Participants in Global Kashmiri Pandit Heritage Tour-2026 in Srinagar
By Tehelka Web Desk
Displaced Kashmiri Pandits have called for a structured mechanism for engagement with the government, formal recognition of the “Kashmiri Pandit genocide”, and measures to facilitate property recovery and rehabilitation in the Valley.
The demands were raised at the conclusion of a week-long heritage tour and a two-day international conference, Pragaash (first light of a dawn), held in Srinagar.
Addressing the gathering, Dr. Surinder Koul, head of the Global Kashmiri Pandit Diaspora (GKPD), said the event reflected the community’s desire to return to Kashmir.
“A week-long heritage tour and a two-day international conference, Pragaash (first light of a dawn) in Srinagar voiced a deep yearning for a return to their homeland. Pragaash is not a celebration — it is a declaration. We walked on our own soil, visited our own temples, and told the world: we are here, we shall return, and we will not be erased. This is a first victory, but only a first one,” Dr. Koul said.
Several Kashmiri Pandit organisations, including the GKPD, Jammu Kashmir Vichar Manch (JKVM), US-based Kashmiri Overseas Association, Youth All India Kashmiri Samaj, Sanjeevani Shardha Kendra Kashmiri Pandits’ Association, Mumbai, and the All Minority Employees Association of Kashmir, adopted a joint resolution at the conclave.
The resolution urged the Centre and the Jammu and Kashmir government to institutionalise engagement with the community.
It called upon both governments “to formalise community engagement through official mechanisms at the highest levels, with broad, representative, and accountable participation of Kashmiri Pandits worldwide”.
The participants also demanded formal recognition of the “Kashmiri Pandit genocide” and the establishment of a commission of inquiry.
“The term ‘genocide’ has increasingly entered public discourse and is now used by public representatives and government officials. Delegates emphasised that recognition must move beyond rhetoric and be reflected in official policy, institutional action, and historical documentation,” the resolution said.
The organisations further proposed the creation of a Kashmiri Pandits Welfare Board “anchored under the Ministry of Home Affairs and the J&K Reorganisation Act framework, to coordinate welfare, housing, rehabilitation, and property recovery”.
The resolution also highlighted the concerns of Pandits who remained in Kashmir and employees appointed under the Prime Minister’s Special Package.
“We demanded improvements to their security, housing, service conditions, family welfare, mobility, and mental well-being — recognising their resilience as a foundation for the broader community’s eventual return,” it said.
According to the resolution, around 3.5 lakh Kashmiri Pandits were “forced to flee the Kashmir Valley amid violence and persecution, scattering across Jammu, Delhi, and countries around the world” during 1989-90.
The displaced community also sought the establishment of a township in Srinagar’s Rainawari area and encouraged greater investment in Kashmir by members of the community.
Meanwhile, two organisations — Roots in Kashmir and Youth for Panun Kashmir — distanced themselves from the conclave, describing it as an attempt to dilute the long-standing demand for a separate homeland for Kashmiri Pandits.
