9 Kashmiri Pandits killed in J&K in 2 years, Parliament informed

New Delhi: Nine Kashmiri Pandits have been killed in Jammu and Kashmir since 2020, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) informed Parliament.

Of the nine, one of them belonged to the Kashmiri Rajput community, it added.

Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai provided the figures in a written response to a query by Congress MP Rajmani Patel who sought to know the total number of Kashmiri Pandits killed in the Valley in the last three years and steps being taken to protect the civilians in the region.

Terror groups have moved to the targeted killing of Kashmiri Pandits and migrant workers over the past year. This has increased fears among Pandits, including those who have been employed by the union territory under a new scheme. Many of them continue to live in what they describe as “security camps” and have been demanding postings outside the Valley, in Jammu.

Kashmiri Pandit Puran Krishan Bhat, a fruit cultivator, was killed by terrorists near his home in the Chowdhary Gund area of Shopian district on October 15.

In August, Sunil Kumar Bhat , 48, a fruit farmer, was shot dead and his cousin brother, Pitambar, injured when terrorists opened fire on them in their orchard in the same district.

In an effort to disrupt life and business, terror groups have also started targeting migrant workers. In October, two migrant workers from Uttar Pradesh were killed in a grenade attack in Shopian district.

Rai said one Kashmiri Pandit was killed in 2020 and four each in 2021 and 2022.

He also said the “there has been substantial decline in terrorist attacks from 417 in 2018 to 229 in 2021.”


Image courtesy of (Photo courtesy: deccanherald.com)

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