On communal lines: Kashmiri leaders reject ‘Pandit-only’ colony
JKLF Chairman says we do not live in separate colonies says
Indian paramilitary soldier in Srinagar. PHOTO: AFP
ISLAMABAD:
Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) Chairman Muhammad Yasin Malik said on Friday that any separate colony for Kashmiri Pandits in the Muslim-majority valley will not be allowed.
Addressing a news conference in Srinagar, Malik said the Hindu-nationalist group RSS with the help of PDP wanted to turn Kashmir into another Palestine but the move would be resisted, the Kashmir Media Service reported.
“We do not live in separate colonies. Our tradition dictates that we live together and refuse to go into colonies. We will live together and die together.”
He said migrant Kashmiri Pandits have every right to return to their ancestral land, but warned that the Indian government was trying to divide Kashmir on religious lines. “We don't oppose return of Kashmiri Pandits. They are equal stakeholders of this land like others, but creating a separate colony for them is not acceptable,” he added.
APHC leader Shabbir Ahmad Shah in Srinagar called for protests after Friday prayers and complete shutdown on Saturday. He termed the authorities' plan to allocate separate homeland to Kashmiri Pandits detrimental to the communal harmony of the territory.
“Any such initiative is tantamount to creating a state within a state and would be unacceptable to the people of Kashmir,” he added.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 11th, 2015.
Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) Chairman Muhammad Yasin Malik said on Friday that any separate colony for Kashmiri Pandits in the Muslim-majority valley will not be allowed.
Addressing a news conference in Srinagar, Malik said the Hindu-nationalist group RSS with the help of PDP wanted to turn Kashmir into another Palestine but the move would be resisted, the Kashmir Media Service reported.
“We do not live in separate colonies. Our tradition dictates that we live together and refuse to go into colonies. We will live together and die together.”
He said migrant Kashmiri Pandits have every right to return to their ancestral land, but warned that the Indian government was trying to divide Kashmir on religious lines. “We don't oppose return of Kashmiri Pandits. They are equal stakeholders of this land like others, but creating a separate colony for them is not acceptable,” he added.
APHC leader Shabbir Ahmad Shah in Srinagar called for protests after Friday prayers and complete shutdown on Saturday. He termed the authorities' plan to allocate separate homeland to Kashmiri Pandits detrimental to the communal harmony of the territory.
“Any such initiative is tantamount to creating a state within a state and would be unacceptable to the people of Kashmir,” he added.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 11th, 2015.