THE LONG WAY HOME

Many Kashmiri Pandits are planning to return to the valley, with or without the government’s help

- TARIQ BHAT

EVER SINCE MILITANCY forced Kashmiri Pandits to leave the state in the late 1980s, they have found themselves at the centre of debates in places big and small, from tea stalls to newsrooms to Parliament.

The latest debate stemmed from the film The Kashmir Files, which its makers and some politicians, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, described as the correct portrayal of atrocities the militants committed against Kashmiri Pandits. Social media burned for weeks with users lobbing allegations from both sides. There were calls to rehabilitate the Kashmiri Pandits and punish those who hurt them.

While the film’s success and the impending elections in Jammu and Kashmir could speed up the Pandits’ return to Kashmir, several of them have already, quietly, been making their way back. Satish Mahaldar, for one, believes it is time to shun the bitterness and move on. He heads the Jammu and Kashmir Peace Forum (JKPF), which works for the rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits. The organisation wants the Centre and the Jammu and Kashmir government to take steps for the return of the Pandits without delay. Mahaldar has been visiting Kashmir regularly and claims that even separatists are on board with his plans. In 2019, separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq told a JKPF delegation that Kashmiri Muslims were incomplete without Kashmiri Pandits, and that the Hurriyat would do everything for their safe return.