ABSTRACT
Eruption of armed insurgency and terrorism and rise of militarised form of Islamic fundamentalism in Kashmir since late 1989, came as a disaster for about 450,000 Kashmiri Pandits living in the valley of Kashmir at that time, who were targeted, killed and forced out of the Valley by the terrorists beginning September 1989. The entire community of indigenous minority of Kashmiri Hindus is agonising in its 33rd year of displacement, which has resulted in loss of their land, property, homes, businesses and educational and religious institutions besides leading to break-up of families, social and cultural community ties. Kashmiri Pandits present a classic case of ethnic cleansing and xenophobia through organised oppression, dispossession of their property and territory, marginalisation in cultural, economic and political terms and adverse discrimination on the basis of their distinct ethno-religious identity. Ironically, the law enforcement agencies have neither prosecuted any terrorist or extremist for killing the Kashmiri Pandits, nor has any effort been made to address their problems of dispossession and illegal occupation of their properties, compensation for their losses. Nor has any credible human rights body or think tank at both the national and the international level cared to pay attention to this colossal tragedy. This chapter seeks to fill this critical gap in the literature on the subject, taking into account the ground situation and testimonies of the victims including the author.
