Peter Griffin: Rahul, tell us about your new book.
Rahul Pandita: My book is called Our Moon Has Blood Clots. And it’s a memoir on growing up in Kashmir as a religious minority, essentially, Kashmiri Hindus, also known as Kashmiri Pandits—a small, miniscule community that lived in Kashmir for hundreds of years and were forced into permanent exile as refugees in their own country in 1989-90, when an Islamist movement broke out in Kashmir Valley. And we faced the brunt and the brutalisation in a series of violence led by the majority community in Kashmir. And I’m glad that almost a quarter of a century after what happened to us, this book is out. Because this book sets the record straight for the first time. Because the liberal discourse of this country and the media have, by and large, bypassed our story. Our story has been relegated to the margins.
PG: Why do you think it has happened?
RP: I think a part of the problem is that somehow in this country it is very fashionable to talk about the adivasis of Bastar or the brutalisation by the Indian state in Kashmir or the North East—which are very valid questions and they must be talked about. But the moment you talk about other issues like our exile, our exodus, somehow it is not fashionable because it does not fit into the left-of-centre discourse. That’s very unfortunate. For the media, it’s been a very black-and-white situation, where there’s been this section of people who were brutalised by the Indian Army. But what they forget is the fact that they are the same set of people who have brutalised another set of people, who happen to be Kashmiri Pandits in this case.
As a Kashmiri, and as a journalist who has reported extensively the other part of the stories—the forced disappearances, the human rights violations—I’m of the firm opinion that the problem in the Kashmir discourse is that for many people—journalists and civil rights groups—the private and public stand on Kashmir differ. But in my case, my public and private stand has always been the same: That things happened in 1989-90, and as two communities, as Kashmiris, we need to move on. But I’m afraid that truth and reconciliation, the way we loosely call it, will not be possible unless there’s a complete consensus on the circumstances that led to the exodus. I personally think the bigger betrayal than 1990 was the fact that we’re being denied our truth; that in 1990, there was a divide between Muslims and Hindus in Kashmir, and Hindus became a target not only for Islamist militants but for the majority community; ordinary people from Kashmir also took an active part in our brutalisation.
PG: How old were you at that time?
RP: I was 14, just an adolescent. And I remember those days very vividly, the kind of brutalisation we faced, particularly on January 19, 1990, when there was this whole series of slogans against the Kashmiri Pandit community; anti-India slogans and anti-Pandit slogans. I would like to point out one which really terrified us. It essentially meant, ‘We want our Pakistan without Pandit men but with their women’. That really terrified us. And I think from that day onwards, the exodus began. And it went on for a few months, from January 1990 to September 1990, till a point of time when 3.5 lakh Kashmiri Pandits were rendered homeless and even after 23 years, we are in permanent exile.
PG: What are your memories of growing up before that? This was obviously a flashpoint. And it would have been building up for a while before it reached this stage.
RP: Absolutely. I think, personally, from 1986 onwards, when I was 10 years old, I had been very conscious of my identity as a Kashmiri Pandit because of the bitter atmosphere. Once in a while, you become victims of communal riots that happened in this one part of Kashmir, in south Kashmir in 1986, where hundreds of Pandits were beaten up, their womenfolk raped, etcetera. From then onwards, it’s been slipping away from us.
But, having said that, we also lived a very beautiful life in Kashmir, where there was a lihaaz, a consideration, between the two communities; we shared a very beautiful relationship: My father’s colleagues and friends, my mother’s colleagues (both of them were government servants), they had a very good friendship and rapport with Kashmiri Muslims. But by and large that rapport was on a very personal basis. Individually, we were very good to each other but collectively, as a group, as a community, we always had this fear, this suspicion about each other, which culminated in the brutality in 1989.
PG: Over the years as a journalist, as a writer, you’ve been writing about unrest in other parts of the country and you’ve only now got down to putting this into print. Were you trying to stay away from it or were you just too close to it at that point? Why was this not your first book?
PG: My personal encounter with your writing online was lyrical poetry. I noted you first for that because I loved the work you were doing in poems. And it came as quite a surprise to me to see you doing the hard-nosed journalistic stuff. I even went back and checked whether this is the same guy. How do those two parts work? You still write poetry?
PG: There was a young photographer from Tehelka who passed away because of illness contracted while he was out there.
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(This story appears in the 08 March, 2013 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)
@ people Umm Now we are dividing the moon too - if you know what i mean. If you dont , dont bother Pain and loss are universal to Kashmiris All of us are unmoored and forsaken and Used for we let them
on Mar 8, 2013Pandits numbering 249 were killed which cannot be condoned. Any innocent human being killed is a crime against humanity. Together with Pandits more than one hundred thousand Muslims were butchered and the number does not by any yardstick match with Pandits killed. The author, a young man has perhaps been fed wrongly with information that has no ground. Why Pandits left their home can be perused at: http://www.kashmiralight.com/kashmiripandits.php. Let us speak the truth and fact remains that Kashmir belongs to Pandits, Dogras, Muslims and all other minorities who lived their raazi khushi on or before August 13, 1947. Pandits must go back where they belong and ignore the elite crowd remote controlled by BJP, Bajragdal, Sang Parivar and the sundry.
on Mar 2, 2013I agree with the author that I saw discrimination from the day I was born in Kashmir but I donot attribute it to the teaching of Islam or Islamic culture . Saudi Arabia is the heart of wahabi muslim culture yet while I was serving there I got full respect , equal opportunities, postretirement extension , better facilities than what even Kasmiri muslim brothers got.The reasons why some majority members did to us what they should not have done has never been studied dispassionately at depth. I donot know as to how much we are also at fault and how much is the Indian state at fault . Majority of Kashmiris have accepted our link with India but the politician of centre and state, NGO have not . While there are number of cases of genocide against perpetators of crimes in NE and Gujrat even though the people have been or are being rehabilated there there is none against those who made carpet red in kashmir. Unless we come out with proofs,genuine cases with evidence and take them to courts our woes will have no value
on Feb 28, 2013The book is avoidable. It is almost a reproduction of the motivated, xenophobic content already available for free on any Right Wing/Paunun Kashmir website or a Sarkari propaganda channel presented in slightly better English.
on Feb 27, 2013the book is unavoidable ..... It will haunt you ....forever ..that is what the truth does ...and stop using psudoname ... Come out with ur real kashmiri idendity
on Feb 28, 2013I fully agree with Rahul Pandita view.
on Feb 27, 2013Being Kashmiri Pandit I have suffered in hands of majority community of Kashmir. January 1990 was worst, every night slept in fear that we will either be killed or forcefully converted to Islam. 18th jan 1990 night was worst, I was 11 years old that time and clearly remember slogans ' We need pakistan, without Hindu men but with Hindu ladies, Muslims were creating two fold fear, one that they will kill Hindu men and second they will abuse the Women. Fear was so deep that slept under bed so that I can't be located. To be honest never slept that night, only to see more horrifying day ahead with Masjids buzzing with kafiro Kashmir chod do. My community was made to suffer by Muslims of Kashmir, We were forced to live in tents with mercury touching 46 with one meal, barely any water with no Fans, no ACs. The plight 3.5 lakh Kashmiri Pundits have suffered has mostly been ignored. Thanks RP for highlighting their inhuman and barbaric acts
on Feb 27, 2013@Obaidh You were born to gun shots because you went up in arms against the Indian govt, do you understand that the war your people chose to have will also have the causalities that you complain about? On the contrary, the Kashmiri Hindus did NOT choose the war....either with the muslim majority or with India...yet they got killed, raped and uprooted. THAT my friend is the difference. And the mainland India, you think pandits are 'happily' living came after 20 years of suffering...if you are also willing to leave you home for good...get sun strokes, suffer snake bites, water scarcity, cramped dwellings..then this 'beautiful world' awaits you. Nothing is stopping you. But alas, unlike the pandits you will have the luxury to 'choose'!
on Feb 27, 2013This is the bane of human existence. As shown by the comment below, we strive to show that my suffering was worse than yours. Hence, I shall denounce what you say and ridicule you. Everybody has suffered the after effect of 15th August 1947 in India except for some southern states. So, please don't put your hand up and say that my suffering was worse. To someone who has gone through something deeply painful, he always feels that his or her suffering is the worst. Get out of your shell and see so many others who have no life of dignity and think of your pain in retrospect. We hurt in pain. But putting it up on a pedestal is not of any use. Just talk about it and enlighten those who don't know about it, and excuse their ignorance because they may have suffered worse things that you could ever imagine.
on Feb 27, 2013I have all my sympathies with Rahul Pandita, for his being in "self exile". I can understand his feelings, by being away from his motherland - in fact that is quite painful, which seem to have affected his mental faculties. Although he has tried his best to emotionally cheat his audience to gain their sympathies âby writing blatant lies, but economically progressing Indian Hindu middle class has no time for his community, which has otherwise ruled India during Nehru âIndira era. He is attributing the Pandit exodus - to the majority community, i.e. Kashmiri Muslims, who unfortunately have been at the receiving end since 1947 from Indian occupational forces and more so since 1990 â after the then Indian Government send its "viceroy - Gen 'Jagmohan' Dyer" to Kashmir. How can Mr. Pandita justify brutalization of Majority community, who has lost more than one hundred thousand youth? Another lie is the statistics provided by Rahul Pandita about Kashmiri Pandits being 350,000 in number.
on Feb 27, 2013Killings of eminent Kashmiri Pandits, including poet Sarvanand Koul , his son Virender, B K Ganjoo, Doordarshan station director Lassa Kaul and others sent shock waves among the community and the sinister design of killing one and frightening one thousand succeeded forcing the Pandits to abandon their homes and hearths in the Valley and move to the inhospitable camps of Jammu. Do you want to say that every Pandit should have been killed first and then they should have migrated? Pakistan not Pandits have to justify killing and brutalization of majority community. Rahul Pandita has been objective.Go by facts and records. Rumors and propaganda affect the mental faculties.
on Mar 1, 2013well i was born when you left kashmir. The first thing i heard wasnt a lullaby but the gun shots and screams of my people. you left kashmir and lived peacefully in india, we had no where to go, we were not safe in india or in pakistan. There were around 3000 kashmiri pandit who left valley but your voices count, what about the one hundred thousand kashmri muslims who got massacred and thousands of women raped in indian occupied kashmir. Nobody cares your book, got to be on forbes india, did ever any book about kashmir muslim got shown up on forbes or any other indian newspaper? no . And i guess these books are just making people of india more communal towards kashmiri people and kashmiri people who are your own are losing sympathy toward your community .
on Feb 27, 2013