Remembering January 19, 1990 - genocide and exodus of Kashmiri Hindus
The event was organised in Auckland on Sunday, January 19, with some speakers speaking in favour of CAA as well
Veer Khar
To commemorate 30 years of forced exodus of over 700,000 Kashmiri pandits, as well as express solidarity with steps like abrogation of Article 370 and laws like CAA, the Indian Association Manukau (IAM) organised an event on Sunday, January 19, called, Remembering January 19, 1990 – genocide and exodus of Kashmiri Hindus.
Veer Khar, who is a Kashmiri pandit and president of IAM, informed, “It’s been 30 years since we have been living in hell, in camps. Now, we want to go home. We want Panun Kashmir, which is to carve out a separate homeland for the community in the Kashmir valley with a union territory status. And once we are settled there, slowly as peace returns, we can integrate back into the society.”
Sanjay Mujha
“What we have faced is unimaginable. My own brother-in-law Bansilal Sapru was hanged in his own garden during the exodus. My house in Kashmir is home to a madrassa now. And these are not single one-off stories. Our community is full of such tragedies. That’s why we are having this world-wide event – with our programme the first in the world. It will be followed by similar such programmes in 40 countries during the day, being organised under the umbrella of Global Kashmiri Pandit Diaspora, where our goal is to highlight our suffering and demand justice,” he added.
Meanwhile, Khar’s colleague at IAM, Sanjay Mujha, shared with the gathering what abrogation of Article 370 and 35A [removing the special status of Jammu and Kashmir] means for the Kashmiri population in general. “Among other things, Kashmiri women can now buy real estate and transfer property to children, even if they get married to a non-resident, which was not the case before,” he said.
Mahek Sharma and Aman also shared their views on the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. “It’s not going to affect any Indian citizens, contrarily to what some vested political interests are saying. According to an Indian Intelligence Bureau report, only 31,313 refugees living in India right now, will be benefited by the Act, as they can become Indian citizens now,” they said.
Major Gaurav Arya
The final word belonged to Major Gaurav Arya, consulting editor for strategic affairs with the Republic TV, who said, “The Indian Government needs to talk about Kashmiri pandits more. I am shocked to see the radicalisation that is prevalent in the Kashmir valley these days. So the only way I see pandits coming back to the valley is through brute force, as peaceful resettlement is just not possible in my opinion.”
-Gaurav Sharma