Jammu: The Kashmiri Pandits marked 30 years of exodus from the Valley with a protest, led by the All State Kashmiri Pandit Conference, at the residence of Lieutenant Governor Girish Chandra Murmu, here on Sunday.
The government should make it conducive for their return to the Valley, they demanded.
“We want to return to our roots, to the land of Lalleshwari and Sheikh ul-Alam,” said Kuldeep Pandit, a protester.
Sunil Pandit, originally from Handwara, said his family had shifted to different locations in Jammu since the migration. In 1990 after migration, his family was staying at Geeta Bhawan, here.
Later, they shifted to Chadha and stayed at the Purkhu migrants’ camp. Now he is living at the Jagti township.
Sunil said political parties were just playing politics on the issue of return of Pandits.
Akash Pandit of Shopian and Amit Koul of Ashmuqam, who were also in their 20s, said the community wants justice as successive governments have only made promises and done nothing concrete to ensure their return to the land of their ancestors.
Sunandan Handoo, another youth, however, demanded a probe commission to look into the atrocities on the community leading to their exodus and strict punishment to those responsible.
More than 4,00,000 Pandits migrated from Kashmir after eruption of militancy. Most of them are living in migrants camps.
However, they are hopeful that one day they would return to their roots and culture. (Agencies)
