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print version[1] K-Files impact: Kashmiri Pandit interests take a back seat | Bharat Bhushan
[2] Kashmir Files: Half-Truths and falsehoods galore | Ram Puniyani
[3] The Kashmir Files: How a New Bollywood Film Marks India’s Further Descent Into Bigotry | Debasish Roy Chowdhury
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[1]
business-standard.com March 28, 2022
K-Files impact: Kashmiri Pandit interests take a back seat
Bharat Bhushan
It would seem against common sense to say that the controversial film Kashmir Files may have done more harm than good to the cause of Kashmiri Pandits. The hosannas being sung for this propaganda film need to be fact-checked for the impact it is likely to have.
A few conversations with the Pandits who stayed back in the Valley and Hindus in Jammu are sufficient to suggest that the more widely this film is seen in J&K, the more Kashmiri Pandits will be isolated and find it even harder to return to the Valley. Those who stayed on or returned under the special resettlement scheme of the Manmohan Singh government are likely to experience greater insecurity.
Some Kashmiri Pandits, especially in Jammu, had angered Muslim Kashmiris by distributing sweets when the special status of the state of J&K was abrogated in 2019. Barely had that anger eased, when old wounds have been reopened by the film. They feel betrayed that Kashmiri Pandits, are lending credence to the film’s storyline which besides other cinematic lies, exaggerates the killings (4,000 as opposed to 667 recorded by Kashmiri Pandit organisations) and portrays Kashmiri Muslims as blackguards.
The Valley’s residents claim that the worst impact of the film will be on the generation that grew up after the departure of large numbers of Kashmiri Pandits three decades ago. They are unaware of the composite social fabric of Kashmir which was destroyed by militancy. The film, they feel, will make these 16 to 21-year-olds even angrier and this is the age-group from which militancy gets it new recruits. Their parents feel unable to influence their thinking and wonder if neighbours will be able to protect the miniscule number of Kashmiri Pandits who remain, as some of them did during the 1990 exodus.
In the Valley, the film is being screened in Badami Bagh Cantonment, the headquarters of the Chinar Corps, where soldiers have been watching it in large numbers. The propaganda consequences of the film on the psyche of the soldiers who have to deal with Kashmiri Muslims on a daily basis can only be imagined. If this is being facilitated by the army authorities then one wonders what purpose it serves.
The perception in the Valley is that the ruling dispensation in Delhi is not really bothered about the security of Kashmiri Pandits. Local residents point to the killing of the respected local Kashmiri Pandit pharmacist, Makhanlal Bindroo in the high security zone of Srinagar and the shooting of two non-Muslim school teachers in the city in broad daylight. These were described by the Director General of Police (DGP) Dilbagh Singh as “an attempt to defame the local Muslims of Kashmir” and aiming “to attack and damage the age-old tradition of communal harmony and brotherhood in Kashmir.”
Now, precisely the same objective is being achieved by the active promotion of the film by Central and state governments controlled by Bharatiya Janata Party. If the social fabric of Kashmir, barely on the mend, is again torn apart by raking up old wounds, anger will be triggered against non-Muslims. The militants may find it difficult to target people outside J&K but there are easier targets nearer home. “They will not go to Delhi. They will kill me first,” a Kashmiri Pandit in the Valley quipped with resignation.
While in Jammu, the common perception is that the film will lead to the consolidation of the Hindu-vote this assumption looks shaky on closer examination. The Hindus of Jammu are not a homogeneous lot. The Dogras resent the ethnic superiority they sense from the Pandits who they say have kept up friendships with Kashmiri Muslims rather than establish relations with the communities in Jammu. The few Dogra-Kashmiri Pandit inter-marriages that have taken place are looked at askance. Kashmiri Pandits who have traditionally been better educated, also present competition for the Dogras as they tend to get better jobs in the local administration.
Against this local history of the two communities, it is shallow to assume that a film about the suffering of Kashmiri Pandits will bring them together in sympathy. In fact, other refugees who came to Jammu feel the state has done far less for them in terms of compensation, education, employment facilities, and the grant of all-India quotas. These include the descendants of families who came in 1947 as refugees to Jammu after the massacres of non-Muslims in Mirpur (20,000 Hindus and Sikhs), Muzaffarabad (18,000 slaughtered), Bhimber (about 5,000) and Rajouri (7,000) among other places by Pakistani soldiers, irregulars and local Muslims. Their grudge is that the film promotes one set of refugees while failing to recognise the suffering of others.
It is a historical fact that the biggest massacre was that of Muslims between 14 October to November 1947. Up to 100,000 Muslims were killed in Jammu while 200,000 Muslims migrated to Pakistan in that two-month period alone. Call it “whataboutry” but there is a palpable lack of sympathy for Kashmir Pandits among Jammu residents.
The film neither benefits the Kashmiri Pandits nor heals old wounds. It will instead deepen social divisions in both the Valley and in Jammu. Its official sponsorship suggests that when most Kashmiri Pandits and their children have moved on (and that is not to deny the grave injustice they have suffered), hatred will be ignited in their next generation and the wound kept festering. Party interest has clearly overtaken national interest — keeping hatred of the minority community alive also keeps politics that thrives on it flourishing. The people of J&K have the ability to see this but common sense seems an uncommon resource amongst those lapping up the hatred in the rest of India.
(The writer is an independent journalist based in Delhi. He was in J&K recently)
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[2]
“Kashmir Files”: Half-Truths and falsehoods galore
by Ram Puniyani
Major weapon of sectarian nationalism is to spread misconceptions and create hate against the religious minorities. This process which has been going on since long has now got a new tool, a film, “Kashmir Files”. As such misconceptions against minorities are based on half truths, selective truths, lies and this film is another addition to that.
The slogans-misconceptions against religious minorities have gone through various phases. It began with communal historiography. Here the Muslim kings as tormentors of Hindus, destroyers of Hindu temples and imposing Islam through force had a long run. Add on came with the constructed fear that Hindus will become a minority as Muslims are procreating fast. Islamic terrorism, the phrase coined by American media, added to the majoritarian propaganda.
The result has been the type of hate displayed in lynching and attacking Muslim youth on ground of love jihad. The sort of culmination of this was the call for genocide given by Holy Seers in Dharm Sansads, on which the Prime minister kept a deliberate silence. This film ‘Kashmir files’ (KF) tries to put the blame of Pandits exodus 1990 on Kashmiri Muslims and blames the parties like National Conference and Congress for the same. It depicts the murders of Kashmiri pundits selectively and resorts to falsehoods to harp its point.
In one of the scene during the curfew school girls are shown in school uniforms! Late Squadron Leader Ravi Khanna’s widow points this out and says there are falsehoods in the film. Omar Abdullah summed up the partisanship of the film, “Many false things have been shown in ’The Kashmir Files’ movie. When the Kashmiri Pandits left the valley, Farooq Abdullah was not the chief minister. Jagmohan was the Governor of Jammu and Kashmir. VP Singh’s government was at the Centre, supported by the BJP," Abdullah said. “Why wasn’t VP Singh’s government and BJP shown in the film? It is not right to play with facts. We condemn the killings of Kashmiri Pandits. But didn’t Kashmiri Muslims and Sikhs lose their lives?”
Kashmir, the land of Kashmiriyat (Synthesis of Vedant, Budhhism and Sufi traditions) (Land of Nooruddin Norani aka Nund Rishi and Lal Dedh) has been mired in the pain of alienation turned into militancy, which took the lives of Hindus and Muslims both. After India got freedom Kashmir’s Maharaja Harisingh decided to remain independent. Jinnah wanted J&K to merge with Pakistan as it was a Muslim majority state. The tribal sent by Pakistan were backed by the Pakistan army. In the face of this aggression, Harisingh’s representative and Sheikh Abdullah the President of National Conference, the major party of Kashmir, approached Government of India to send Indian army to counter the aggression of Pakistan.
India agreed to send the army and the agreement was that Kashmir will accede to India with full autonomy, article 370, which gave all the powers to Kashmir Assembly except in matters of defense, communication, currency and external affairs. Indian army halted the march of Pakistan army but by then 1/3rd of Kashmir was occupied by Pakistan. As matter went to UN, UN’s verdict was that referendum should be held in Kashmir with the options that Kashmir can remain Independent, or merge with India or Pakistan. The referendum was to be held under UN supervision. The condition was that Pakistan will vacate its aggression and India will reduce its military presence in the area. Pakistan did not vacate the aggression, plebiscite was not held.
Sheikh Abdullah was deeply impressed by Gandhi and Nehru, whom he regarded as stars of secularism. With Gandhi’s murder by Godse and Shyama Prasad Mukherjee’s insisting on forcible merger of Kashmir to India, Sheikh Abdullah was shaken and started a rethink about the accession. He was arrested and put behind bars for 17 years. This is what initiated the process of alienation in Kashmir. This process was intensified as autonomy was trampled by and by. In 1965, the Kashmir’s Prime Minister’s status was reduced to Chief Minister and Sadar-E-Riyasat was changed to Governor.
The alienated youth started and intensified their protests. They were duly helped by Pakistan in supply of weapons. The initial protests were on the grounds of Kashmiriyat. With Zia Ul Haq’s Islamization and rise of radical Islam, planted by the American project to raise Al Qaeda-Taliban to fight against the Russian occupation of Afghanistan, the radical Islam started dominating the area.
In late 1980s the militants changed their track from Kashmiriyat to Anti-India and then Anti Hindu. While the political establishment kept changing hands; youth were disgruntled also due to lack of jobs and economic development. After the hanging of Maqbul Bhatt, many youth left for Pakistan for training in terrorism. JKLF was mainly talking of Kashmiriyat and Azadi, Hijbul Mujahideen gradually became more dominant and was pro Pakistan and anti Hindu.
The initial murders were those of pro India elements, Maulana Masud, Abdul Ghani, Wali Ahmad Bhatt were done to death. Gulam Nabi Azad’s nephew was abducted. Respectable doctor and thinker Abdul Guru was murdered. Rubiya Saeed; daughter of Mufti Mohammad Saeed, the Home minster was abducted. The V P Singh Government signed on the dotted lines of terrorists and released many of the dangerous terrorists, worsening the atmosphere. Neelkanth Ganjoo, the judge who had pronounced death penalty on Maqbool Bhatt, Tikalal Takloo, the BJP leader and Premnath Bhat (Journalist) were killed brutally. The militants turned their guns against Pandits. Threats to them, asking them to leave the valley started being blared from mosques. Similar leaflets also appeared. Pandit community was in the grip of fear.
With re-appointment of Jagmohan (19 January 1990) as the Governor, Farooq Abdullah resigned. On the same night the security forces searched the houses of nearly 300 people and dragged them mercilessly to the police stations. As a protest thousands came out on the streets and they were fired upon. Nearly 50 protesters died in the worst massacre in Gau Kadal.
The task of the state was to provide protection to the intimidated community and to combat the militants. Jagmohan took another route, he promised Pandits safe exit to Jammu camps. The rumor was that he wanted to have the valley free from Pandits so that he could unleash strong repressive measures against Muslims.
The local Muslims were mostly against the migration of Muslims. We need to distinguish between Pakistan trained militants and local Muslims. Jagmohan generalized all Muslims being against Pandits and this film does the same. As 3.5 Lakh Pandits migrated, close to 50000 Muslims also had to leave. Can this be called genocide? Genocide means a violence to finish the race off. In the killings by militants the official figures are (RTI inquiry- 27/11/2021)-Pandits 89, others 1635 (Muslims mainly and also Sikhs and personnel of security forces).
The way film has been made creates anti Muslim hysteria. India has seen massacre of Muslims (Nellie, Mumbai, Gujarat, Delhi) of Sikhs (Delhi) all these in thousands. Films made on Gujarat massacre Perzania was not permitted to be screened in Gujarat. That film made us think and not incite. The KF just selectively shows violence against Hindus and presents local Muslims as collaborators in that. Half truth and falsehood combined! The responses in cinema houses are alarming. The crowds are giving dangerous slogans. Do we need such films which are one sided, based on half truth and some falsehoods and promote Hate?
Omar Abdulla’s vision is on the dot when he says, “The pain & suffering of 1990 & after cannot be undone. The way Kashmiri Pandits had their sense of security snatched from them & had to leave the valley is a stain on our culture of Kashmiriyat. We have to find ways to heal divides & not add to them.”
After 1990, BJP led NDA has been in power for nearly 14 years. Earlier Manmohan Singh Government started many schemes for Pandits, What has BJP led Government done to rehabilitate them is a matter of introspection. Using them as a political tool is totally unwarranted. What we need is to give justice and rehabilitate the victims of violence, Pandits as well as others.
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[3]
The Kashmir Files: How a New Bollywood Film Marks India’s Further Descent Into Bigotry
by Debasish Roy Chowdhury
March 30, 2022 12:57 AM EDT
Once known as “heaven on earth,” Kashmir today is the world’s most militarized zone. A proper evaluation of the causes of conflict would obviously be the first step in defusing tensions and promoting reconciliation—but a new film is doing the opposite, even as it claims to be honestly confronting the past.
Released in Indian theaters in March, The Kashmir Files is a 170-minute Bollywood drama about the tragedy of Kashmiri Pandits, or Brahmins—the priestly highest caste of the Hindu religion. Hinduism is a minority faith in Muslim-dominated Kashmir, and the Pandits left the region en masse in the 1990s, when they began to be targeted by Pakistan-sponsored militant Islamists.
The Hindi-language film has been given a tax break and is being heavily championed by the Hindu nationalist government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has been urging people to go watch it. Government employees are being offered time off if they do. But the theme of the film, made by a Modi acolyte, and its graphic depiction of the intimidation and killings of the Pandits, is riling up Hindus and aggravating religious discord.
Social media is flooded with videos of members of the audience erupting in rousing hate speeches after seeing the film, with calls for the slaughter of Muslims and a boycott of Muslim businesses. Often, these speeches are staged by Hindu vigilante organizations ideologically allied with Modi’s government. In a climate of growing intolerance, where exclusion and marginalization of Muslims have become mainstream political discourse, the movie is making Indian Muslims even more fearful.
The “truth” that the film claims to reveal is that there was a “genocide” of Pandits in the 1990s, hidden by a callous ruling establishment and a servile media. Pandits were killed in their thousands, it claims, and not in the low hundreds as the government and Kashmiri Pandit organizations have stated.
It’s not clear why the horrors visited upon the Pandits are presented as having been hushed up. The film’s young protagonist learns about it all from files of newspaper cuttings of the time. His inability to remember the events of three decades ago—like the 65% of India’s population below the age of 35—is a function of demographics rather than deceit. Neither is it clear why the film’s central characters repeatedly blame a Congress party-led government in Delhi for the exodus, when it took place during the time of a coalition government that was supported by Modi’s own Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
But accuracy is not the film’s priority, nor is it interested in justice and closure for the Pandit community. Instead, the purpose of The Kashmir Files is to inflame hatred against Muslims; against secular parties that Modi’s followers brand anti-Hindu; liberal intellectuals and activists, whose faith in India’s inclusive democracy runs contrary to the supremacist tenets of Hindu nationalism; and against the liberal media that the Hindu right disparages as sold-out “presstitutes.”
Accordingly, Muslims are portrayed as uniformly evil, treacherous and predatory. Even little Muslim boys are shown as demonic. Hindu women are depicted as being coveted by lascivious Muslim men. The latter is a particularly resonant trope employed by the BJP and goes by the term “love jihad”—a supposed Islamist conspiracy to impregnate Hindu women with the end of numerically overtaking Hindus. (In fact, Muslims make up just 14% of India’s population.)
The result of this propaganda is evident in the frenzied reception of the film. In one viral video, an agitated member of the audience can be seen urging Hindu men to preserve their religion by marrying Muslim girls. Majoritarian angst such as this—evident from hashtags like #WakeUpHindu—is what the film aims to fuel, rather than a sincere tackling of the complex story of Kashmir.
Kashmir’s cycles of violence
The “truth” about Kashmir, a more complex one, is that an endless cycle of alienation, distrust, and violence has been fed by decades of broken political promises, rigged elections, the claustrophobia and humiliation of a constant military presence, foreign-funded Islamist insurgencies, custodial deaths, torture, rights abuses, brutal crackdowns, and the Indian state’s legitimate fears of loss of sovereignty.
Both Hindu and Muslim women trapped in this war zone have faced sexualized violence by militants as well as security forces. Kashmiri Muslims have also died and fled in far greater numbers than Hindus. And many Pandits who braved the militancy and chose to stay were “protected by Muslims,” according to a former Indian intelligence chief. Naturally, none of this has made it into The Kashmir Files.
Modi, who has had no role in the past atrocities or political failures in Kashmir, could have attempted a reset in the region. But as a Hindu strongman, his own need to dominate Muslims and reclaim a supposedly lost Hindu pride commits him to an even more hard-line policy toward Kashmir than his predecessors. Soon after his re-election in 2019, Modi stripped Jammu and Kashmir, the country’s only Muslim-majority state, of its statehood and partial autonomy, imprisoned its elected representatives, sent in an additional 40,000 troops, locked down the region, and imposed a months-long information blockade.
Kashmir’s long struggle for secession validates the Hindu nationalist case that Muslims, with their extraterritorial loyalties, are an existential threat to Hindus and the integrity of India. Kashmir thus fits neatly into the BJP’s use of Muslims as the bogeyman to unite the vastly disparate Hindu voter base against the dangerous “other.” This mass radicalization is driven at various levels—through social media, divisive political messaging, a craven mainstream news media (at times compared with Radio Rwanda), and historical revisionism, increasingly through cinema.
A shared history is central to the construction of group identities and becomes instrumental in the manipulation and weaponization of popular opinion. Historical events that highlight the victimization of Hindus at the hands of Muslims are pivotal in this enterprise. Hence, there has been a noticeable proliferation of Islamophobia of late in Bollywood, especially period films featuring noble Hindus resisting devilish Muslim rulers.
Compared with Nazi films like Jew Süss and Die Rothschilds by some, The Kashmir Files is an escalation of Indian cinema’s revisionist trend, used to justify the brazen Hindu extremism of the present. Lynchings, humiliation, and degradation of Muslims have become order of the day. Calls for genocide and social and economic boycotts of Muslims are widespread. State-sanctioned religious hate has even criminalized the very presence of Muslims through movements against hijabs and the opposition to public prayer.
Drip-fed with nuggets of rewritten history through social media and popular culture, the Hindu vigilantes leading the charge against India’s Muslim population rationalize their bigotry as justice for past wrongs. The deeper India drifts into the abyss of an illiberal future, the more it looks to its past to justify its regression. The more “truth” that films such as The Kashmir Files discover in the process, the more civil conflict the country risks. Climaxing with cries for the extermination of Muslims ringing out from the dim theaters, the film marks a major milestone in India’s rapid descent into darkness.
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