Vijay Gupta
Much More than a century back in the Kashmir Valley Azan by the Muezzin from scores of Mosques and “Shankh Naad” (trumpeting of conch shells) from thousands of Kashmiri Pundit homes would configure and crate a symphony which would make their respective Gods take a break and park their celestial vehicles a top Chinar Tree savoring the divine confluence.
At dusk the Gods would delay their intended departure to the troubled spots in the Universe being under the spell of fusion between melodious singing of home bound haenz (a boatman in Kashmiri)and the original notes of Santoor (sound of ripples caused by boatman’s oars in the placid waters of Dal lake).
Enchanted and immensely pleased, the Gods blessed Kashmir Valley with the largesse of nature’s bounty making valley akin to their abode in Heaven. However, the most important gift the Gods bestowed upon the people of this Valley was a sense of relative contentment. No wonder to this day there has been little crime in the valley for want-of-more.
Such was the bedrock of this heavenly blend between Muslims and non-Muslims that even the marauders from as far of places as Central Asia and Tibet could inflict no damage to this composite culture. No wonder in his very first visit to this valley in 1582 ad Akbar simply fell in love with this place. A legacy of Mughal rulers – the famed Mughal Gardens, enthrall tourist from all over the world even now. A common language – ‘KASHMIRI’, unique to this region only and enriched by contributions from both Muslims and non-Muslims had embedded this bedrock firmly. Much later around 2002 this seamless culture was given a beautiful name – Kashmiriyat by none other than poet Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
The first blow to Kashmiriyat was struck on 13.07.1931 when, provoked by the incessant rant of one Abdul Kadir during many a Friday prayer congregations, a large mob of gullible Muslims attacked a thinly guarded Jail. In a return fire by the panicked guards of the Jail a dozen or so Muslims lost their life. Infuriated and enraged the Muslim mob vented out their anger on hapless and least prepared Hindu establishments. Mission accomplished the agent provocateur vanished in thin air thereafter.
Taken aback a compassionate Maharaja Hari Singh although having an army that had extended the boundaries of his state as far as Gilgit, in a rarest of rare act constituted a Commission of Enquiry against his own Institution. One B.J Glancy, an Englishman, was assigned the task. Some of the Glancy Commission recommendations were accepted by Maharaja. With a view to ameliorating the lot of Muslims Maharaja had undertaken measures like Land Alienation Act benefiting Muslim tenets, Panchayat Courts comprising of four Muslim and four non-Muslim members and setting up of silk factories. Maharaja also started a Jabri School Programme as part of a massive education campaign. Incidentally at time of accession with India the Valley had more number of Degree Colleges than in Jammu.
The second blow on the body kASHMIRIYAT was given by Jawaharlal Nehru Prime Minister designate of an Independent India. In spite of the fact that Sheikh M. Abdullah had no known secular credentials but simply because Abdullah was diabolically opposed to Maharaja and since it suited the socialist makeover of Nehru, Nehru went over board and patronized and promoted Abdullah. All this and much more just to spite Maharaja Hari Singh In a most reprehensible act, in spite of strong reservations from people of Jammu Province and a vast majority of people of Ladakh, Kargil and even from the Kashmir Valley, Nehru allowed Sheikh Abdullah to declare 13th of July every year as ‘Martyrs Day as anniversary of July 1931 episode after Jammu and Kashmir merged with the Union of India.
Virtually collaborating with Nehru in this prerogative measure (the third blow to Kashmiriyat) happened to be Dr. Karan Singh son of Maharaja Hari Singh. Although in his teens when he took over as Sadar-I-Riyasat of Jammu and Kashmir with Sheikh Abdullah as Prime Minister, he (Dr. Karan Singh), probably missed the import of this measure but at a later stage because of his proximity with Mrs. Gandhi especially in1974 when Mrs. Gandhi reached an agreement with Sheikh Abdullah and made him Chief Minister of this state again Dr. Karan Singh could have persuaded Mrs. Gandhi for a quid pro quo (no m ore Martyrs Day). Subsequent governments in the centre did not possess the grit and the State Governments did not have the will to stop this most communal practice. This grim reminder of Nehru – Sheikh Hegemony prevails till date. The three generations of Abdullah’s have befooled this country by wearing a secular façade. Lately the veneer this façade has begun to wear off.
Thus in the fertile soil of Kashmir Valley seeds of discord were sown persistently. Poor governance, wholesome corruption and large scale rigging of mid eighties provided right opportunity to Pakistan for sponsoring terrorism in Kashmir. An indifferent but large corps of corrupt politicians, intellectual bankruptcy abetted by religious bigotry facilitated last nail being hit on the coffin of Kashmiriyat. With the forced migrations of Kashmiri Pundits en masse from the Valley ethnic cleansing was complete.
Within a space of two decades the seeds of discord have grown into trees breathing out no oxygen but hatred only. No more symphonies. No more fusion of music. Globetrotting Gods now make a detour avoiding Valley on purpose. Kashmiriyat lies buried in a grave yard under an unmarked stone craving for an epitaph. Autumn this winter is going to be a long drawn affair.
The above expression is a small attempt to empathies with over half a million Kashmiri migrants who suffer unbearable pangs of nostalgia on being uprooted from their homes of many centuries. Although most of the Kashmiri Pundits find themselves economically on a much better station, both these migrants and a vast majority of their saner Muslim compatriots agree that worldly riches are no substitute to heavenly bliss in the Valley.
However, we in Jammu, feel deeply anguished over the fact that Jammu’s role in complementing the Kashmiriyat by firstly never reacting to July 1931 outrage against Hindu establishments and secondly by maintaining communal harmony in Jammu Province in spite of innumerable -provocations all these years including segregating killings in Valley as well as in Jammu Province has been completely overlooked.
In this context it is heartening to observe that 121st birth Anniversary of Maharaja Hari Singh in Jammu this year has been vastly different. A massive rally organized by Rajputs of Jammu Province, on this occasion, signaled a beginning of “Dogra Resurgence”. Although the sponsors of this rally particularly Dr. Karan Singh and Sons need to learn from what Indian Diaspora did in London. Under the banner “Voce of Dogras”, Indians from both the parts of divided Kashmir living in London organized this event in the House of Commons in British Parliament to commemorate THE 121ST Birth Anniversary of Maharaja Hari Singh. Definitely “Dogra Resurgence” would be more inclusive. For much battered Dogra Pride a fractured approach would do more harm than good.
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