The Kashmir Exodus: Scents of Disinformation
With movies like The Kashmir Files and the ruling party's unfettered support, let's question what really happened in Kashmir, shall we?
The Kashmir Exodus, a massive point of contention in Indian politics and a significant factor in shaping the fate of Kashmir. Though often portrayed as an unknown and untold atrocity, these events of the 90s have inspired multiple popular movies, books, and heated debates on television or atop lawn chairs. Today the genuine sufferings of various Kashmiris, both Hindus and Muslims alike, remain nothing but propaganda aimed at expanding the already vast and deep-rooted hate between the religious classes of Indian society. 
  
In the early 1990s, the volatile state of Kashmir witnessed mass migration, specifically of Hindu Pandits, fleeing what they believed to be a grave danger to their security. The official numbers as per the Indian government claim 219 Pandits to have been killed in Kashmir between the years 1989 to 2004, of which 89 were killed in 1990. However, a survey carried out by the Kashmir Pandit Sangharsh Samiti, a local Kashmiri Pandit organization, claims this number to be 399 which was later denied by Motilal Bhat, the President of the Pandit Hindu Welfare Society.  
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Yet, propagated films like The Kashmir Files attempt to exaggerate such data to unconvincing measures claiming 4000 Kashmiri Pandit murders were witnessed – a figure not even claimed or accepted by the most right-wing Indian organizations. More so, the film also claims 5 lakh pandits were forced to leave the valley, while official figures indicate that even the real population of Kashmiri Pandits in the valley in 1989 was significantly lower at around 120,000 – 140,000. Estimates claim a good chunk of the population, specifically around 90,000– 100,000 pandits fled the valley.  
  
The only outcome of these manipulated and blatantly false claims is the negligence of the real number of people who suffered in Kashmir.  
This can be most initially dated back to the 1975 Indira-Sheikh Accord which laid down the framework for India’s integration into India, as a state of India itself. This accord was met with intense protests by the people of Kashmir and gave birth to the earliest roots of Kashmiri extremism. In 1977 Amanullah Khan and Maqbool Bhat created the militant group, the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), aiming for azadi.  
  
In 1984 Maqbool Bhat was hanged, which led to a furious backlash by the separatist supporters in Kashmir, further fueling violence in the valley. This marked the beginning of the persisting process of youth radicalization in Kashmir. 
  
The rise of Kashmiri militancy created a hostile environment in Jammu and Kashmir heading into the 1990s, further forced by the increased communal differences throughout the nation, due to the Babri Masjid conflict.  
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Between 1998 to 1990, targeted killings began. However, what is often ignored in conversations about these murders are the actual individuals who were targeted and by whom they were targeted. These targeted killings did not simply target the general Hindu population, yet instead focused most prominently on Hindu extremists and leaders. One of the first murders was of Tika Lal Taploo, an advocate of the Hindu nationalist, Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) and a member of the highly controversial and Hindu extremist, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). In 1989, Neelkanth Ganjoo the judge who sentenced Maqbool Bhat was also killed by the JKLF terrorist organization. Hence, contrary to what is suggested by many fanatic leaders, the killings were not carried out by regular Muslim citizens but instead by militant organizations operating in Kashmir.
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Nonetheless, what is failed to be seen – under the deluge of algorithmic bias, hiding certain sources and highlighting certain others, or in the face of mainstream Indian media - the Muslim citizens of Kashmir were a victim of the same communal violence. According to information accessed by a Right to Information (RTI) activist, in the past three decades 1,724 people were killed by militants in Jammu and Kashmir, only 89 of which were Kashmiri Pandits. This information suggests an even lower number of Pandits killed than the official data and highlights the sheer disparity with which the deaths of one religious group is signified much more highly than another. Moreover, according to another information received by the Srinagar police headquarters it is suggested that since 1990, 1,635 individuals were killed of which again only 89 were Kashmiri Pandits. PP Kapoor, another RTI activist, analyzed this information and discovered that only 5% of the deaths at the hands of Kashmiri militants were Pandits. 
  
Additionally, according to the RTI 1.54 lakh people have migrated since the rise of terrorism in the valley, of which 53,958 Hindus, 11,212 Muslims, 5,013 Sikhs need relief, which they are hoping of from the government. And 81,448 Hindus, 949 Muslims and 1,542 Sikhs are not in need of relief. 
  
With increasingly biased government news sources and media with sometimes hidden but prominent prejudices, it becomes extremely common for the receivers of news to be manipulated. Information is often altered, suppressed, or flagrantly falsified.  
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What is truly a widely unknown part of Kashmiri history are the events that transpired on January 21st, 1990. During a protest on the Gawkadal bridge in Srinagar - remembered as the Gawkadal Massacre. Indian troops of the Central Reserve Police Force (CPRF) opened fire on the peaceful demonstrators. According to official sources the death toll of this massacre was 28. However, most human rights groups suggest that 51 people were killed and 250 were injured. Many other survivors indicate that the number of killings may be as high as 280. Witnesses claim troops indiscriminately fired upon protestors attempting to shoot down most if not all. Following the firing, troops checked each person to see if they were dead and if not, they shot them again. Sometimes referred to as “the worst massacre in Kashmiri history,” this genocidal event goes unheard. The troops responsible for this humanitarian crime were never tried or held accountable. 
Stories like these, of structural, cultural, or hegemonic violence permeate each Kashmiri household. From tyrannical torture centers (or ‘interrogation’ centers) like PAPA-2 or GogoLand, or the story of Mubina Gaini - the bride who stared directly in the face of sexually violent armed and green-clad men - or from kids to 80-year-olds succumbing to pellet guns, or to be detained, continuously. These stories are not hidden in the nooks and crannies of the internet or in silent hamlets, these are stories that exist, but you just aren’t listening.  
  
Today, Hindutva parties constantly misuse the Kashmiri exodus for political gain. Blaming the Muslim majority, the party fails to acknowledge the fact that the “darkest night of the Kashmiri exodus” occurred on the day governor’s rule was imposed in Kashmir. Governor’s rule grants Delhi, the Indian capital complete control over the politics of Kashmir for the period for which it is imposed. And as BJP formed the central government at the time, during the events of the Kashmir exodus, BJP had control over both the state and the nation specifically in terms of safety measures. Regardless, of requests for protection and knowledge of the unstable circumstances in Kashmir, the government failed to provide any reassurance or security to the distressed Kashmiri Pandit population leading swiftly to their displacement. 
  
Again since 2014, the BJP government forms the central government. In this 8-year period, governors’ rule has been imposed on the state thrice. The governor’s rule can only be imposed for 6 months after which president’s rule is imposed. Hence, from 20th June 2018 to 19th December 2018 governors’ rule was present. Following this, till now Jammu and Kashmir are under the president’s rule. 
Furthermore, in 2019 the state government decided to scrap Article 370 of the Indian constitution, which provided Jammu and Kashmir with an autonomous status. The scraping of this article was permitted under the condition that both the state government and the central government should be willing to undertake its removal. Yet, since Kashmir remained under president’s rule, the central government exploited this clause to abolish this article and exploit this loophole.  
  
Subsequently, Jammu and Kashmir became a union territory controlled directly by the state of India and it got rid of the special privileges granted to the Kashmiri population, such as only allowing Kashmiris to buy property in the state. One of the significant justifications for this change was the rehabilitation of Kashmiri pandits, which the government claimed could not be done given Kashmir’s special status. Though, even after three years of the removal of this law, bare minimal efforts of rehabilitating Kashmir Pandits are seen. Only in 2022, was the slightest hint of rehabilitation seen, following which processes halted again. 
  
Yet, it is not fair to say that the abrogation of Article 370 was not impactful. It led to mass protests in the valley which were met with immediate suppression. Violence in the form of pellet guns was commonly used by the Indian army, whose presence now makes Kashmir the most heavily militarized in the world. Internet was shut down in the region only allowing citizens access to 2G network. This continued following the outbreak of the coronavirus outbreak, where due to a lack of the internet, students were unable to attend online classes and suffered significantly. 
  
There is no doubt that the Kashmir conflict is riddled with complexities that only work to further this dispute. Still, most citizens fail to acknowledge points of view and facts other than what is presented to them by a highly biased source of news. What makes this dissent everlasting is its manipulation for political gain. Yet in the end, the Kashmir conflict remains a struggle of people regardless of race, regardless of class. It represents resistance against the violence of extremist groups and the bounds of a suppressive state. And most significantly, it portrays the idea of autonomy through its undying cry for azadi.  
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Written by Ayaan Ahmad