Kashmiri Pandits offered special prayers at the Mata Kheer Bhawani temple in Tulmulla Ganderbal near Srinagar, June 8, 2022, during the annual Kheer Bhawani Mela celebrations.
The usual rush of devotees was missing this year, presumably due to the Pahalgam terror attack and the military action between India and Pakistan following it.
However, the usual rush of the devotees was missing due to the recent targeted killings in the valley.
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.
Mehbooba Mufti, PDP chief, urged Kashmiri Pandits to move beyond past grievances and invest in a shared future in the Kashmir Valley. Speaking at the Kheer Bhawani mela, she highlighted the warmth between communities and called for government support for Pandits, while also appealing to them to isolate those who seek to use them for political agendas.
From a trickle in 1990, when militancy erupted in the valley, the numbers have, however, gradually seen an upward trend.
'We do not want Kashmiri Pandits to migrate from Kashmir.'
Using phones and computers to spread rumours, jihadis are waging a new, unconventional war.
