Scores of protesting Kashmiri Pandit prime minister's package employees on Monday reiterated their demand for relocation outside the valley, saying their worst fears have come true with the latest killing of a community member in Pulwama.
BJP president JP Nadda said on Sunday that the party does not seek to control the Waqf Board but wants to ensure that those managing it operate within the bounds of law and adhere to established rules. He said the properties and funds of the Waqf Board should be dedicated to promoting education, providing healthcare and employment opportunities for the Muslim community. Nadda also highlighted the BJP's growth and achievements, emphasizing its commitment to national unity and cultural heritage.
Hundreds of Kashmiri Pandits employed in the Valley under the Prime Minister's package moved to Jammu last May following the killing of two colleagues -- Rahul Bhat and Rajini Bala -- by terrorists.
As a spate of targeted killings of minorities rock Kashmir, a Kashmiri Pandits' organisation on Friday said some employees from the community, who were provided government jobs under a rehabilitation package in 2010-11, have started moving to Jammu quietly fearing for their life, alleging the administration was unable to provide then a secure environment.
In 2022 Nanaji Dembi pulled down the Hurriyat office board in Srinagar, an act of defiance that grabbed headlines. Despite such nationalistic bravado, the BJP has denied him a ticket for the assembly election.
The Jammu and Kashmir government is making constant efforts to bring back Kashmiri Pandits to the Valley as without them, Kashmir is incomplete, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said on Wednesday.
The BJP also went on to label Kaul a "Pakistani sympathiser" and posted headings of a couple of her writings on X.
Tullamulla village, 27 kilometre from Srinagar in Ganderbal district where the Kashmiri Pandits' holiest shrine is located, wore a festive look despite the overnight heavy rains in Kashmir.
'Depicting the genocide of 3 lakh #KashmiriHindus cannot be called vulgar.'
Amidst Covid scare, hundreds of pilgrims paid obeisance at the famous Ragnya Devi temple in Jammu and Kashmir's Ganderbal district on Friday for the annual Kheer Bhawani mela, praying for peace in the union territory and for the pandemic to end.
>After 30 years, Kashmiri Pandits held special prayers at the Shiv temple at Dhobiwan village in the Tangmarg area of north Kashmir's Baramulla district.
Terming the killing a "cowardly act", the protesters said assurances given by the Centre and the Jammu and Kashmir administration to ensure the safety of minorities in the Valley have proved to be false.
'The wave of terrorism is over in Kashmir. Local people do not support it.'
The protesters assembled outside the office of the Mirwaiz Umar Farooq-led Hurriyat at Rajbagh in Srinagar and held a protest.
As controversy grew, BJP leaders, actors also joined the discourse against him.
Puran Krishan Bhat was fired upon by terrorists near his residence in the Chowdhary Gund area of south Kashmir's Shopian district this afternoon, resulting in his death.
The protesters first assembled at the Sheikhpora area of Budgam district, in central Kashmir, and then tried to proceed towards the airport but were stopped by a posse of police personnel, they said.
'If you post on social media on an issue like power cuts in Tral, the police will come to your home and tell you to remove your social media post.' 'If you don't, then the local police threaten you that they will book you under PSA.' 'This is happening all the time in Kashmir.'
Members of a Kashmiri Pandits organisation, led by Sandeep Mawa, have been sitting on a fast-unto-death for the past four days in Srinagar pressing for their demand.
Rai also said that a total of 5,502 Kashmiri Pandits have been provided government jobs in different departments of Jammu and Kashmir administration in the Kashmir Valley under the PMDP.
Social activist Amit Koul, who was part of the delegation, said they have invited Gandhi to their Jagti township along the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway and that he is likely to visit the community on his way to Kashmir.
The victim was identified as Sanjay Sharma, a resident of the Achan area in the south Kashmir district, they said, adding that the incident took place at around 11 am.
Puran Krishan was attacked near his residence in the Chowdhary Gund area of south Kashmir district, they said, adding that doctors declared Krishan brought dead after he was shifted to Shopian hospital.
A day after he was shot dead by terrorists, Kashmiri Pandit bank guard Sanjay Sharma was cremated in his native village in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district on Monday, with his Muslim neighbours lending a helping hand to his grief-stricken family.
'A threatened people should not be forcibly held in a place where their lives may be at risk.'
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Sunday expressed regret that his government had not been successful in ensuring return of Kashmiri Pandits to the Valley, and vowed to regenerate a "sense of security" among them so that they willingly go back to their homes.
Two terrorists believed to be behind Sunday's killing of a Kashmiri Pandit were gunned down early on Tuesday in an encounter with security forces inside a mosque in south Kashmir's Pulwama district. An Indian Army jawan was also killed.
They also demanded immediate release of their pending salaries in view of the 'Maha Shivratri' festival, being observed later this week.
The Pandits congratulated the hajis for completing the pilgrimage and sought their blessings. They offered roses to the pilgrims.
'They want to keep the pot boiling all the time.' 'The BJP wants to set a political narrative that the Gandhis are doing wrong things.'
The community members, including Rahul Bhat's family, accused the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government at the Centre of making young Kashmiri Hindus 'cannon fodder' in the name of rehabilitation of the community.
The Anandeshwar Bhairav temple reopens after 30 years at Maisuma in the heart of Srinagar. The area is the stronghold and residence of JKLF chief Yasin Malik.
Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said 180 terrorists, 31 security personnel and 31 civilians were also killed in Jammu and Kashmir in 123 terrorist incidents this year so far.
The appeal by the Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) came after a delegation led by its president Farooq Abdullah met Jammu and Kashmiri Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha at the Raj Bhavan in Srinagar.
The busy Lal Chowk city centre on Saturday reverberated with slogans like 'We want justice' and 'Administration haye haye' (down with administration) as scores of Kashmiri Pandits took out a protest march against the killing of Rahul Bhat, officials said.
Threats were often communicated to Pandit homes through notes tied to stones chucked through a window, or a notice pasted on a wall. Those sometimes came from neighbours eyeing that Pandit family's property. Those threats often worked in the atmosphere of terror during that awful season of vacuous exercise of State authority, writes David Devadas, longtime Kashmir watcher and author of two books on the Valley.
The Jammu and Kashmir administration has transferred five Kashmiri Pandit employees from Kashmir to Jammu, a step welcomed by the community members who have been on a strike for over two months in support of the demand for their relocation over safety concerns.
Are MoShah laying the ground for Shinde to take a national role, move to Delhi as a Union minister, paving the way for Ajit Pawar to take over as Maharashtra chief minister?
Global Kashmiri Pandit Diaspora, a body representing the community across the world, said the decision cements territorial, political and cultural unity of the Indian Union.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances