Create Union Territory in Kashmir Valley for the resettlement of one million exiled Kashmiris

In fact, today’s Press Conference was originally meant to register our dismay at the very way in which the State Government machinery had tried to handle Panun Kashmir’s meeting with the visiting All Party Delegation of the Parliament of India to Jammu & Kashmir. Outraged by the insult shown to us, we had decided that we shall not meet this delegation and we also issued a Press Statement to this effect.  We have also been of strong opinion that the process was cosmetic and had been reduced to a mere pretension.  We made our protest well known and communicated this in strong words to the authorities as well as to the visiting Parliamentarians.

 At 8.30 PM yesterday, we were approached by the highest authorities in the State with a request that the visiting All Party Delegation was more than willing to grant an exclusive hearing to Panun Kashmir and that the Home Minister of India had personally intervened in the matter.  We were requested for a separate meeting with the All Party Delegation, which we accepted.

 A joint delegation of Panun Kashmir comprising of Dr. Ajay Chrungoo, Dr. Agnishekhar, Sh. Shailendra Aima and Sh. Sanjay Raina, met the visiting Parliamentarians quite late in the night and presented our views to them.

 We told the APD that it was high time to recognize the fact that in Kashmir Valley there were two sets of opinion – one that of the separatists and the other that of patriots.  The Hindus of Kashmir constituted the patriotic section of Indians along with others living there whose voice has been strangulated.  That all Kashmiri Hindus want to live in a dispensation of a Union Territory to the North and East of Jehlum River where there is unfettered flow of the Indian Constitution.  It was time that Government of India initiated a dialogue at the highest level with Panun Kashmir on the demand of creation of a Union Territory in Kashmir Valley for the resettlement of one million exiled Kashmiris, there.  It is pertinent how creation of Panun Kashmir shall pave the way for reversal of genocide of Kashmiri Hindus and defeating communalism and separatism.Panun Kashmir strongly expressed its outrage and dismay over the way a section of the All Party Delegation bent on its knees to please those separatist elements that have been responsible for genocide and religious cleansing of the Hindus in Kashmir .

The Delegation was told that all variants of separatism in Kashmir Valley were a negation of Indian secularism, the Charter of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and were destructive of the Fundamental Rights of all citizens.  The separatist movement in Kashmir Valley is basically regressive and it was high time that the same was deprived of any liberal legitimacy.

 Panun Kashmir told the Delegation that Muslim separatism and communalism have been left uncontested ideologically as well as politically by the Indian State .  The entire population has
been allowed to be fed on historical distortions which tentamounted to handing over Kashmiri Muslim population particularly the youth to Taliban like indoctrination.  Kashmir was never a Muslim preserve and always remained an important part component of the continuity of the Indian civilization.  

Panun Kashmir also opined that the demands for Greater Autonomy, Self Rule, Independence or merger with Pakistan were ideologically same and complementary to each other. Unless this is understood and the complementary relationship between these strands of separatism decisively destroyed, the space for democracy, equality and nation building shall never be created in Kashmir .  The Parliamentarians were told that the alienation in Kashmir is because of communalism ruling the roost over the minds of Kashmiri Muslim.

Panun Kashmir told the APD that no promises were ever made with the Muslims of Kashmir by the Indian State . Pt. Nehru did commit himself  to elicit the opinion of the people of Jammu and Kashmir on accession subject to the basic condition that the invading forces of Pakistan were withdrawn from Kashmir .  The condition was never fulfilled by Pakistan .

Panun Kashmir further asserted that at the time of accession of the State neither Nehru nor any other Indian leader gave any assurance to the NC leaders with regard to future constitutional structure of the State.  The truth is, the APD was told, that no NC leader asked for any assurances seeking a special autonomous constitutional status for the State, at the time of accession.

Panun Kashmir categorically stated that there were no promises made to Kashmiri Muslims by government of India in 1952 when Delhi Agreement was drawn up or when the Presidential Order of 1954 was proclaimed.   There were no promises made in 1975 and no promises made ever after.

Panun Kashmir urged the Government of India and the nation not to be mislead by the historical distortions of unfulfilled promises and desist from basing its policy on such misplaced premises

Responses