Return and rehabilitation of KPs in Kashmir needs to be taken with seriousness: Panun Kashmir

Panun Kashmir held a meeting of it’s Political Affairs Committee to take stock of the recent politico military developments affecting our region and in particular it’s fallouts on the Kashmiri Pandit community. The meeting was held under the chairmanship of the President Panun Kashmir, Virender Raina and the prominent who attended the meeting included Kamal Bagati, Upinder Koul, Sameer Bhat, Ashok Chrungoo, P.K.Bhan, Kewal Krishen, Ravi Punjabi, Sameer Mattoo among others.Virender Raina while speaking on the occasion said that the Return and Rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits in Kashmir is a profound political issue and needs to be taken with seriousness that it deserves.Virender Raina emphasised that the issue of the permanent return and rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits needs to be separated from the PMs special employment package. The two issues are different. Employment package is meant for the economic sustenance of a section of our youth who had to volunteer to serve in the valley because of the nature of the employment package, whereas permanent return and rehabilitation deals with the geo political aspirations of an entire community who had to leave Kashmir on account of genocide and ethnic cleansing.Raina said that the issue of return can not be taken in a perfunctory manner as Kashmiri Pandits have faced exodus, seven times in the past and this time we have to ensure that there is no refoulment.

 The issue is also to be seen in a civilisational context, as the assault on Kashmiri Pandits is of a theo fascist nature, aided and abetted by the terror regime of Pakistan. With the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, the terror regime of Pakistan has received a shot in the arm and that needs an extra vigil in Kashmir on our part.There have been recent reports that many members of the KP community who on account of serious illness and hospitalization had to suffer badly because of the delay in the issuance of the Ayushman Bharat cards, a wonderful scheme otherwise. The scheme having been made available to all the sections of the people of J&K irrespective of the economic status, needs to be de linked from the Economic Survey of 2011, as that only leads to in ordinate delay for all those who do not figure in that list, KPs being the worst hit.Upinder Koul, General Secretary said that the government needs to take some serious confidence building measures before the discussions for the permanent rehabilitation of the KP community in Kashmir can start. The first and the foremost among them is the passage if the Temples and Shrines Bill for the protection and preservation of the more than 5000 years old symbols of the Sharda civilisation.The government also needs to de freeze the accounts of the Relief Department, as it has put a lot of our relief holders to trouble due to non payment of relief.