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The Rediff Interview/Dr Sunil Shakdhar

'We are refugees in our country'

The recent release of several leaders of the All India Hurriyat Conference was bad news for "displaced" Kashmiri Pandits here. Their fears were rekindled that the Vajpayee government had released them before commencing dialogue for a peaceful solution to the Kashmir problem.

"There can be no dialogue without the participation of Kashmiri Pandits," asserted Dr Agnishekhar of Panun Kashmir, the political outfit representing rights of the displaced community, which is aggrieved that "we are victims of a communal conspiracy which has made us refugees in our country."

Dr Agnishekhar and his supporters are almost paranoid that a move may have commenced to stop them from participation in dialogue and they are leaving no stone unturned to ensure that all are aware of their plight.

Dr Agnishekhar, at a recent press conference, had warned that hell would break loose if their voice was ignored at the expense of 'mollycoddling' the APHC.

He proposed the quatrification of Jammu & Kashmir, with a homeland for Kashmiri Pandits, instead of dividing - as proposed by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh - the state into Kashmir valley, Jammu and Ladakh.

Dr Sunil Shakdhar is vice-president of the Kashmir Samiti, Delhi, which is a nodal agency recognised by the Union government. It looks after the welfare of "Kashmiri Pandits chased out of J&K at gunpoint in 1990."

Since the Panun Kashmir mainly deals with political issues, the Kashmir Samiti was set up to deal with social and other needs. But like his friends in Panun Kashmir, Shakdhar is anxious that the Pandits are given their due because "we have been living in sub-human conditions, being torn apart from the land of our birth''.

The Kashmir Samiti vice-president spoke to Tara Shankar Sahay in New Delhi about his community's anxiety to return to the militancy-infested state, its desire to ensure a homeland for Kashmiri Pandits and the resolve to fight till their demands are met. Excerpts from the interview:

How did you feel when the Vajpayee government decided to release APHC leaders for reportedly starting dialogue for a solution to the Kashmir problem?

I thought here is an opportunity to press home our point of view, to show the world how we are suffering and how we are being ignored in our endeavour to ensure a homeland. If people are talking about trifurcation of J&K, we want its quatrification so that the fourth part constitutes Panun Kashmir, our homeland. 'Panun' means 'ours'. Do you know why we want to name it as such? Because Kashmiri Pandits, who have been forcibly evicted from Kashmir valley with guns being brandished, want to die in the land of their birth. That is our sacred right and nobody can deprive us of it. We have told the government that if a dialogue is there for a solution to the Kashmir problem, we cannot be ignored. We want a homeland where we can live honourably and die honourably. We want our last rites to be performed only in our homeland. Why should anybody grudge us what every Indian is legitimately entitled to?

When the exodus from the valley began in 1990, how did political leaders react?

I am ashamed to say nobody stepped forward to prevent it. Dr Farooq Abdullah was chief minister, but he did not lift even his little finger to help us. Our mothers, sisters, wives and children were abused and insulted by these despicable desperadoes masquerading as militants. They told us, 'Get the hell out of here. Leave your house, movable and immovable property. Anybody found tomorrow morning will have his head blown off, so don't tell us you were not warned'. But Abdullah, who is CM even today, did not bother. When journalists asked why he did not prevent our exodus, he replied that others too were forced to leave the valley.

That time, the prime minister was that so-called paragon of secularism, Vishwanath Pratap Singh. We sent him many messages underlining the threat to our lives and property, but he did not respond. Obviously, our politicians practice selective politics. So much for political protection.

But have you really made serious efforts to get your so-called separate homeland, besides holding press conferences, from 1990 onwards?

We have done everything democratically. We have petitioned prime ministers, Union home ministers and J&K chief ministers. We have told them that we are homeless refugees without a permanent address and our survival stands threatened if we fail. Mufti Mohammed Sayeed, as Union home minister in the V P Singh National Front government, had indicated that he was helpless. All leaders said, 'I would if I could, but I can't'.

Why have successive Central governments not helped?

You guess is as good as mine. But our job and our endeavour is to keep struggling till our just demands are met. If the government can agree to the creation of Vananchal, Uttaranchal and Bodoland, this land, that land, of course, it can agree to the creation of Panun Kashmir.

During the 10-year period that you left the Kashmir valley, did not many Kashmiri Pandits do well economically in the carpet, leather, handicraft and lampshade industries, apart from holding lucrative jobs?

That is the right of every Indian citizen and we are bona fide citizens, not refugees with begging bowls. Our parents handed down to us their education, their talent of wielding the pen and it is our right to make the best use of it. We are not satisfied in earning our daily bread in various parts of the country. We want to return to our homeland. We will not settle for anything less.

Why haven't you approached the Vajpayee government?

We have approached it and even made overtures, to no avail. Now we are carefully monitoring the situation so that when the occasion arises for holding dialogue, we want to ensure that Panun Kashmir is a notable participant.

What has been the Centre's attitude towards Kashmiri Pandits in Delhi?

Very negligible. No central leader has visited the 17 refugee camps of Kashmiri Pandits here. No state leader, too, leave alone the likes of Dr Farooq Abdullah. Of course, the Delhi government disburses Rs 600 per Kashmiri Pandit family member (out of the J&K budget) but that is barely sufficient for keeping the body and soul together. We are living in sub-human conditions.

If the government has a fixed mindset in ignoring your demands, how do you propose to change it?

There is no easy answer. The Kashmir Samiti and Panun Kashmir will continue the struggle from every democratic forum in the country by highlighting our sufferings. When we were being forced out of the valley, the militants told us it would be joining Pakistan and we were aliens. Our homeland was forcibly taken away from us. During cricket matches between India and Pakistan, most people in Kashmir support the Pakistanis and abuse Indian players. Why does the Indian government tolerate this despite knowing the harsh realities. Who likes to be a second-rate citizen in one's own country? The irony is that the government is aware of this but prefers to turn a blind eye to it. Pakistani flags flutter from rooftops in the valley. It's like negating your nationality. This scheme of things has to change.

Has Panun Kashmir thought of fighting elections to get its voice heard?

We had thought that at least the powers-that-be, the President or somebody, would nominate at least one Panun Kashmir member to the Lok Sabha. That hasn't happened. But we are determined to organise ourselves under the Panun Kashmir banner and fight assembly polls in Delhi so that we can fight for our rights. Many of us are under threat from militants in Kashmir. We will continue our fight till our demands are met.

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