The Indian government has been caring for the families of Kashmiri Pundits and making all necessary arrangements for their return to Kashmir. These families were relocated in the 1980s and 1990s, and more than one theory has been floated about why this flight was staged, and it has nothing to do with the independence movement. The current relocation of Kashmiri Pundits in Kashmir in an effort to shift Kashmir’s ethnic composition has been a major policy shift by the Indian government; which is employing all of its resources, intellect, and energy to acquire Kashmir. However, the area remains steadfast and stubborn.
As per the official Indian data, 3800 Kashmiri Pundit houses have been restored, 44000 Kashmiri Pundit households are given INR/- 13000 a month, or roughly $1,300 a month, from their jobs. 3800 of the 6000 jobs created for Kashmiri Pundit households have been distributed. However, in comparison to this, Muslim households displaced by the Gujarat riots were given only INR 500, but it was swiftly canceled and their camps were forcefully dismantled. This is not the only incident that proves that Indian Muslims are seen and treated as “second-class citizens”.
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The Anantnag riots of February 1986, despite the fact that no Hindus were harmed, resulted in the destruction of a number of Hindu houses and other property. An investigation found that Indian government officials, not Islamists, were responsible for the Anantnag riots.
According to the report, they hoped to draw attention to their country by exploiting religious sentiments
According to official figures from the government of Jammu and Kashmir, as many as 60,000 families have migrated to other regions of Jammu and Kashmir and neighboring countries. They were given the opportunity to attend medical or engineering school when they left the Valley. This practice has been around for a long time. More than 50 million Indian rupees is required to send their children to college outside of India. It was assumed that the killings were politically motivated because of the political power struggle and strange events that occurred surrounding the murders.
Kashmiri Pundit families fleeing the valley are a contentious subject. During the IIOJK uprising in 1989, it is said that hundreds of Pundits evacuated the valley, indicating that the community was terrified enough to leave and escape. They have been subjected to “genocide” and pushed “into exile,” according to Kashmiri Pundits who have lived outside Kashmir. This is not the case with Kashmiri Pundits who have spent time in Kashmir.
Many scholars believe that the Indian government was responsible for the Hindu-Muslim riots in the country. A similar situation arose in Kashmir when young people rose up in resistance to Indian soldiers entering the region. The myth of the Kashmir Pundit was exploited by the Indian government to justify a massive onslaught on Muslims in Kashmir. The Indian government took advantage of the Kashmir Pundits’ departure from India to shield them from international criticism and gain domestic support. The Indian government is aiding Pundit families and enabling them to return to their homes in Kashmir as part of its attempts to transform Kashmir’s religious and demographic make-up.
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Articles 370 and 35-A, which had given Kashmir its unique status, were repealed by the Indian government in August of this year. As a result, India is attempting to alter the demographics of Kashmir, a move that is illegal under international law. For the last 75 years, India has rejected Kashmir’s right to self-determination. Since then, it has devoted all of its efforts to create a Muslim majority in Kashmir. Everyone else has to take Indian criminal activity extremely seriously.
The author holds an M.Phil from National Defence University and is a freelance writer and can be reached at mshoaib40@gmail.com. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Global Village Space.