Jammu (J&K): At least 15 Kashmiri Pandit families living in the Choudhary Gund village of south Kashmir's Shopian district have migrated to Jammu after the killing of their fellow community member Puran Krishan Bhat earlier this month. Puran was killed by militants on October 15 outside his ancestral house in Chowdhary Gund where he had gone to look after his orchards.
Ashok Pandita, brother-in-law of the slain Puran told ETV Bharat in Jammu that the entire Pandit community from Chowdhary Gund has moved out and relocated to Jammu.
Shopian village sees exodus 2.0: Fearing for lives, 15 Kashmiri Pandit families flee valley "It is unfortunate that a person who had spent 32 years in Kashmir tending to his daily life was killed in such a manner. Because of his killing, the other community members fear for their lives now and, as such, have moved out and shifted to Jammu," said Ashok.
"Around 15 families have migrated. Actually, the entire pandit community in the village has moved out. There is no Kashmir pandit left in that village now," he said. "Fear", Ashok said, was the predominant factor forcing all of them to leave everything and move out.
According to Ashok, even their Muslim neighbours in the Shopian village are perplexed. "They were crying when this incident happened. They even call us over the phone and express their sympathy. Even they are not sure who these miscreants are who are killing people," Ashok said.
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He blamed the government for its "intelligence failure". "Who is doing it? When the common Kashmiri Muslim does not back this mindless killing, who is doing it then? The pandit families stayed back in Kashmir for 32 years on the assurances of the local Muslims. But today, they too are anxious about what is going on," he said.
Ashok said that around 15 families comprising 60 to 70 people have returned. "They have left their orchards, the livestock, everything back in Kashmir," he said.
T K Bhat, another brother-in-law of the slain Puran Krishan, said he had to rush to Jammu from Delhi when the incident took place. Bhat, who is also originally from Shopian but had moved to Delhi back in the 1990s said he cannot understand why was Puran killed.
"He was so helpful to everyone, especially to his Muslim neighbours. He was always helpful to them. We used to warn him of the impending danger. The soldiers from the army camp close to the Shopian village had asked them to stay indoors and not to go to their orchards. But Puran was shot dead close to his house," Bhat said. He expressed surprise why anybody would kill "such a gentle person". Puran was cremated in Muthi Jammu on October 16.
Meanwhile, the Shopian district administration has refuted the claims that the Pandita families have fled from the village. District administration Shopian in a press release said that "after the arrival of winter and harvesting of crops, ten Kashmiri Pandit families left for Jammu province from Kashmir Valley to spend the winter in Jammu as the winter in Kashmir Valley is cold."
The district administration Shopian clarified that "adequate and strong security arrangements have been made in the residences and villages of Kashmiri Pandits in Chaudrigund village".
