The Kashmir Files provokes debate in Parliament the forced Exodus of Pandits didn’t: Lalit K Kaul

 

The Kashmir Files provokes debate in Parliament the forced Exodus of Pandits didn’t

Lalit K Kaul

Is not that a paradox? Yes it is. Those who are creating ruckus in the Parliament are anticipating an uncertain political future for them and their outfits. The release of Kashmir Files has caused so much mental imbalance in them that by their speeches in the Parliament they are directly/indirectly not only provoking the gullible outside to engineer riots, but also attempting to polarize Indian society for the sake of consolidating their vote banks.

Their equating the forced exodus of the Pandits from the Valley (a first step in the process of Ghazwa e Hind, as analyzed by Hussain Haqqani of Pakistan) to Assam, Godhra and Sikh riots betrays the ignorance of such (essentially) depraved people, masquerading as representatives of people, about politics within and without the land called India; if it is not ignorance then it is a deliberate attempt to rouse communal passions and to create unrest within only to serve the fodder to their masters in Pakistan and China for international denouncement of Indian ethos.

The foolish part of their campaign is that they are holding BJP responsible for release of the documentary and thereby giving a huge political advantage to the ruling party; the BJP shamelessly is taking the credit as the PM has suddenly realized that once upon a time there lived a specie called Pandits in Kashmir and they had been extricated from their land of birth, culture, religion and philosophy and shamelessly they are coming forth as benefactors of the Pandits.

Even while the producer of the documentary denies any role of BJP and says that the documentary is research work of 3 years, the police and media personnel in Hyderabad gherao Vivek Agnihotri as the CM of Telengana does not want to displease the Owaisi group that has tremendous potential to go on the rampage and do what Mufti Mohammed Sayeed did in 1989 in Anantnag, Kashmir.

Why equating planned exodus of the Pandits from the Valley with Assam/ Godhra riots and Sikh massacre in 1984 is incredulous /dubious, the following points are in order.

The 1982 Assam Riots:

Those masquerading as people’s representatives should read a bit of history as documented and not as taught in madrasas and other religion based foundations.

The Assam agitation was about illegal infiltration of Muslims from Bangladesh and Bengalis from W Bengal (mostly Muslims) and to a lesser extent from Orissa. The influx had caused demographic change and loss of opportunities to locals and therefore a very peaceful agitation was launched by the students – All Assam Students Union (AASU)- and All Assam Gana Parishad (AAGP) that requested the GOI to deport illegal migrants from Assam. The movement was so innovative that they invented new ways of putting across their point of view to the then GOI.

The Congress (I) was in power at Center and Muslims being the backbone of their vote bank was in no mood to fulfill legitimate demands of the Assamese. Instead what the Congress did was to found a Muslim group and christened it as Muslim United Front (MUF). Within short time of it having come into existence, bloody riots broke out in Assam and Assam agitation was buried deep under the layers of Mother Earth. The illegal Muslim immigrants at the behest of Congress (I) went on the rampage and were befittingly replied to by the locals. No community has this sole prerogative of engineering riots, desecrating religious places and causing mass displacements; it should be borne in mind. So in case of a reprisal let no party/group play victim card. For more details about the Assam agitation one may read an epic article on it by Sri Arun Shourie which he published in India Today in 1982. It is a real piece of investigative journalism.

So, Assam riots were engineered by those who today are questioning release of Kashmir Files. Assam riots did not result in anybody becoming refugee in his/her own country; it was not a part of Ghazwa e Hind. Therefore to compare Pandits Exodus with Assam riots is indicative of a very nefarious design that may unfold sooner than later.

The Godhra Riots:

Our country is so secular that no political party, no state or central government ever talked/debated the issue of burning alive of the Kar Sevaks in the train compartments; why, because they were Hindus and hence dispensable. Post burning alive event, one of the National English dailies (IE or TOI) reported on its first page that the owner (a Muslim) of the restaurant right opposite to the station was responsible for the act and he belonged to Congress cadre. The owner had fled the scene, it was reported; what happened to him thereafter nobody knows!

The then minister for Railways, Sri Lalu Prasad Yadav, instituted a commission of inquiry only to come up with a report the next day (overnight) that the Kar Sevaks had themselves put the bogies on fire! This is Secularism.

Hindus responded and the culprits played the victim card! The Italian tried hard to persecute Sri Narendra Modi for the riots, but courts exonerated him.

The court verdict notwithstanding, my understanding about the riots is that it was decided to teach the professional rioters- favourites of secular brigade- a lesson of their life so that they would think a million time before being adventurous in the future. The effect: no riots in Gujarat, post Godhra. The message that was sent across was that if you throw a brick we will reply with a stone. No riots and everybody benefitted by the growth of business and consequent employment opportunities. The Gujarat Model was also hailed by the Gujarat Muslim business groups and BJP never lost an election in Gujarat thereafter.

Godhra was subsequent to burning alive of Kar Sevaks in train compartments by a Muslim who belonged to Congress; the Pandits had not done so to Kashmiri Muslims so the comparison is odious.

The Sikh Riots: 

Those who got Indira Gandhi assassinated by exploiting the emotions of Sikh guards – post operation Blue Star- ruled at the Center from 2004 to 2014. Sri Ram Jethmalani who appeared as defense counsel for the accused asked 5 questions that have not found answers till date; all those point to the master planner within the Congress party.

I had gone to Bhopal and stayed in a hotel which belonged to a Hindu; right across the road there was a hotel which belonged to a Sikh. I was a witness to how the Congress goons looted and damaged the hotel and loaded the loot in their truck while the police supported them. The Sikh was terrified and before he could be murdered he took shelter in the hotel I was staying. The rioters threw stones at my room as I watched their act of vandalism because they mistook me for a Sikh as I had grown a long beard!! This all is verifiable, if my office has the tour records of 1984.

The Congress goons encouraged by the PM Rajiv Gandhi slaughtered Sikhs- the pride of our Nation and Hindu Society; a community that is valour and sacrifice personified. Like the Muslim goons are let loose to do loot and arson similarly Congress let loose its goons to avenge the assassination of the PM, Smt. Indira Gandhi; while the planners of the assassination watched the fun.

The Sikh massacre was not part of Ghazwa e Hind and there was no such diabolic design of converting India into a Hindu State unlike in Kashmir where the aim was to have Islamicized Kashmir and which they achieved to a very large extent supported by the Central and State governments of the day.

The Nation has betrayed Kashmiri Pandits: 

Let nobody, no politician, no political party present themselves as well wishers and benefactors of the Pandits. Let BJP and the PM ingrain it their conscience, if they have any that the Pandits owe nothing to the Indian Union / Indian State; the Pandits survived the catastrophe by dint of their hard work and resolve; but some Kashmiri Muslims have grievances that the government gave them ration on ration cards! Let the Press/Media not earn TRP by conducting meaningless debates. The Pandits are grateful to the producer, director and actors who combined to bring out a masterpiece on the ethnic cleansing of the Pandits. Yet it shows only 10% of what happened; the team may bring out a series on this topic and show it worldwide.

The Punch Line:

In 2011 I went to Dulhasti Hydro Power Plant for some work that included educating the staff on some design aspects of the plant. At the end of the programme having bid them good bye I realized that somebody was following me. I stopped to look back and found that it was one of the participants. On asking him if he wanted to clarify any doubts, he asked me if I was a Kashmiri Pandit. I said yes and to my shocking surprise he told me that he was meeting with a Pandit for the first time though he had heard his elders talking about the Pandits. He was less than my kids’ age; I gave him a smile and told him not to bother.

So much for the much hallowed Kashmiriat!!!