[Reader-list] Gowhar Geelani calling for the Return of Kashmiri Pandits to Kashmir in 'Greater Kashmir'

[gowhar fazli]

Inder, I second you.

On impossibility of return or to "restore things", i wish to share Sheikh Saidi's couplet:

Raftam ki khaar az pa kasham,  mohmil nihan shud az nazar!
Yak lahza ghafil boodam o sad saalah raham door shud!

love gowhar fazili

p.s.  I am not sure Gowhar Geelani is on this list.  In case he is not, I will however share your response with him.


--- On Fri, 9/24/10, Inder Salim <indersalim at gmail.com> wrote:

> From: Inder Salim <indersalim at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Gowhar Geelani calling for the Return of Kashmiri Pandits to Kashmir in 'Greater Kashmir'
> To: "reader-list" <reader-list at sarai.net>
> Date: Friday, September 24, 2010, 12:10 AM
> Dear Gowhar
> thanks
> 
> the most magical thing would have been a non-violent
> struggle in 1990
> itself. alas...
> 
> but i guess, we have a long history of getting things done
> through the
> barrel of gun, earlier it was sword.  What the
> violence has achieved
> so far:  affluent class from Kashmir are constantly
> thinking to have
> an alternative space outside Kashmir, in Delhi or in Jammu
> even,
> leaving behind the rural poor masses to face the music.
> People in
> Kashmir  need to restore the confidence of the its own
> intellectual
> class, who inwardly yearn for a more democratic voice. The
> more
> violence is there the more people will think about material
> security,
> the more it can corrupt the mind...  which is actually
> happening... it
> is besides the point that why security forces are trigger
> happy in the
> valley
> 
> . ( for a while i am holding back the profound nature of
> what VIOLENCE
> actually means to us... )
> 
> The trouble is that we are never in a position to restore
> the things
> lost, exactly as we once experienced...  Things change
> at a very rapid
> pace every time, every day, every year..and when at
> thisjuncture we
> have a violent protest minus gun, it should be an
> opportunity to all
> the stake holders to start something fresh. Taking 
> about kashmir
> about Indian and anti indian position would actually limit
> its scope
> to open up spaces for other voices to join.  Kashmiri
> stuggle should
> have a unique indigenous voice, and i dont think they need
> to be
> dependent upon moral and political and material support
> from Pakistan
> .
> 
> Kashmris perhaps need to shun the Gun culture once for all,
> and think
> creatively about the Kashmir issue,  rather something
> which is based
> on long term strategy. The question why AZADI ? needs a
> sincere
> discourse to disseminate the idea of new free Kashmir. What
> is
> pressing for most of the educated youth that whether they
> should
> listen to people like Dr. ZAkir Naik or about what suits
> them
> actually.
> 
> Riding on the shoulders of faith will be again a temporary
> repreive,
> since people finally dont need a straight jacketed belief
> system to
> carry on their routine,  I am not too optimistic here,
> but still, i
> love the kashmiri way of life, which is its own... not like
> Iraqi, or
> Punjabi, Sindhi etc...
> 
> so, to weave the Kashmir discourse with the Kashmir
> culture  will
> perhaps salvage the psyche of Kashmiri youth who are really
> hurt by
> the violence unleashed by all agencies...
> 
> Kashmir discourse is beyond vengeance of recent innocent
> killings, even. .
> 
> shall keep on thinking myself.....
> 
> love
> is
> 
> On Thu, Sep 23, 2010 at 10:00 PM, Bipin Trivedi <aliens at dataone.in>
> wrote:
> > Dear Inder,
> >
> > I appreciate your attitude towards Pandits and so many
> are their like you in Kashmir but could not dare to come out
> fearing of militants or separatists. If everyone thinks like
> that in Kashmir there want be any problem and Kashmir will
> be on the right track. Thanks accepting about the beginning
> of Pak sponsored gun culture for which you give reason
> rigging of election. However, the tense situation initiated
> by Pak will be there even if election rigging was not there.
> So at one place it is proved that Pak with the help of few
> local Kashmiri played key role to push out Kashmiri Pandit
> from valley.
> >
> > Thanks
> > Bipin Trivedi
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: reader-list-bounces at sarai.net
> [mailto:reader-list-bounces at sarai.net]
> On Behalf Of Inder Salim
> > Sent: Thursday, September 23, 2010 12:25 AM
> > To: reader-list
> > Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Gowhar Geelani calling for
> the Return of Kashmiri Pandits to Kashmir in 'Greater
> Kashmir'
> >
> > Thanks dear Shuddha for this wonderful forward
> >
> > Lot of people on the list have this impression that
> all the Muslims in
> > the valley think that Pandits left the valley on their
> own, or
> > Jagmohan convinced them so.....
> >
> > But that is  not the fact. Majority of Muslims in
> valley miss Pandits,
> > and want their return to kashmir. Both the communities
> love each
> > others simplicity and want to restore that
> co-existence in the valley.
> >
> > It was in 1986 that congress J&K Chief Mufi Mohd
> Syed thought to
> > outwit the NC-Congress alliance by instigating
> communal riots.  The
> > subsequent rigging of elections ensured the beginning
> of Pakistan
> > sponsored Gun culture, which automatically pushed out
> Pandits from
> > Valley. Qazi Nissar was MUF canditate ( killed by
> militants later )
> > who never said a word against Pandits in his
> lectures.
> >
> > When passion for Azadi was really at peak, that time
> even, neighbors
> > helped Pandits to move out safely. But now when lot of
> Muslims
> > brothers have suffered,( first by securities excess
> then by rogue
> > militans, then by both, and now by SOG and all that...
> ) sincerely
> > want Pandits back in their homes. That is my
> feeling...
> >
> > But the problem with Pandit leadership is that they
> have different
> > priorities: one of them is extreme love for Indian
> Nationalism,  its
> > Tricolour etc, which is not a sin, but in Kashmir it
> complicates the
> > problems, since Kashmir is a conflict zone between
> differnt parties.
> > But  the bonds between Kashmiri Muslims and Kashmiri
> Pandits is based
> > on shared cultural heritage, music food,  simplicity
> and above all
> > language, and not because of some conflict.
> >
> > So, Pandit communty need to decide what is good for
> them . My humble
> > suggestion is that both the communities need more
> visibility through
> > multiple interactive cultural sessions  ....
> >
> > I dont see any political role for Kashmiri Pandits to
> play in Kashmir
> > or outside. The number game is quite vital in any
> democratic form of
> > politics, as we know, and Kashmiri pandits are very
> few, that too
> > scattered all over the country.
> >
> > The interaction is already happening at a very
> personal level. There
> > are exchanges and friendly  meetings even during this
> time.
> >
> > Both the communities are nostalgic about their past,
> one can only wish
> > a happy new beginning between the two..
> >
> > with love
> > is
> >
> >
> >
> > On Wed, Sep 22, 2010 at 10:22 PM, Shuddhabrata
> Sengupta
> > <shuddha at sarai.net>
> wrote:
> >> Dear All,
> >>
> >> Here is a forthright and moving piece by Gowhar
> Geelani in today's Greater
> >> Kashmir newspaper. Notice how he takes 'personal
> responsibility'. And how he
> >> talks about the value of repeated entreaties.
>  Hope it will be of interest
> >> to all.
> >>
> >> best
> >>
> >> Shuddha
> >>
> >> -----------------------------------
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Come home,  Come soon : On the hoped for return
> of Kashmiri Pandits to
> >> Kashmir
> >>
> >> Gowhar Geelani - Greater Kashmir, 22 September
> 2010
> >> http://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/2010/Sep/22/return-of-kps-34.asp
> >>
> >>
> >> I vividly remember my favourite school teacher Ms.
> Anita. As her name would
> >> suggest she was a Kashmiri Pandit. She was my
> form-teacher at school. I
> >> remember my others Pandit teachers too. Mrs Bharti
> Koul, Teja Ma'am and Usha
> >> Ma'am. I owe a lot to all of them for what I'm
> today. I remember how Anita
> >> Ma'am would ensure that I secured first position
> in my class. I also
> >> remember how Teja Ma'am would want me to be the
> best of the lot! I remember
> >> everything.
> >>
> >> Those were beautiful and peaceful days in our
> Kashmir, full of sweet
> >> memories. Muslims, Pandits and Sikhs studying in
> the same school, playing
> >> together in playgrounds, sharing their lunches,
> attending marriage
> >> functions, birthday parties, offering condolences
> when someone in the
> >> neighbourhood died, sympathizing with each other
> and even engaging in
> >> smaller verbal brawls as friends normally do.
> >>
> >> 'Music of bullets replaced school bells'
> >> Then, all of a sudden, tranquillity vanished in
> thin air. Peace didn't stay,
> >> it was blown away into pieces. My beautiful
> memories in 'Angels Public
> >> School, 'Abhay Public School', 'Light Public
> School' and 'Shaheen Public
> >> School' in Srinagar soon started turning into
> nightmares.
> >>
> >> The huge paintings of greats like Dr. Allama
> Iqbal, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and
> >> Rabindra Nath Tagore hanging on the walls of my
> school were now being hit by
> >> stray bullets on a regular basis. Music of bullets
> replaced the 'recess' and
> >> 'period' bells in my school.
> >>
> >> 'My beautiful garden isn't attractive anymore'
> >> Life was not the same again after 1989. Everything
> changed, dramatically. I
> >> remember everything. How Indian troopers
> humiliated my elderly people, day
> >> in and day out; how they slapped me after on their
> directions (read orders)
> >> I'd read a poster of a popular militant outfit
> pasted on an electric pole in
> >> our locality; how they stared at me, abused,
> hurled choicest invectives and
> >> threatened me while walking on my streets for no
> fault of mine; how they
> >> made me to bend on my knees and walk on my elbows
> on an undeclared curfew
> >> day, when I and my other classmates were to appear
> in class 10th papers at
> >> Bemina Degree College, Srinagar. It all happened
> in early years of 1990's.
> >> The memories of their abuses and slaps haunt me,
> still.
> >>
> >> I remember the Army crackdowns, operation 'Catch
> and Kill', the firing
> >> incidents, cross-firing incidents, grenade blasts,
> mine blasts, encounters,
> >> massive anti-India protest demonstrations, slogans
> for freedom from India,
> >> slogans in favour of militants, even some slogans
> against Pandit brethren.
> >>
> >> And I also do remember Pandits leaving from my
> Valley. That was a painful
> >> memory.Many blame Mr. Jagmohan, the then notorious
> Governor of the
> >> strife-ridden Jammu and Kashmir for the exodus of
> Kashmiri Pandits.
> >> But, I will blame myself
> >> Yes, I know I was a school-going boy at that time,
> not influential enough to
> >> be responsible for their migration or to prevent
> their exodus; but I still
> >> blame myself. I strongly feel and believe that we,
> as a proud Kashmiri
> >> nation, should have prevented their exodus. Yes,
> it may be my idealism. Yes,
> >> I know those were not ideal times.
> >>
> >> Who's responsible for this?
> >> Today, there are television debates on Indian
> media about 'Kashmiriyat'.
> >> Who's responsible for the exodus of Pandits? We've
> too many answers coming.
> >> Many Pandits blame their own Muslim brethren, some
> blame militants and
> >> pro-freedom forces active in Kashmir, yet others
> blame the unfortunate
> >> circumstances of 1989. Many Muslims blame former
> Governor Mr. Jagmohan,
> >> others say Pandits shouldn't have left Kashmir
> while few others maintain
> >> that what happened was unfortunate and should
> never have actually happened,
> >> but the migration could not have been avoided
> during those hard times.
> >>
> >> I've a different take on the issue. I believe that
> I'm responsible for the
> >> exodus of Pandits. I believe Muslim community of
> Kashmir as a whole is
> >> responsible for the migration of Pandits. I also
> believe that Pandits too
> >> are responsible for their migration. For the
> simple reason that together we
> >> shared beautiful history of elegant bonds,
> exemplary friendships and
> >> harmony, and we, as a great Kashmiri nation,
> should have never allowed the
> >> circumstances dictate our decisions, our lives,
> our history; and above all
> >> our great cultural bonds! But they did.
> >>
> >> Was it possible?
> >> Though in my previous articles I may have pointed
> fingers at the politics of
> >> Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, the chairman of a faction of
> pro-freedom alliance
> >> Hurriyat Conference and another leader Sajad Gani
> Lone, but here I must
> >> shower praises on both of them. Mirwaiz Umar lost
> his father, Mirwiaz Molvi
> >> Farooq to bullets on 21st May, 199o; while as Lone
> brothers lost their
> >> father, Abdul Gani Lone to bullets on the twelfth
> death anniversary of Molvi
> >> Farooq; 21st May, 2002. Mirwaiz Umar, Sajad Lone
> and Bilal Lone too had an
> >> option to leave Kashmir and get settled down
> abroad, far away from hell in
> >> Kashmir; but they didn't, instead chose to face
> the challenges the
> >> circumstances had thrown before them. Kudos to
> them!
> >>
> >> Leave these brave leaders aside for a moment.
> During late 1990's my mother
> >> was seriously wounded when militants hurled a
> grenade towards a bunker of
> >> Indian troopers at Safakadal, Srinagar. The
> grenade missed the intended
> >> target, as would quite often happen during those
> days, and thus like many
> >> other pedestrians; serious injuries were inflicted
> on my mother too. Her
> >> left foot was badly wounded and it took almost
> four years to heal, though
> >> not permanently. Our family did not leave Kashmir.
> We too had the option.
> >> Because my father had his shawl business running
> successfully in Kolkata
> >> since almost three decades.
> >>
> >> Should Pandits too have braved the 'come what may'
> and avoided leaving
> >> Kashmir, our beloved motherland? Well, debatable.
> May be it wasn't possible.
> >> Or, may be it was. Perhaps yes, perhaps no!
> >>
> >> 'Life hasn't been easy'
> >> Life hasn't been the same for Pandits after
> migration. It hasn't been easy
> >> for them in the migrant camps of Jammu or in
> different parts of India.
> >> Sameer Bhat, my former colleague at Eenadu
> Television in Hyderabad, India in
> >> 2003-04, would often narrate the painful stories
> of migration. Sameer, his
> >> wife, ailing mother and kids would bear the
> scorching heat of Jammu while
> >> sitting in a temporary shed that consisted of only
> one-room. His stories
> >> were very moving and would often leave a pang in
> my heart. Like hundreds of
> >> other Pandit families, his family too had left
> Kashmir in early 1990's. A
> >> close Pandit friend of my father in Rainawari,
> Srinagar, too had to leave
> >> Kashmir alongwith his entire family. Their house
> was burnt down and reduced
> >> to ashes. This friend of my father also used to
> buy shawls from us. At the
> >> time of migration he owed us a lot of money, the
> cheque he had given to my
> >> father bounced. After apologizing he promised to
> repay every single penny in
> >> installments once he settled down in Kolkata. My
> father offered all possible
> >> help and said to the family that they need not to
> pay our money back,
> >> because we understood what they had gone through.
> But, as an honest
> >> businessman he kept his word, his promise; and
> repaid all due amount in
> >> smaller installments in the following years. That
> is Pandit pride! My
> >> father's friend kept the friendship going, his
> Pandit pride alive and with
> >> it the reputation of an honest trader too.
> >>
> >> 'Burden of unique expectations'
> >> Kashmir is a special place having its unique
> history. During our marriage
> >> ceremonies we extend invitation to guests in a way
> that is unique. It is
> >> unparalleled. No where else in the world
> invitation is extended or expected
> >> like as in Kashmir. Even in this age of facebook
> and twitter; an information
> >> and technology age, particular members of a
> Kashmiri family- that has fixed
> >> marriage of a son or a daughter- go personally to
> homes of their close
> >> relatives, friends and neighbours to extend an
> invitation. Then, some
> >> two-three weeks before the marriage an invitation
> card is sent; as the
> >> marriage date comes closer several telephonic
> calls are made, and then a
> >> final call too. At times, even this may not be
> enough and that is perhaps
> >> why many relatives or friends throw their tantrums
> during marriage
> >> ceremonies; you may call it an attention-seeking
> tactics!
> >>
> >> If all relatives, neighbours and friends come and
> attend the marriage
> >> ceremony, it is considered a miracle! If all of
> them do not come, no one is
> >> surprised! That is Kashmir. It is not that
> Kashmiri Pandits or Kashmiri
> >> Muslims are at war with each other after 1989. It
> is the result of their
> >> great and unique tradition and history that
> they've such huge expectations
> >> from each other. As a matter of fact, they're not
> blaming or accusing each
> >> other, instead throwing tantrums, seeking
> attention and expecting a lot!
> >>
> >> To me what actually Pandits are asking is this:"If
> we left Kashmir, why
> >> didn't you call us back? Are merely one or two
> calls enough? Shouldn't you
> >> be doing more and calling us back and receiving us
> with open arms?" And
> >> Muslims are replying:"Why did you leave us when
> things were tough here, you
> >> shouldn't have left us alone in the first place?
> Shouldn't you've faced the
> >> challenges of the circumstances like we did?
> Shouldn't you have stayed and
> >> never gone?
> >>
> >> Both actually expect a lot from each other! There
> is no communal disharmony
> >> in Kashmir. Only circumstances have been
> challenging and the going has been
> >> hard and tough. The movement for freedom in
> Kashmir is not against Kashmiri
> >> Pandits or Sikhs, it is not against the Indian
> people, it is against the
> >> Indian state and its wicked state-craft.
> >> Today, I once again extend an invitation to all of
> them. Please come back.
> >> 'Walev Yeyev Wapas'!
> >>
> >> (Gowhar Geelani is a Kashmiri journalist based in
> Bonn, Germany since 2006,
> >> where he works for Deutsche Welle [Voice of
> Germany] as an Editor.
> >> gowhargeelani at gmail.com)
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Shuddhabrata Sengupta
> >> The Sarai Programme at CSDS
> >> Raqs Media Collective
> >> shuddha at sarai.net
> >> www.sarai.net
> >> www.raqsmediacollective.net
> >>
> >>
> >> _________________________________________
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> >
> >
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