| KPs celebrate Kheer Bhawani festival with fervor, hope | | Emotional scenes witnessed during Mela | | Early Times Report
Tulmulla, June 6: Emotional scenes were witnessed today when Kashmiri pandits, migrated in 90s to different parts of the country, attended the night-long puja at Hindu Goddess, Ragnya Devi temple at Khir-Bhawani in central Kashmir district of Ganderbal.
Thousands of Kashmiri Pandits, including those visiting for the first time after their migration, attended the annual festival of Khirbhawani, providing the much-needed opportunity to them to visit their roots.
"This in fact has provided us an opportunity to meet our Muslim brethern though we remained in touch during all these years on phone," the Kashmiri pandits said.
"We did not see any change in our relations though, people with vested interest from both communities, had made attempts to create a wedge," said a group of pandits who had come from Jammu felt.
Similar views were expressed by Muslims, who had come all the way from a different parts of the valley to see their neighbours.
"Nothing has changed except that we are living in Jammu and our muslim neighbours in Kashmir," they said. A large number of Muslims had come from different parts of the Valley to meet their pandit brethern, who had come from Jammu, Delhi, Chandigrah, Himachal Pradesh and other parts of the country.
Kashmiri pandits, who had come for the first time after their migration from here, could not control their emotions when they talked about their past in Kashmir.
"We were born here, played with our Muslim friends, completed our education, but had to migrate to places, which are still unknown for us despite spending more than two decades there," they said.
Those born after 90s said. "Kashmir is very beautiful and we want to live here." However, others said that they are now settled outside, where there are vast opportunities for employment and education. But majority of them could not speak in Kashmiri.
Elders, who had spent their entire life in Kashmir, wanted to return to their roots before the end.
The devotees, who participated in the night-long puja, prayed for early peace in the state so that they could return to the valley once again. |
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