Sir,
Some days
back you issued a statement as the sole trustee of DHARMARTH TRUST asking
the Kashmiri Pandit Community ” to keep off from temples in the valley
which are managed by the Trust. Sir, you were within your rights to issue a
statement.
Sir, you
were born and brought up in the J&K state where you have occupied high
constitutional posts being SADAR -I -RIYASAT and then GOvernor .People in both
the divisions have given you a lot of respect for being honest, sincere and
transparent. Shifting to centre you have been cabinet minister heading various
important ministries. Till date you have more than seven decades of political
and administrative experience. It is a record in itself.
The
language and tone of the statement was aggressive and not a civilised one
.People who have known you and have been close to you could not believe
that the statement has come from you. The statement was addressed to the
community and not to an individual. The community peaceful, educated and
civilised since centuries who have withstood the tyranny of Afghan and Muslim
rulers.The community being highly educated as compared to the communities in
both the divisions of the state imparted education by going to the far
flung areas of the state.
The readers are informed that Dr. Karan Singh was
taught by the Kashmiri Pandit teachers namely Prof. P N Chaku, Pt. Jagan Nath
Dulloo ( RAINAWARI). Not only education they have been pioneers in giving shape
to health, revenue, administration , police departments what they are
today. The glaring example is that of Dewan Nand Ram Tiku, whose
financial expertise and management of FInance was appreciated and
respected by the tyrant Afghan rulers who ultimately sent him to Kabul where he
rose to be the Finance Minister.
History
has witnessed that there always have been some people who were over
ambitious and wanted to achieve them by taking short cuts. With due apologies
and respect this writer may cite your example. When CONGRESS under the
leadership of Mrs. Gandhi was routed all over the country most
of the politicians which included you thought that CONGRESS has
been buried and changed loyalties overnight.
You were rewarded by being
appointed as the Cabinet Minister. You gave evidence in the SHAH Commission
against Mrs. Gandhi whose family had given you status when you needed it
most. But you were proved wrong in the 1980 elections. Mrs. Gandhi never
forgave you in her lifetime and were rehabilitated back
during Rajiv Gandhi’s time.
Similarly
there are some over ambitious people in KP community and they should not mean
the whole community. They had not taken the control of the temples managed by
Dharmarth Trust which prompted you to issue a statement whose language left
much to desire. Sir,the diaspora of the community is more than 3 decades
old but you have never uttered a word for their problems they have
encountered nor has the Dharmarth trust extended any help to them. Despite that
the community has withstood the test of the time. The terrorists threw a
challenge which they accepted and converted it into an opportunity.
– V.K. WATTAL
(Feedback at: vkwattal1234@gmail.com )
The writer is NCR/UP based and a regular contributor to this Website.
