Srinagar: Calling the return of Kashmiri Pandits both a moral responsibility and a prerequisite for restoring Kashmir’s composite identity, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s Advisor, Nasir Aslam Wani, on Saturday announced that the government would work towards reviving the Apex Committee on the return and rehabilitation of the displaced community.
Addressing the Global Kashmiri Pandit Conclave at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Conference Centre (SKICC) here, Wani said the government would initiate consultations with representatives of the Kashmiri Pandit community to evolve a structured and workable roadmap for their dignified return to the Valley.
“Kashmir is incomplete without Kashmiri Pandits,” Wani said, maintaining that the Valley’s social and cultural fabric cannot be fully restored unless Pandits and Muslims once again live together.
He acknowledged that despite several initiatives undertaken over the years—including rehabilitation packages announced by the Centre, construction of transit accommodations and the formation of different committees—the objective of facilitating the return of Kashmiri Pandits had not been achieved.
“Efforts have been made, but we have not reached the destination we had hoped for. We need to sit together, listen to each other and find a way forward,” he said.
The Advisor said the government would revive the Apex Committee and engage directly with stakeholders from the Kashmiri Pandit community to address concerns and formulate a practical framework for return and rehabilitation.
The Apex Committee was constituted by the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir government in 2009 to oversee measures related to the return and rehabilitation of displaced Kashmiri Pandits and monitor the implementation of relief and rehabilitation initiatives announced by the Centre. The panel included government functionaries and representatives of various Kashmiri Pandit organisations.
Recalling Kashmir’s shared legacy of coexistence, Wani said there was a time when religious identities did not define social relationships.
“There was no distinction between a Muslim wedding and a Pandit wedding. These were community celebrations. We shared the same language, the same culture and the same traditions,” he said.
Without denying the pain and bitterness associated with the events of the early 1990s, Wani urged people against holding an entire community responsible for the tragedy that unfolded. “You cannot paint everyone with the same brush. There were people whose hearts beat for Kashmiri Pandits then and continue to do so even today,” he said.
He said reconciliation would only be possible through honest engagement and dialogue rather than accusations and blame.
In an emotional appeal aimed at rebuilding trust between the two communities, Wani said Kashmiris shared a common past and a common future. “We have a shared history and a shared future. My blood is the same as yours and my skin is the same as yours,” he said.
He also urged members of the displaced community and those who remained in the Valley to reconnect beyond formal platforms. “Let us sit together, talk to each other and understand each other’s pain. The wounds of the past are deep, but healing too has to be a collective process,” he said. Wani maintained that the return of Kashmiri Pandits should not be viewed merely as an administrative exercise but as an effort to restore the pluralistic ethos that once defined Kashmir.
