Kashmiri Pandits flay Farooq’s remark, say former CM forgot history

Octogenarian, Bansi Lal Kaul who vividly remembers the fateful night when he along with his family had to leave Kashmir valley in the dead of the night, was today aghast to listen to the statement of National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah when he held the then Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Jagmohan responsible for the exodus.

“Farooq was lying then and he is lying today also, 31 years ago he was the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir and he abandoned us and went to London, he left us on the mercy of terrorists and today again he is lying”, Kaul said.

Kaul says that Jagmohan had no role in the exodus of the Kashmiri Pandit community as claimed by Farooq Abdullah, instead, it was Jagmohan who ensured that after exodus the community does not die of hunger in Jammu.

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“This is a fake story that was perpetrated by terrorists, Pakistan and the Kashmiri Separatists and this same narrative is being peddled by Kashmir based political parties including National Conference, the party headed by Dr Farooq Abdullah”, Kaul said.

Kaul said that he still remembers how prominent Kashmir Pandits were attacked and killed in the open, how Kashmiri Pandit girls were kidnapped by the terrorists and raped in the broad daylight. “Even the police which was under Farooq Abdullah at that time refused to file the cases,” Kaun said while recalling the horrific incidents.

“Loudspeakers in the mosques were used by the terrorists to tell us to leave Kashmir, but leave our women behind us. They openly threatened to rape our women and kill us, many were killed and many were raped, this is history and nobody can deny it,” Kaul said.

Attacking Farooq Abdullah for blaming Jagmohan for the exodus, Kaul said that Abdullah’s party remember Kashmiri Pandits once or twice a year, but when in power they did nothing to ensure the return of the Kashmiri Pandits.

“If you remember when a few years ago, the Central government said that they would make composite colonies for the Kashmiri Pandit community in the valley, Farooq Abdullah and his party said that it would oppose the move tooth and nail and today he is saying that Kashmir is incomplete without Kashmiri Pandits, this is the height of hypocrisy,” Kaul said.

Kaul added that “history will never forgive” Farooq Abdullah.

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