, saints and scholars of Trika. Her whole emphasis was on Self-Recognition or what we call as Pratyabhijina in Trika.
This issue of Naad is therefore, is dedicated to this greatest jewel of Kashmir who is not only a historical figure and a mystic but a Patron Saint of Kashmir, even Nund Rishi accepts her glory when he says,

Tas padmanporci lale, Tami gale amret chehyo
Soa saen’ avatar lov lale, Tyuthuy me var ditto dayo

That lalla of Padmanpora (Pampore), She drank, her fill of divine nectar
She was indeed an avatar of ours (dearly loved), Oh! God grant me the same boon.

By-Sunil Raina Rajanaka

The Lost Native

I have just retired from the Indian Defense Services, namely the Indian Army, and I am now in the process of reorienting myself in an entirely different world. After putting in about 30 years of service with the Indian Army, I have come to realize that one is only born as a fauji. Now that I am looking back, the previous years of my life are rewritten by the colours of service shades.
The other day I was wondering why I experience such a sense of unease with the civilian environment; after all, I was born and brought up in this environment. I have been educated and groomed around this setup, yet it makes me feel so out of place after my retirement. How has the military training of such a short period successfully remoulded my personality forever and managed to erase the previous impressions and beliefs I had? From what I can see, the norms have changed, so have the ways of life that seem to be acceptable. Is this rather newly developed idea and way of life going to be of any advantage to me, or shall it put me in distress of unknown dimensions? All these answers feel like they will come forth in due course of time, but one thing is for sure, I am finding myself in a different environmental pool in which floating appears to be difficult, and if I’m being honest, swimming across will also be a very hard task.

Anyway, I am (Retd) Colonel Hira lal Kher from rural Kashmir. My family belonged to the Khar family of Batsargam, Kulgam Kashmir. Batsargam was a small beautiful village that fell within the district of Kulgam, in the now infamous valley of Kashmir! There were about ten Hindu and four Muslim families that considered Bastsargam as home back then. With all the Pandit families having moved out of Batsargam, my village is no more the same as it used to be, and I would not mind if it is called something else now. It has now become the victim of the unpleasant change in its culture, demography, structure, form, and shape in every respect.
A small Hindu majority village in the entire district was made Hindu free within no time. Obviously, everything in the village has changed for the worse as far as Kashmiri Pandits are concerned. Most of the families in my village were small-time landlords. The primary profession of all the residents was farming. In the villages, jobs were taken up as additional sources of income, and in some sense, they were also considered a social status symbol. Education was not on the front burner for most families back then, but it had started gaining importance, and efforts were made to educate the children more and more.
There were hardly any private schools in the villages and towns around Batsargaam, and the source of education was mainly Govt schools. The teachers those days were highly committed even though they weren’t all that qualified. Many teachers were hardly educated, and their contribution was obviously negative as they used to create an environment of disinterest and poor performance. However, it is important to mention here that few of the teachers were highly committed, and whatever students of that time achieved in their life subsequently, a major portion of the credit goes to these class of teachers. Respected teachers like Bashir Ahmed ( Maths), Bashir Ahmed (Science), Deena Nath Ji( Maths), Bushan Lal ji (Science), Md Ayub ( Non Medical), and many more stalwarts who have made a great deal of contribution in laying the foundation of many successful professionals subsequently. So by effect, their contribution to the society in general, and individual students in particular, is praiseworthy. I have my personal gratitude to all these Gurus and salute them with humility.

This is similar to the story of the rest of the valley, that is why you would find an overall development in the field of education in Kashmir. There may be many more factors, but the contribution of a few teachers, especially those of science and maths are the major contributors to this development. We, the students of the valley, never felt out of place or inferior in knowledge when we moved out of the valley for further education or training. The other factors, like the cheap fee and free education for the poor, also contributed simultaneously. The fee was paid annually and was in the range of six to eight rupees. Many students did not pay, and it used to be written off for them. Similarly, uniform and books were provided free of cost. The overall support system was very kind and facilitating. All credit goes to the system that existed then, except for the enrollment of underqualified teachers within the establishment. Lots of incompetent, uninterested, and unfit teachers were employed during that time and subsequently. Although separate schools existed for boys and girls, coeducation was also accepted as a norm. Come to think of it the culture of Kashmir back in the day was based in progressive values while also balancing our local traditions.
A lot of teachers and allied staff were following the leftist ideology. These teachers were generally well-read and committed to their profession. Surprisingly most of these teachers joined Jamaat later and supported the separatist ideology. In fact, I am told that these teachers played a critical role in providing support to the anti-national movement while being part of the system and taking full benefits from it. Why these developments were not picked up by Govt agencies in general and the designated agencies that supposedly work for the security of the countrymen and women, is a million-dollar question. Anyway, the attitude of the elders to educate their children irrespective of sex was changing and changing fast. There are many logical reasons for this change. The disadvantages of not being educated were being realised more and more. One such aspect was letter reading and writing.
During my childhood, I had regularly observed the postman being requested by people on a routine basis to read their letters. These were letters that people received from their children who used to go outside the valley with the aim of earning some extra money during the winter season. This is the period of the seventies and early eighties; back then, these letters at times carried a lot of secrets of the families, and the local postman was privy to all these by default. That is why the postman was well received and respected during those days in rural areas, more because of character than the fear of letting the secrets out.

In 1982 I went to Madras for my engineering. At that time, it was superficially peaceful back in the valley, but a sense of discomfort had set in. This could be sensed by those who allowed themselves to be exposed to it. More importantly, the situation could be well-read by those who took a pause from the routine of life and allowed the mental faculty to analyse the existing environment and suggest alternatives. Such people took intelligent decisions about their future and left the valley in a planned manner. Such people did not go through the difficulties and troubles of the forced migration process. The majority of such people were from the cities and a few from the villages. The rest of the Pandit community refused to smell the coffee, although they drank it hard and raw later when the distress struck. Many threads of the incoming situations did exist, and all one needed to do is track one such thread. The Campus of the University of Kashmir was one such place, where the display of the fast-changing environment was free, open, loud, and clear. More than regular education, other ideologies were openly debated and propagated. It is during this time that open celebrations used to be held whenever the Pakistani Cricket team won a match against us, which was, unfortunately, getting more and more discomforting for nationalists.
During those days, there used to be protests all around the valley for every irrelevant issue, and we Pandits were the targets. Imagine, an incident of firing in Afghanistan would lead to a strike in the Valley, and the pandit students in the colleges would be invariably made the targets. Also, during these times, Hindus remained indoors to avoid trouble and considered each incident as an isolated case. I suppose the situation existing at that time was gaining momentum rapidly for future events to follow. This wave was neither read nor evaluated properly by the Pandit community and other minorities. Thus, the telltale signs of ensuing trouble were unfortunately ignored, and a heavy price was paid by all of us subsequently.

Kashmiri Pandits who are considered to be a community with special attributes could not understand how our central Govt pampered the then ruling family of the state. There were various speeches of Sheik Abdulla at various gatherings that almost threatened the merger of the state with Pakistan, and within the next few days, you would find the same Abdulla making a statement in Delhi that no power on earth could take Kashmir away from India. In those days, the Govt at the centre was intellectually inept and lacked foresight. It was as if they were all intoxicated during the day and sozzled during the night. It is this state of mind that made the politicians of the valley, in the beginning, think that the regions of Ladakh and Jammu did not matter and the fate of the state would be decided by the politicians of the Valley. This sense of false superiority is something that was expressed by the politicians loud and clear in the time to come. It became a monster that did a lot of harm, and this harm continued until the year 2014. It is this overconfidence that made Dr Abdulla state that even if Mr Modi comes to power many times, no power on earth can revoke Article 370 and 35A because he and his family had continued to get away with everything anti-national until then.
A certain section of people within the valley are well aware of who has harmed the valley the maximum and how. They also know that many parties like Pakistan, China, etc. are interested in finishing Kashmir once and forever if they are given a chance. It is clear to them that Pakistan and Afghanistan are both failed states, and no such country can do any good to the valley. Unfortunately, the intellectuals and moderates in the valley are shit scared of the rogue elements who are out there to target such people and their ideologies. I have no doubt about the intellectual competence of my community, but I am sure, in this regard, most of the community failed to pick up the leads.

What the Kashmiri Pandit community should not forget is that most of the Kashmiri Muslims are converted Kashmiri Pandits and that too not many years back. So the intellectual attributes of the Kashmiri Muslims, wise as they are, are no less than those of the Kashmiri Hindus. This was very evident from the status of the three regions of the state. Both Jammu and Ladakh were left behind in everything and that too, with the support of politicians from both these regions. Honestly speaking, the most suitable region when we talk of development is the Jammu region because of obvious reasons such as proximity, accessibility, and favourable weather, but Jammu was left high and dry. Apart from the dominant nature of Kashmiri politicians, it was the lack of commitment, foresight, dedication, and planning of politicians from the Jammu region that harmed the city. They are mainly responsible for neglecting Jammu. While the politicians in the valley recommended the opening of schools, politicians in Jammu were interested in opening local liquor shops. Obviously, the damage was done to the roots of the society, then expecting the tree and its fruit to be healthy and tasty is like chasing a wild goose.

I have seen quite a few of such scary incidents in Kashmir, which should have been eye-openers for the administration and should have stood out to the minorities of the valley. One such incident was the one which took place in Habba Kadal area post, at a ceremony where Dr Farook Abdulla was taking over as the president of the state party. Some people in the procession raised Pakistani flags during the ceremony. The atmosphere was full of undesired expressions to notice. Since not many Hindus were part of the procession, such activities were neither observed nor reported with the intensity and importance that they deserved. Moreover, there were people with the procession to moderate such activities. I was shaken up by the sheer number of people participating in the procession. My imagination of how destructive such a procession could turn if it was instigated haunted me for weeks. A few bad elements are more than enough… The next day while sharing the details with one of my friends, I was educated by him that procession management is an art, and these artists know how, where, and when to channelise it as per directions received from the organisers. It is a sort of harnessed energy for the purpose of displaying one’s strength, and at times it takes a destructive shape.

The other scary incident was when Mr. Z A Buttoo was hanged in Pakistan. The amount of loot, burning, and destruction that took place in Kashmir was more horrifying than an English World War movie. I witnessed the entire scenery unfolding in front of my eyes. There were mobs that looted shops, burned properties, and they were absolutely ruthless. Every village was on fire, and in some cases, close relatives participated in the process of destruction. The fire and smoke covered each and every village and town, it engulfed the valley. In fact, people participating in these activities were seen carrying the looted material. Suffice to say that telltale signs were bold and clear for the Kashmiri Pandit community to take note off, but these early warnings were unfortunately ignored. Those pandit families who read the situation well did not go through the hell of migration and established themselves well in advance. Thus a huge price was paid by almost the entire community. I am more surprised by the lack of foresight of the Pandit community from Srinagar, who were by and large mobile and could have planned and executed an early exit cum settlement outside the valley. I was studying in Srinagar and knew all too well that most of the Pandits from Srinagar were well connected outside the valley. It was not that hard for them to relocate in a planned phased manner. The villagers, however, had little time to think and were under the impression that the Indian Army would come for their rescue. They also had huge immobile assets such as land and cattle, which could not be disposed of so easily. It is also true that the magnitude and intensity of the crisis were kept secret by Kashmiri Muslims to such an extent that they did not inform their Hindu neighbours in advance. While everything appeared normal during the day, the situation underneath was highly turbulent. It is these turbulent currents that took the shape of a volcanic eruption, the magnitude of which surprised each and every one. In many cases, the Kashmiri Muslims participated in destroying the properties of their neighbours after looting them. Some even compelled the Pandits for the distress sale of their assets. The Govt at the centre during those critical years was practically nonexistent. There was no stability, and its survival was on a day to day basis or maybe less than that. It was during this period when a complete cultural transition took place with sonic speed.

In the late seventies and early eighties, audio systems in buses played Hindi movie songs, and people of all ages enjoyed listening to those numbers. A few years later, this music was replaced by the preaching of Islam. I used to observe these things. There are many observations of a similar kind during that time. Therefore, to say that everything was sudden is neither true nor practical. The situation got further momentum, and the recipe was cooked enough for a great taste of all-round death and destruction. Surprisingly the Muslim community eagerly waited for this dish to be served to them and liked the sweetness of the poison initially but never found a suitable antidote for reducing the pain that this sweetness caused to their community. The victims of the violence were the ignorant, the innocent, the simple, the noble, and the harmless. In the history of mankind, there is no parallel example of cruelty to a community that has never been involved in any kind of violence, even under distress situations. The previously recorded forced migrations of the same community, from the same place, at the hands of the same community is a testimony to this claim. No doubt, genocides have taken place in many parts of the world, but in those cases, both the parties were involved more or less, be it directly or indirectly. But in the case of the Kashmiri Pandits, who have a record of being peaceful and nonviolent, the action of planned killing with an aim to eliminate or convert the whole community is even worse than what we now call a genocide. Furthermore, it is important to mention here if the majority community of 97%, with some percent of it well-armed, threatens the minority of 3% it is a proof of them being cowards and fundamentalists. A level playing field would have shown different results and even then it would not have been justified to select the methodology of inhumanity and insanity.

I am surprised with no reaction from national and international human rights bodies. Nobody in the world took notice of it, and no action was initiated by national and international human rights organisations. Such organisations are not caged with the constraints of vote bank politics or other appeasement compulsions. The miseries continued thereafter, and this community continues to live deprived of all the constitutional guarantees of this nation in particular and international bodies in general. The emotional, social, and physical distresses continue. In spite of our relentless hard work to avoid getting sucked in this whirlpool, the deliberately manifested destructive eddy currents of pain and helplessness submerge us repeatedly. The mental pain, agony, physical distress, and fatigue that the community has been unnecessarily subjected to, needs to be recorded in all possible prints, forms and signatures and preserved to display for generations of humanity to come. It will be a document of mammoth dimensions and holocaustic effects that historians will get horrified to analyse. It will be a testament that will convey the absence of any government and nongovernment body during this period in the country. It will also stand as proof of biased decision making at international levels, including the UN. Kashmiri Pandits have all the rights to denounce the UN for not taking up their case at that time as it does for other communities on a regular basis. A small step by the UN at that time would have been of great help and would have saved a lot of human lives. It would have reduced the intensity of pain and destruction that the community went through then and continues to suffer through till this day. UN, as a body, must hold its head in shame for this serious neglect in which one of the world’s most peace-loving communities was planned to be eliminated. A group of scholars and volunteers need to put in this effort for the sake of the entire community and humanity as a whole.

After my retirement from the Army, I decided to visit some religious places in the valley, which we, as a family, used to frequently visit like Kheer Bawani, Manzgam, Nagbal, Martand, etc. Manzagam was my favourite place to visit as a young boy. We used to go there as a family and enjoy a couple of days of stay there. It was full of natural beauty. I was shocked to see the place being encroached. I was told that the intent of the locals was to encroach the entire temple property. If it hadn’t been for the efforts of Mr Kuldeep Raina, this religious place would have been taken over and converted. A lot of effort has been made, and many facilities are made available by the team that looks after this place, but the attractive surroundings are lost forever. Incidentally, the sadhu (Late Shri Sukh dev Giri) who used to be there in the temple did not migrate and was murdered brutally. Does it not indicate the scale of insecurity that prevailed at that time and the distress that the community was facing? If a saint in a temple cannot be spared, then one can imagine how bad the situation was then and how destructive a mentality existed.
On my return journey, I decided to take the route via my village to show it to my family, who had not seen it before as I got married post-migration. I used to tell them the stories of my beautiful village, but once we halted there, the situation turned out to be quite the opposite. My son refused to get down from the vehicle. It was very challenging for me to convince them that my village indeed was beautiful then, and the present form is totally different. Our stay that lasted just around five minutes’ was so draining that I have failed to put it in words. The place which belonged to me for generations and generations was now illegally occupied by outsiders, and it was me who was not welcomed there. Most of the places are either encroached or being misused. The area of Ganash Bal (Temple area) has lost its semblance of a temple, and the charm in the surroundings feel like a distant dream. It was a temple of meditation, with no buildings but an environment of peace and harmony with all the creations and elements of nature. There was no restriction for any one to visit or rest in its premises irrespective of faith and belief system. Its majestic tree cover was a constant reminder of power and supremacy of nature and the Almighty to all the visitors and devotees. The same place has now been converted to a village with an incredibly toxic environment, giving a feeling of visiting a radioactively affected area. In fact, worse than that. It was shocking to experience the ground realities. The exact assessment of the change can only be done by those who have lived there prior to our forced migration because the parameters of comparison are available for constructive analysis.
In my village, all the houses belonging to the Pandits had been burnt off in one go and just in one night. One could only find heaps of the ruminants of debris. All of the construction material that our families took generations to build were now of no use to the local population. The land encroachments were everywhere. I found the situation highly compromising, disgusting, annoying, frustrating, and intimidating. I could hardly recognise the place. The complete alignment, layout, and surroundings had changed. Apart from a few fading landmarks, everything had changed. What frustrated me the most was the casual behaviour of locals as if nothing had happened. It was a painful experience. Although my intention was to spend some time there, I was restless and distressed with the existing environment there. A place which is mine legally, socially, culturally and traditionally has been forcibly made alien for me and a sense of insecurity and discomfort has set in, which is frankly, just soul-crushing. The property that we as a family worshipped and looked after like a spiritual gift is now in ruins. My home is being misused and exploited by people who are neither known to us nor were part of the village. These people, disinterested and ill-behaved, have changed this heaven into hell, full of pain, destruction, and disbelief. I wish I had not taken up this tour as it has ended up shattering me emotionally, spiritually, and physically. I could not sleep for some time after this visit. The encroachment of land was to the extent that the village had lost its original orientation and alignment. The five minutes I spent in the place I once called home, felt like being put in boiling oil. I saw drugs being cultivated in the gifted land of this area. This area is the most fertile land and used to be the rice bowl of the valley. Now it has become a drug-producing area. I consider a drug menace the worst crisis on the planet. I am sure very soon there will be many addicts around that area. What a tragedy!
Most of the Islamic terrorist outfits have used drugs as a source of huge income, which they used for the purchase of arms and ammunition—what a tragic exploitation by an ideology.
It was a very draining, painful, shocking, distressing, horrifying, and maddening experience. Imagine the property on which our buildings existed 30 years back is being encroached, and semi-permanent structures are built by those who neither belong to the village nor are even remotely known to anyone in my family.
Assuming that this encroachment has taken place without the active support of the local community and administration in a structured manner is outrightly foolish and devoid of any logic. The fact is that the properties of Kashmiri Pandits in the valley are up for grabs and these are not isolated incidents, it is a pattern. This cannot be done by known people, so the other alternative is to settle unknown outsiders and name them whatever suits as per the situation. Well, if it is for the welfare of some community members, then locals should give them a place in their property. It appears that the aim is to allow encroachment on our homes by the Muslim community for some years, and then they would grab it. It must be happening all around the valley wherever the Pandits have their properties.

Who the hell says that state administration existed there for the last 30 years. If it existed, some action would have been taken, and the properties of the Pandit community could have been identified and freed from encroachers. Necessary legal action should have been initiated so that others would get discouraged from resorting to such activities. But nothing of that sort seems to be happening on the ground, although administrative orders to that effect exist.

When the men, material, and machinery are together out there to target a particular minority, tall claims of Govt Of India have no meaning. Because of poor response, or shall I say no response, from the administration, the Pandit community is in such distress, that they have to sell their properties. That serves the most desired objective of the local population in general and Islamic fundamentalists in particular. I was also told that maximum loot is done by the families who have one or more members in the police department because they fear no law. I don’t know how far it is true, but there are signs of such a phenomenon.
Staying there any further was neither healthy nor desired. The drive back to Srinagar was full of old memories of happy times and comparisons with the present situation. Although the village is physically there but its soul is dead. The reincarnation of Kashmir is possible only if conditions on the ground become conducive again. In its present form, THE NATIVE IS LOST FOREVER!

By:- Col. Hira Lal Kher

Nandkeshwar Bhairava – Protector of Devotees

Bhairava Illumination – Vimarsh XXVIII

Nandkeshwar Bhairava – Protector of Devotees

– Sunil Raina Rajanaka

Note – The Incarnation Day of Lord Nandkeshwar this year is on 22nd May 2020

Tantra is way of life among vast majority of Kashmiri Hindus. Infact it origination, nurturing and its propogation has been from Kashmir where this school got integrated with day today life of the inhabitants that whatever they do or follow has its origination in Tantra rituals. Because of the vastness of this school various saints, regents and scholar’s adopted its methodology to follow the path of self elevation.

Kashmiri Shaivities emphasised on mutual coexistence with nature and chose natural symbols as a part of worship. Kashmir has lot many symbols like springs, trees, rivers, mountains and lakes. All these natural places were venerated and special days celebrated in their honor. Other important aspects have been their litany of details in the form of Mahatamyas which explain both geographical, spiritual and historical accounts of these places. During reign of Parvaersen in 6 CE the new city of Srinagar was to be founded the mighty king invoked the blessings of Lord Shiva and consecrated eight guardian Bhairava’s in eight direction of Srinagar. All these eight Bhairava’s have jurisdiction over which their lordship is undisputed among Kashmiri Hindus. These eight Bhairava’s are clan deity of Kashmiri Hindu families who believe in super natural powers of them as they have been protecting them since centuries.

One of the prominent Bhairava is Nandkeshwar Bhairava whose worship is done by families of Seer village near Sopore, Ghoshbug , Vanpoh , Sumbal ,Gotengo , Vilgam among others .

The Lord is worshipped in the form of big Boonye (Chinar) in all places . Later on Pandit Trilok Koul created a painting of Nandkeshwar Bhairava. The masters envisaged the form of Nandkeshwar as;

 The Lord is seated on bloomed louts in padamasana indicating awakened kundalini

 Reddish in the form which indicates Kriya-Shakti and Rajo Guna

 His lower right hand is holding trident indicating control over three aspects of Shakti

 The right upper hand is holding rosary which indicates constant contemplation of supreme

 Lower left hand is holding bowl of blood indicative of devouring the wicked.

 Left upper hand holding Vajra as a tool for punishment for those who create turmoil.

As per legend of Nandkeshwar a young boy managed to sneak into the assembly of deities which was presided by Creator Brahma at the place near Manasbal lake subsequently in the assembly of gods the young boy managed to get divine blessings much to the annoyance of gods. Later due to the intervention of Lord Shiva the boy was granted permanent place among the Shiv-Ganas. The adjudication of this dispute among the gods and this young boy was resolved by Lord Shiva in Sumbal and since than Sumbal shrine is considered as Darbar of Nandkeshwar whereas the original place of residence is at Seer in Sopore.

Many devotees have shared spiritual and lifesaving accounts of Nandkeshwar Bhairava. One of the account is that during 1947 Pakistani Tribal invasion the residence of Seer prayed to the Lord for protection and later invasion got foiled. In another account in Goshbug temple of Nandkeshwar a miscreant had stolen the idol of Lord and hidden the idol in cowshed. In few days of time many of his livestock died miscreant went to muslim faqir who on knowing the sacrilege done by the miscreant advised him to place back the idol in the temple. This miscreant realized his mistake and sort the apology from Hindu believers. Later his remaining livestock survived. In another account a Moulvi in Seer use to dump egg shells at door of Temple to hurt the sentiments of believers. Once his son was taking a bath on the ghats of the temple suddenly he got caught in the whirlpool and was about to get drowned. Despite cry for the help no one came forward to help the boy. Exasperated Moulvi suddenly prayed to the Nandkeshwar seeking apology for his miss conducts. Suddenly to the utter surprise of everyone his son got saved and reached the shore safely.

The general belief among the believers is that any desecration or disrespect of Nandkeshwar is duly punished. The devotees at Sumbal temple offer turmeric rice along with goat- liver whereas residence of Seer village offer do not add turmeric in the cooked rice. Any bride who got married from these areas is offering goat sacrifice to the Lord and is known as Razkath as a thanks giving to the Lord and also seeking his blessings for better future and conjugal life.

The incarnation day of the Lord is celebrated on Amavasya of Jyeshta Hindu month. After 1990 turmoil and mass exodus of Kashmiri Hindus from Kashmir the temple dedicated Lord Nandkeshwar Bhairava is newly constructed at Vitasta Vihar, on Akalpur road in Jammu. Where devotees regularly pay obeisance to their favorite Lord whom they believe protected them from all evils. Let us pray Lord Nandkeshwar Bhairava and beseech him for our worldly and spiritual progress.

Amarnath yatra in the sepia era

<img src="https://kashmirblogs.files.wordpress.com/2020/05/img-20200522-wa0024.jpg" alt=”” width=”720″ height=”661″ class=”aligncenter size-full wp-image-2394″ />

(received through whatsup messages)

My Reminiscences of Broked Promises

It was the peak winter month of January 1987 with a record snowfall in Kashmir. 1986 had been very harsh to a lot of Kashmiri pandit families, due to hidden and cowardly acts of burning their households,temples and properties mostly in Southern districts Anantnag etc during the rule of gull
Shah, brother-in-law of Farooq Abdullah.

Immediately, after opening of locks in ayodhya in February 1986; Some people
say these riots were engineered by Mufti Mohammad sayeed to get a hold on the chair of chief minister.
I was living with my entire family in my village Mazhom ,18 kilometres west of Srinagar. It is also a railway station now.

There were a total of 2 Kashmiri pandit families divided into 8 households, comprising of a total headcount of 34, from the oldest to the infant .Till then, living peacefully co-existed with about 1500 households of Kashmiri Muslim Brethren.

This peace and Harmony was Broken in an unprecedented engineered act of fire, when 2 houses belonging to Kashmiri Pandits were gutted by miscreants in the dead of night. Frightened, we ran helter-skelter consoling each other. villagers turned on the scene, and helped to douse and control the fire of the thatched roofs with all wood frames. Fire fighting staff came 3 hours later from pattan and fire was finally doused- but not the flames of fear and anxiety that we all suffered.

Next day onwards, a temporary police post was erected in our vicinity making us a target of dislike and suspicion amongst a few villagers, due to continued presence of unarmed local police. Some revenue personal and a deputy minister turned up within a fortnight asking one of our household heads to get new clothes prepared for their youth.
The Revenue personal was also conveyed that they were educated yet unemployed. They gave their assurance of help.

The assurance given at that point proved to be a just a lip service. No compensation or relief etc was given to us for the reasons best known to the authorities.

Rajiv Gandhi, had taken charge as prime minister in 1985 after the assassination of his mother Indira Gandhi in 1984, after which riots against Sikh community countrywide took place. Gull Shah government was dismissed in march 1986 and governors rule was imposed. Instead of promoting Mufti Syed as CM of the state, he was made rajya Sabha member and Union tourism minister. It is widely believed that this step was taken to make way for Rajiv Gandhi’s longtime friend Farooq Abdullah.

Interestingly, Farooq Abdullah’s Govt had been toppled by engineering defections of NC MLA’s previously. Gul Shah-his brother in law, had been installed as CM.It is believed that Mufti Syed orchestrated this in order to fulfill his underlying ambition of becoming the state CM.

An accord between Rajiv and Farooq was signed in Nov 1986 to the displeasure of senior Congress leaders that included Mufti syed as welk. Elections were declared to be held in 1987.

Before elections, Rajiv Gandhi visited Kashmir amidst a thick snowfall. A visit to gulmarg along with his friend and host,was on the itinerary. It was snowing heavily during that night and we noticed snow dozers clearing the road early in the morning , a hundred metres from my house. The police presence along the road showed up and most folks of the village gathered along the road to Gulmarg-that passed through our village. In addition to our main house, a hundred metres from this road, we had another small house cum grain store just on the roadside.

All our community folks queued alongside the edges of the Road to have a glimpse of the motorcade. At that time, My elder son was one and half years old and was distinguishable amongst the crowd due to his fair face and Apple red cheeks from a distance.
He was held by my younger sister . The pilot car appeared and the PM’s Jeep followed at a gap of about 200 meters. Rajiv Gandhi was at driver’s seat himself and Farooq Abdullah by his side. The Wives of both leaders Sonia and Molly were settled in the middle of the SUV. Going at a slow speed due to snowy road and presence of people along its edges .

No sooner did the PM’s Jeep reached near my house, an old KP lady- shobhavati- in a traditional KP attire almost jumped in front of the PM’s vehicle , to the shock of everybody present there!
Rajiv Gandhi applied brakes to a halt. The security personnel immediately appeared and threw a ring around his vehicle. He inquired about the lady and her problems. she tried to explain in Kashmiri. Being very near to this scene, Rajiv Gandhi waved at me asking to tell him what shobhavati was saying ,which I precisely told him .
I told him that her house has been damaged by the fire and her 32 year old son is still unemployed , and that no relief was provided to her as a fire victim.

” wajahat ko bulao” , ordered Rajiv Gandhi.
A long motorcade of bureaucrats and politicians and other personnel was lined up behind his SUV and some of their occupants had got down ,struggling among villagers gathered there, to reach near PM’s vehicle.
Farooq Abdullah as usual turned vociferous at the peak of his volume,hurling choicest indecent abuses in the name of revenue authorities and divisional commissioner. “Yiman chhuv na kenh dyutmut”? ( have you not given them anything ?You have left this shabbiness at the roadside) Farooq’s wife was along with Sonia Gandhi in the rear seat.

Somehow, Sonia Gandhi caught a glimpse of my son with apple red cheeks and waved at my sister-who was holding him- to come near. Taking that one and half year old kid in her lap, she loved him and then handed over to Rajiv Gandhi who too fondled him and asked ” kiska bachha hai”? I responded and took the child from him. In the meantime some secretary had reached near PM with a stenos pad in his hands.

“write down a house and a job for her son” PM of India ordered amongst the hundreds present there. Many more people tried to ask favours among the crowd. To all those Farooq Abdullah asked to keep their applications ready. On their return journey these would be collected and acted upon. I don’t know what fate fell on all the other applications and demands,but one thing I know for sure; Prime minister of India Rajiv Gandhi’s orders on spot, in presence of a large crowd of machinery and media were not carried out, making our small community of 34 people in that village a topic of mockery and fun.

I wonder if he and his office ever used to bother to take note of follow up action on promises made while touring , to innocent people, who chose them to high office. The only thing I remember is many villagers congratulated me because king and queen of the country had put their hands on my son’s head, so a sign of auspiciousness.

Soon however ,my son ,his whole family and his whole community were forcibly exiled from their ancestral homeland that left me wondering whether it brought auspiciousness or misfortunes…..

By-Sh. Virendra Bhat ji

Holocaust Day protest at Jantar Mantar (19/1/2020)

THE WRATH OF GHAR DEVATĀ

And the Power of Myth
____________________________________
The year was 2003!

We were forced to sell our ancestral house in Sathu Bar Bar Shah for peanuts to the Muslim who had forcibly occupied it. Why? What made us so helpless? Let us start from the beginning.

The story begins in early Twentieth century.

Two young men, Madho Ram Fotedar, and his elder brother Thakur Das Fotedar, construct their own house at what was then the outskirts of Srinagar, in Sathu Bar Bar Shah, on a piece of barren land under the loving supervision of their elder sister who is a mother to both of them.

Time passes.

My grandfather, Kailash Nath, is born in this very house. He leads a life of penury but silent dignity in this loving home of his, which stands testimony to his travails. Bearing all his troubles with total surrender to his beloved Iśṭa, Amṛteśvar Bhairava, he dedicates most of his waking hours before and after work, to prayer and the Śaivist rituals with clockwork regularity. And he never forgets his Ghar Devatā, whose auspicious day, he always celebrates on the cold, wintry night of the month of Poh, dedicated to Him, the divine caretaker of a Kashmiri home.

More time passes.

Kailash Nath is a grandfather now. My father, my uncles, I and my brothers and sisters, his whole clan, live together in this very house. Each brick, each corner of the house, the smell of crumbling walls, are all a part of our extended bodies. My grandfather’s prayers have become long, now that he is retired. His day starts early as he enters the Ṭhokur Kuṭh at Brahma muhūrta and does not leave the company of the Bhairava until it is noon. The evenings too are spent in prayer and once in a while his spirituality overflows on to his grandsons.

I am one of them!

Silently, the Sanskāras fall like seeds on the fallow ground of the mind, unseen, unfelt, but ready to grow at some unknown future date. And then he passes away. I get married. My elder son is born there, in the same house!

Four generations by birth! Almost a century!

Meanwhile my dear uncle continues the traditions of the house. All the Śaivist rituals, all the Pūjās, all the traditions, are conducted with the same fervour.

Of course, he does not forget the Ghar Devatā!

Then 1990 happens! We all wonder as to where all our gods have gone. In utter dismay, we are all forced to abandon the house, a home to a total of five generations, four of which were born there. A mega-joint family is painfully broken up. Ultra-nuclear families take a forced, painful birth and are scattered all over the country. Some of them leave for foreign shores.

Why did the Ghar Devatā abandon us when we needed Him the most? Why was the Divine Mother silent? Why did Amṛteśvar Bhairava not come out of His deep meditations and show us the right path when we were at a loss to understand what we would do to survive?

Well, like the most of us, we too became unbelievers, at least the younger ones. Our gods were dead. The Darwinian world was a ruthless place were only the fittest survived.

So, we also started fighting our ruthless, lonely battles, for, we had either to survive or to simply die!

Now let us turn the clock back to the present time!

Stories from back home come filtering through. The initial buyer had sold it away to some other person. That person, a Muslim of course, had rented each of the rooms to Bihari labourers who kept on leaving rapidly for some unknown reason. After some time, it was rented out to the locals. They too left, and in quick succession, the house went from one Muslim family to another.

And now the house is abandoned!

Why?

In front of our house was a small school that was pompously called The Mahila Maha Vidyalaya. The ground floor had a row of shops that was rented out and one of the shops had a tailor master who was a friend of my grandfather. Both, whenever free, used to play chess together in the shop. They loved the game a lot and I too developed a fascination for this game as I joined them whenever I was free. This grand old man, the Muslim tailor master, is still alive and very much aware of the world around him.

And he has a story to tell regarding why our house has been abandoned.

It is the Ghar Devatā!

The story goes like this:

It was initially the Bihari labourers who had complained that they were seeing some ghost who would trouble them during the dark, cold nights of the harsh winters. Being unable to bear such horrific visions, they would leave. The local Muslims initially thought that it was some kind of superstition that Hindus usually suffer from; so, the house was subsequently rented out to Kashmiris, for, you see, the followers of the religion of peace, do not believe in the superstitions of Kafirs, wretched as we are!

But then, the problem started getting repeated. Particularly interesting was the story of the last occupant before the house was abandoned altogether in January this year. What actually happened?

The topmost floor of our house, the fourth one to be exact, called the Brāri Kānī in Koshur, where our Ghar Devatā used to have his food on the auspicious day, had been reconstructed just a year before we were forced to leave, and it had been given to me, my wife and our young son, Anshuman, to stay in. I had made a small library of my chosen books in the same room which I had grown so very fond of. The Ghar Devatā was requested to shift to an adjacent part of the Brāri Kānī, where he had His last meal in December, 1989, before we left for good.

So, the story goes, two members of the last Muslim family, were sleeping in the same room, on that fateful night early this year, the grand old tailor master swears, and when they got up in the morning, they found themselves lying in the verandah on the ground floor. Horrified, they could not explain as to how this could have happened after a fretful night of fearful nightmares. Being young, they were not aware of Kashmiri Hindu rituals and superstitions; so, they called the elder ones, and, in all seriousness the unusual occurrence was discussed in an assembly of the wise.

Our grand old tailor master was one of those elders!

After a lot of discussions, many agreements and disagreements later, the verdict was passed!

It was the Ghar Devatā of the Fotedar clan!

What clinched the judgment was the serious observation of the tailor master friend of my grandfather. He had seen his late friend celebrating this peculiar day in the dead of winter and heard many stories about this divine protector. The assembly reluctantly accepted what the tailor master had to say. He was the oldest and the wisest after all.

The house stands abandoned now!

What is my Ghar Devatā doing there, now that He is all alone?

We have not fed Him anything all these twenty-nine years.

Is He hungry?

Is He angry?

I do not know, but I seek His forgiveness.

After all He is a god and I am a mere mortal!

By -Dr. Sushil Fotedar

The miraculous saga of a captive( stories of forced exodus of kashmiri Hindus)

As Ramesh Marhatta, a Hindu village boy, originally from Uttrasu in Omanagari of South Kashmir unveiled to me the layer after layer of his horrendous tale of kidnapping, night-long torture and gunshots by armed terrorists way back in 1990, I shuddered to think of the brutality and savagery with which the terrorists will have done to death hundreds of our innocent community members when armed insurgency broke out in 1990 in Kashmir. Ramesh Marhatta, I imagined, is the rarest of the rare cases of a Kashmiri Pandit escaping definite death while in the captivity of the jihadist terrorists who were out for the genocide of the community. The pain and suffering inflicted on the kith and kin of the unfortunate slain Pandits under similar circumstances still resound under the blue dome of the sky waiting for the day of retribution.
The youthful Ramesh left his village and came to Srinagar to find a means of subsistence for himself and improve his life somewhat. After a number of unsuccessful attempts, he somehow managed to find an opening as a casual radio announcer in Radio Kashmir in 1985. He decided to work with perseverance in the hope that one day he might get regularized and thus manage his life.
He hired a room in Sonawar, a locality not far away from the Radio Kashmir where he worked to earn a living. The room on the first floor of the building belonged to a local Muslim gentleman who was good and sympathetic to him. As he continued walking up and down day after day to his workplace, he came to know a taxi driver he sometimes hired to ferry him to his workplace or residence in Sonawar. The taxi man, a Muslim, was known by the name of Nana. They often met and gradually developed friendly relations with each other.
It was early 1989. Ramesh and some more of his colleagues noticed that the local Muslims, who usually called themselves lucky guys if they found casual employment in Radio Kashmir, had begun to decline the offer. No Muslim was prepared to be recruited in Radio Kashmir. To him, it was somewhat puzzling.
On 26th of September 1990, Ramesh returned from work to his room and went to the kitchen to prepare a bite. It was 7.40 PM and the time for the news from Radio Kashmir. He switched on his transistor and sat down to hear the news. Suddenly, he heard a loud sound of footsteps coming up the stairs. A large group of men with masks over their face and Kalashnikovs in their hands barged into his room. He was taken aback and trembled at the sight. The masked men brandishing guns and pistols and numbering anything between 30 and 40 began hurling endless abuses on him without giving any reason for doing so. Ramesh’s heart sank as he saw death hovering over his head. One among the terrorist group began questioning him about his profession and the reason for his staying back in the valley. He replied that he had a family to support and was only a casual radio announcer, and he had no scope of earning a livelihood in an unknown place like Jammu with inclement weather.
As the interrogation proceeded, one from among the group numbering anything between 30 and 40, armed and masked men asked Ramesh to come out of the house with them. At this moment suddenly the owner of the house appeared in the room. He heard that the terrorists wanted Ramesh to come down. He picked up courage and told the terrorist that they could ask Ramesh any question here in the room and there should be no need of taking him out. While this altercation was going on, Ramesh found that one of the masked men was no other than Nana, the taxi driver who had befriended him. However, he gave no indication that he had recognized Nana as that would have cost him his life in no time.
Then in this melee, the terrorists blindfolded and handcuffed Ramesh. He was dragged down the stairs like a corpse. They kicked and heckled him as they dragged him to the other side of the road. They banged his head against an electric pole which sent a shock down his spine. He got unnerved and resigned to his fate.
Blindfolded and handcuffed Ramesh was dragged through some lanes and then dumped in a vehicle and brought to some destination. After alighting from the vehicle he was taken through a passage he thought was something like a slippery tunnel. As he was dragged on, he received many baton strokes from his captors as if he was a beast and not a human being. Once inside a house, his blindfold was removed and hands untied. Now began the dreadful night-long interrogation and torture of Ramesh. He was made to sit in a chair. One after the other group entered the room, subjected Ramesh to questioning, often repeating the same questions again and again. In between questioning, the terrorists would rub burning cigarette bits against his body and he cried in pain and agony. Each group adhered to the same pattern of questioning, hurling abuses and rubbing burning cigarettes against his body.
At about midnight a group of terrorists entered the room. It was led by a lady whom they addressed as Asiya Ji. The torture method which this group employed was to place a hot rod on his feet. The pain was unbearable and he lost power even to cry. The leader of this terrorist group introduced himself as Azam Inqilab. Till then he had not heard the name of either Asiya or Azam Inqilab. Ramesh vividly recollects that only a few of the group of 30 or 40 spoke chaste Urdu which made him think they were Pakistanis while the rest of them were Kashmiris. Those who spoke only Urdu spoke it with Punjabi accent. They beat, thrashed and kicked him as hard as they could and then told him to lie down. Now the group engaged itself in discussing how he was to be killed. One suggestion was to cut him into pieces under sawmill while the second proposal was to gun him down on the roadside near a drain. The plans of killing Ramesh were discussed in his presence and within his hearing. He was already half dead with pain, agony and torture, and they were planning how to deprive me of the remnant of life left with him.
As the discussion among the terrorists about how to put an end to Ramesh was going on, the sound of azaan – the call for the Morning Prayer – came to his ears. He imagined it could be about 4 AM the usual time for the morning azaan. While listening to the call for prayer, Ramesh realised it was the same voice he used to hear every dawn around the same time when he was in his room. It came from a loudspeaker fitted to a three-storey house.
Dawn was nearing. The terrorists collected some gunny bags and rope lengths. They again blindfolded Ramesh. After about thirty minutes of walk, the terrorists put him on a vehicle and moved away to execute him. After reaching some unknown destination, the car stopped and Ramesh was pulled out of the vehicle and pushed towards something like a nullah. Ramesh knew that he would be killed in a couple of minutes and thus begged for life saying he had done nothing to punish him with death. In this disorderly situation, Ramesh’s handcuff became loose and he removed the blindfold from his eyes. As he opened his eyes he caught the sight of some light atop the Shankaracharya temple on the sombre and serene hillock. As he looked around, he found about 15 terrorists surrounding him and some more sitting in a Contessa car parked at a little distance. All terrorists had aimed their guns at Ramesh. The dance of death began.
A young boy with a gun stood behind Ramesh. He fired four shots at him. Three of the four shots hit him in the right hip and abdomen area. With bullets embedded in his body, Ramesh in desperation took to his heels and ran away in a zigzag manner while the terrorists continued showering bullets on him. Fortunately, none of those bullets hit him, Ramesh ran towards a nearby army camp about 200 meters away and asked the guard on the gate to let him in to save his life. The guard suspecting that Ramesh was a terrorist, aimed his gun at him and asked him for hands up. The wounded Ramesh had no strength to lift his hands and fell down on the earth. The guard dragged him inside the gate. When Ramesh spoke to the teashop owner close to the gate of the camp, the vendor came to know that he was a Hindu who had been kidnapped by the terrorists and wanted a safe place. The guard immediately informed his superiors and instantly there was movement in the camp because the news had been flashed across last night that a Hindu radio announcer had been kidnapped in Sonawar area by the militants.
The army authorities reacted immediately and brought an ambulance and Ramesh was admitted in the Badami Bagh cantonment hospital. The army doctors operated on him. Three days later he regained his consciousness. The surgeons told him that the bullets were removed after 18 hours of surgery. The message went across that the kidnapped person had miraculously escaped death and was being treated in the hospital for the gunshots. The day Ramesh regained consciousness, Governor Girish Chander Saxena accompanied by the Director-General of Police visited Ramesh in the hospital, consoled him and praised him for his bravery and fortitude in going through such a deadly ordeal in captivity. The DGP asked him if he could bring to his mind the locality where he had been kept as a captive for the night. Ramesh had no clue but told the DGP that the sound of the azaan he had heard at 4 AM while in captivity of the terrorists was precisely the same which came out from a loudspeaker fitted atop the three-storey house of the locality in Sonawar where he lived. A few days later the DGP visited Ramesh again and told him that his guess was correct and the police had swooped on the hideout of the terrorists in the same locality wherefrom a large cache of arms and ammunition was recovered.
In the meanwhile, a terrorist organization called Hizbul Mujahideen issued a press statement in local newspapers that Ramesh had attacked the jihadis of their group and hence an attack on him was conducted. This was an example of the disinformation campaign of the militants with a twofold purpose. One was to shift the onus of attack on him and the second was to strike fear among the Hindus in the valley to take note of HuM watching their movements and activities. The question put to Ramesh by the terrorist, viz “Why did you stay back in the valley while others (Hindus) left”, is a clear proof of the fact that ethnic cleansing of the valley was a definite agenda of the jihadi terrorists in Kashmir way back in the early 1990s.
Ramesh Marhatta was awarded by the State government for his bravery and his services were regularized in the AIR. He and posted to Kathua.
I congratulated Ramesh Marhatta for his bravery and the good luck he had to escape the bullets of the terrorist. This real story reveals how brutal and savage the terrorist was to the hapless Kashmiri Hindus, hundreds of whom were gunned down in homes, on streets, in offices or workplaces, in buses and odd places. This is the pattern of genocide that was unleashed against the small religious minority in 1990. Ramesh Marhatta, like all of us, laments those thirty two-years from the date of the event, as no inquiry commission, no investigation and no FIR about these crimes have been ordered.
feedbackexcelsior@gmail.com
By-K.N. Pandita

Source:-Daily Excelsior

The Gool Massacre of Kashmiri Pandits

My Father Mr. Ashok Kumar Raina S/o Shivji Raina, native from Sopore(Baramulla Distt) was a great educationist, superb human being and a very loving father. As a person, he was very simple, down to earth, honest, tolerant, brave and very caring, He was M.Sc Physics (Electronics Hons.) from Agra Unversity. At a very young age of 23yrs, he was appointed as a Physics lecturer in Jr.College. He was very happy, the way his career was shaping. Routine transfers and new academic approaches were keeping his life busy. He was a responsible family man and created a nice balance between his personal and professional life.

In 1988, militancy had sneaked in our beautiful Kashap Land “Kashir”. There was Islamic terror spreading at a very fast pace and their motive was to spread hate, horror and scare in minorities particularly Kashmiri Pandits. Militants wanted to establish Nizama Mustafa. They started harassing and killing Kashmiri Pandits and also targetting Army and Airforce officials. Our Pro India sentiment was always mocked and crushed. In 1989 -90 under the sinister plan of ethnic cleansing, lakhs of Kashmiri Pandits were driven out from there homeland Kashmir. I remember me and my sister was sleeping and my father came and told us to get ready as we are leaving Kashmir. We got few suitcases ready and with the help of some local friends my father arranged Minibus for our family (me, my sister, my grandparents, my mother and father) left for Udhampur. I was 11 yrs old and my sister was 14 yrs. On the way, we saw thousands of KPs in trucks, cars, buses heading towards Jammu. My father told us that we are moving out of Kashmir because it is not the safe place for our community now, once things normalise we will come back, right now it is better to stay away from Kashmir.

It was a mass exodus and it was very painful. This was the story of every Kashmiri Pandit. We became migrants in our own country. We took refuge in Udhampur. The life of hardship and struggle started but in my heart, I was sure that we will see a better life as I considered my parents as heroes and knew that they will make it better for us. Every day I used to see the pain and agony in my grandparents and my parent’s eyes. Our usual schools started and we started adapting to different culture and climate.

Finally a good news after a long time, in Aug 1991 my father got promoted to the post of principal Hr. Sec School. It was a great achievement and a sense of pride for all of us that at 42yrs, he was given such a huge responsibility. At this age, he already had 21yrs of lecturership experience and that itself was a big achievement. Being a young officer he was posted to Kargil(Ladakh), one of the toughest location in India. He served in Kargil from 1991 – 1994. We always used to wait for winters when my father used to come back home, those days used to be the best days. He used to bring a variety of dry fruits and the famous and best one was kubani ( apricot). We used to eat lot of them

Meanwhile, during this time we shifted from Udhampur to Jammu. In 1994 my father completed his serving tenure of 3 yrs in Kargil and he was transferred to Jammu.
Along with my father, 14 other people were transferred back to Jammu. Almost all of them were adjusted in Jammu ; except my father .

He was given the new appointment, he was transferred to Gool (Ramban). There is a norm in J&K Govt who so ever serves in Ladakh for 3 yrs is given an easy and posting of his choice option. My father has already served in Ladakh for 3 yrs and he was transferred to Gool which was also a very tough posting. My father personally met with then education minister and highlighted this issue, but he told my father you are a very young and dynamic officer and you have to go.
My father was denied the fundamental right of posting of choice by the Minister. By rules, he was not entitled to have back to back tough postings. The only fault of his was that he was young. A criminality happened there by flaunting the said norms. My Grandfather told him not to go but my father was very dedicated to his work and finally, he joined at Gool.
Gool was basically a hilly terrain and there were traces of militancy in and around that area. Gool as an area was influenced by Hizbul Mujaheedin Group. My father started his work and started spreading education in that area. There were young Kashmiri Pandit lectures working with him. I remember in some seasons ,all of them had to walk more than 30 km to reach Gool. I have seen bruises and burns on my father’s feet, he was a tough and strong man, he never bothered and moved on.

The darkest day of our lives was just around the corner. My father had come for summer holidays, it was 14th June 1997, the next day my father was leaving for Gool.
In the evening, I and he took my grandmother to an optician and then we went to Shiv Mandir in Jammu. I had chat with my father on loads of topics and we came back home. Ravinderji and Sushilji came to our place to discuss with my father, the travel schedule for tomorrow, as all 3 of them were going back to Gool.

Next Day morning on 15 June 1997 my father left for Gool, it was very early in the morning I was fast asleep. I told my mother why didn’t you wake me up as I wanted to say Goodbye to him. I never knew that I will never be able to say Goodbye to my father. Next day morning me, my mother and my grandmother were sleeping .At around 4 am , bell rang and my mom opened the door .There were few police officers who told us that the bus my father was travelling in was attacked by militants and several people are injured. Me and my mother rushed to my uncle and my uncle went with them. At around 7 am it was across all the newspapers that 3 Kps were killed by militants in Gool. I lost my senses and the day was a long walk of sorrow and grief. Our family was devasted and shattered. In the evening the dead body came, thousands of people were outside our house. we saw him for the last time, I kissed his forehead and finally said goodbye. My sister was holding me and crying. Everyone was crying and my mind had stopped working. I remember even after taking 11 bullets his face looked calm, his body felt soft. At around 10:30 pm all the 3 martyrs were laid to rest in the flames of celestial bliss, OM Shanti. It was the death of humanity.

According to some eyewitness
The bus in which they were travelling was stopped by men in army uniform, 7 Kms from Gool. All Hindus were asked to step down. By then it was clear that they were not security forces but Islamic terrorists. There was some resistance from Muslim passengers, seeing this, terrorist said they are not going to harm them, their commander only wants to talk to them, they even swear by their Prophet and Holy book. 6 Hindus ( 4 KP’s and 2 Jammuites) were taken out of which 2 people escaped one by jumping off the cliff and other by running up a hill. The remaining 4 were made to walk 30 metres near the nullah and 3 Kashmiri Pandits were fired upon by terrorists and martyred and the 4th ( Jammunite ) was allowed to go. The Message was clear. KP’s are the target.

– Shri. Ashok Kumar Raina – Principal
– Shri. Ravindra Kabu – Lecturer
– Shri. Sushil Pandita – Sr.Teacher

So it was a planned targeted killing. He was killed because he was a Kashmiri Pandit. He was killed because he was doing his duty with utmost sincerity and honesty. He was killed because he was the symbol of Kashmir Pandit growth. This heinous crime was executed by Billu Gujjar of Hizbul Mujahideen and Amanullah Gujjar Group. A couple of months later he was killed by Security Forces.

It took me longtime time to understand that my mentor, my hero, my inspiration, my father, was not there with me anymore. I am sure he is watching me from the skies and keeps on blessing us ..Luv you and miss you always ..

By- Vikas Raina

Facts on Article 370 and accession of Kashmir

Article 370 / autonomy was not in exchange of Accession.

In certain situations as a student of history, it is important to understand the sequence of events and decisions. If the sequence is lost, the essence of history is lost.Some people do it unknowingly others do it deliberately to further their agenda.

The history of Jammu Kashmir & Ladakh goes back to more than 5000 years of Sanatan Dharam, Kashmir Shaivism, Bhuddism and Islam. The aboriginal Kashmiri Hindus and Buddhists have been going through simmering #Genocide, induced displacement and migration since the religious fundamentalists have adopted violent ways of killing and converting people from other faiths. The language used in Kashmir till 1300’s was Sanskrit with Devnagri and Shaarda Script. It was changed to Persian because of the invading rulers. After the beginning of Dogra rule the official language was changed to Urdu.

Before Anglo Sikh war Raja Gulab Singh was heading Jammu region for Lahore Government. In this war, the Lahore government was defeated by britishers and was supposed to pay an indemnity of one and half crore to britishers. Since Lahore government was not in a position to pay full amount and britishers were not in a position to go for another war with Dogra ruler, an amount of 750000 Nanakshahis was paid by Raja Gulab Singh, where after britishers ceded the region of Jammu and Kashmir to Gulab Singh. Some people are hell bent to suggest Kashmir was sold to Maharaja where as fact of the matter is – The State of Jammu and Kashmir was ceded to Maharaja Gulab Singh by virtue of Treaty of Lahore in 1846.

Maharaja Hari Singh did not wish to join either pakistan or India, although he ultimately acceded with India; it was to protect his subjects and the state from invasion led by pakistan in violation of the Standstill Agreement signed between state of J&K and pakistan before 15thAugust 1947. As a consequence of his wish he probably wanted to have some kind of autonomy to govern his state Jammu and Kashmir. Article 370 in some ways could have been a consequence of Maharaja’s wishes, but the governance after accession was rapidly moving out of his hands to National Conference. In 1932 Muslim Conference was established which was later renamed as National Conference and was led by Sheikh Abdullah. In 1953 Jawahar Lal Nehru realised his mistake of supporting and promoting Sheikh Abdullah and ultimately he detained Sheikh Abdullah for 11years.

Partition of British India happened on the basis of religion – two nation theory. As an extension of this concept, founders of pakistan desired to have as many pakistans within the geographical boundary of Indian Dominion, which for obvious reasons was not allowed by Sardar Patel / India. Every thing that pakistan has been trying since 15thAugust 1947, has been in pursuance of their desire to illegally annex Kashmir. As a consequence pakistan has always considered India / J&K as its enemy no.1.

Pakistan in violation of standstill agreement with J&K -a land locked state- stopped its trade routes, which were till then historically used for movement of essential commodities like fuel, wheat, cloth ammunition etc. to the state, it also blocked posts and telegraph links to J&K.
Over and above, pakistan attacked and killed thousands of kashmiri hindus, muslims, sikhs and christians to annex J&K .

Article 370 was a mechanism of allowing a separatist state by not allowing many fundamental rights to millions of people – Kashmiri Hindus, Dalits, Refugees from pakistan,Valmikis, Gorkhas, women who married outside the state of J&K and was also damaging India from within.

In a Secular Democratic Republic of India the constitution of India is very liberal towards minorities and hence there was no need to actually have a separate constitution for a state adjoining pakistan. But J&K was allowed to have a separate constitution which did not allow unconditional free flow of laws for the subjects of J&K, even though they were applicable for the remaining states of India. Over and above, the article 35A was inducted via presidential order without approval of Indian Parliament, which allowed government of J&K to define citizens of the state – effectively we had citizens of India who were not citizens of J&K and the constitution of J&K was biased against citizens of India.

In the mean time punjabes from west pakistan which dominated the military establishment of pakistan started discriminatory tactics with the people of east pakistan mostly bengali, who were culturally different. East pakistan revolted against west pakistan which culminated in formation of Bangladesh as a separate country after 1971 IndoPak war even though both parts of pakistan had been established on the policy of same religion.

After defeat in the war of 1971, former military head of pakistan Zia ul haq in 80s devised a strategy known as operation TOPAC.Basic objective of this strategy was to annex Kashmir with pakistan and to destabilise India. Even today this is the foundational strategy used in one or the other form. Due to lack of political will the parties heading J&K and Indian government till now were knowingly or unknowingly allowing pakistan to make deeper inroads in Kashmiri and Indian civil society. The effects of this prolonged self imposed servitude shown by then governments of J&K and India has now necessitated an unprecedented Government lock down in Jammu and Kashmir, even though unofficial continuous lock downs have lasted at least 13 days in past which were called as hartal or Civil Curfew; effectively making the paradise of Kashmir a living hell for common masses living across the province.

The fact that whole J&K including PoJ&K, Ladakh and Gilgit Baltistan acceded with India. The territory which is in control of countries other than India is the disputed territory not the area within the current geographical boundaries of India.

The misconception created by vested interests to suggest a freedom movement by the some people gets defeated by the fact that genocide and massacre of Hindus and Sikhs was being perpetrated in the name of religious fundamentalism as driven by pakistan agenda to annex J&K.

By:Ravin
Reference:My frozen turbulences in Kashmir- Sh.Jagmohan

A History of Kashmir-Sh.PNK Bamzai