‘We want Union Territory status within Kashmir’

Rahul Kaul, the co-ordinator of Panun Kashmir (West), has been working as a promoter director and CEO of Infotek Netalia Limited offering services in information technology enabled space since last eight years. Kaul has also been awarded with ‘Late Rajiv Gandhi Sanganak Sarathi IT award-2009’. He has been associated with Panun Kashmir for the last 20 years. He was the chief global co-ordinator for the first international Kashmiri Pandit conference held successfully in Pune on the first weekend of January this year. Kaul speaks to Kiran Dahitule about Panun Kashmir’s ideologies.

With the new responsibilities received from Swami Kumar, what will be your plan of action for Panun Kashmir?
Swami Kumar, who is a reverend saint of Kashmiri Pandit community, gave this responsibility to me which can be interpreted in two ways: one as a strong propagation of cultural and ritual heritage of Kashmir within the  youth community and address their insensitivity towards community cause. Secondly, strengthen the conviction of working towards the achievement of a separate homeland within Kashmir.

What is your stand regarding the Hindu and Muslim population in Kashmir? What efforts you will make to encourage everyone to fight for the homeland?
Today, there is majority of Muslim population but at the same time no one can deny that the Kashmiri Pandits are the original inhabitants of the Valley of Kashmir.

As per the Margdarshan Resolution passed in December 1991, Panun Kashmir is very clear in its stand that it wants Union Territory status within Kashmir for the 7 lakh displaced Kashmiri Pandits who were forced to leave the Valley due to terrorism.
This includes those who have been driven out of Kashmir in the past and yearn to return to their homeland. Panun (which means our own) Kashmir has always worked towards integrating Kashmir with India along with the nationalist segments.

Kashmir is an integral part of India and its lineage has been unaltered for thousands of years, but steps need to be taken to integrate the PoK (Pakistan Occupied Kashmir) with India, which is currently illegally occupied by Pakistan.

PoK also houses the famous Sharda temple, which is known for Vedic education.

What are the achievements of Panun Kashmir in the last 22 years?
Since the last 22 years, Panun Kashmir has been the only organised force depicting the resistance movement of Kashmiri Pandits in exile. Panun Kashmir represents the seven lakh internally displaced people who belong to Hindu religion. It has launched a non-violent struggle for its homeland and does not indulge in political games.

It was Panun Kashmir that drew the attention of UN (United Nations) body towards our struggle. The UN has recognised the fact that the internally displaced people have to be rehabilitated in the Valley in a concentrated manner with constitutional and legal guarantees for security, safety and perpetuity.

The US Congress has written to the Indian prime minister. The European Parliament has also opined in favour of safe and concentrated rehabilitation of the people.