NEW DELHI: The BJP led National Democratic Alliance Government at the Centre is mulling to set-up a Fact Finding Commission (FFC) to go into the circumstances leading to exodus of Kashmiri Hindus from the Valley, beginning late 1989 and taking full circle on January 19, 1990, in wake of terrorism unleashed by Pakistan sponsored Jihadis.
Sources privy to the corridors of power in the national capital said the Commission would not be like the one-Truth and Reconciliation Commission- as is being suggested by the Kashmir mainstream led by former Chief Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah.
The Centre’s likely move comes in the midst of nation-wide anguish over the manner the Kashmiri Hindus were subjected to atrocities like cold blooded killings, abductions and rapes at many places as objectively portrayed in Vivek Agnihotri’s The Kashmir Files, which is hugely crashing the box office.
The terms of reference of the Commission are likely to be, inter-alia, ascertaining the role of the National Conference-Congress coalition government led by Dr Abdullah in allowing the situation to go out of hands, thus leaving no option for the Kashmiri Hindus to flee to Jammu and other cities across the country. It will also verify the allegations on Governor Jagmohan being instrumental in the KPs exodus. Dr Abdullah is on record having stated that the ‘file of Jagmohan should also be opened’.
During the controversial 1987 elections to the Legislative Assembly, the NC-Congress alliance had won 66 seats: NC winning 40 seats of 45 contested, and Congress winning 26 out of 31 (5 out of 6 contested seats in the Valley).
The 1990 exodus of Kashmiri Pandits has created countrywide rage with people cutting across the regional boundaries demanding thorough probe to unveil the actors responsible for over three lakh Hindus becoming refugees in their own country. A revelation has also been made by former Director General of Police S. P Vaid, a middle rung IPS officer in late eighties, that 70 terrorists were released during the tenure of Dr Abdullah.
The former Chief Minister has been blaming former Governor Jagmohan for ‘exodus’ of the Kashmiri Pandits, adding that the V. P Singh led government at the Centre was being supported by the BJP from outside then. He has been suggesting that he was not holding the reins of the government on January 19, 1990 when the exodus began on a mass scale. Dr Abdullah had resigned on January 18, 1990, a day ahead of Jagmohan taking oath as Governor in Jammu. The new Governor, however, could not reach Srinagar the next day in view of weather conditions.
January 19, 1990 night witnessed massive sloganeering from all over the mosques in an organised manner, asking ‘infidels’ to leave Kashmir.–‘Kafiroon ae Zalimo Chor Do Kashmir Ko’. Certain other objectionable slogans were also raised by the violent mobs in every street and lane across the Valley continuously for days.
The blame game, holding Governor Jagmohan responsible for the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits, came to sharp criticism with mainstream media referring to the sub para (e) of the para 2 of Jammu and Kashmir Migrant Immovable Property Preservation Act, 1997 (Act No XXV Dated 5th of November 1997)… “Migrant means any person who has migrated from Kashmir Valley after Ist November, 1989 and is registered as such with the Relief Commissioner and includes a person who has not been so registered on the ground of his being in service of the Govt, if any moving office or having left the Valley in pursuit of occupation or vocation or otherwise, and is possessed of immovable property in the Valley, but is unable to ordinarily reside there due to the disturbed conditions”. This is being seen as an admission by the then government that the exodus had actually started on November 1, 1989. The BJP has been describing the proviso as an admission of the National Conference government about migration having taken place 78 days before Dr Farooq Abdullah resigned.