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Is
it a Hindu Homeland that we are seeking?
No,
it is not a Hindu Homeland that we are seeking. We
fully identify with tbe
secular-democratic-pluralism of our country, so
how can we ask for a Hindu homeland ? We are
seeking a homeland for displaced Kashmiris who
have faced suppression for centuries, who have
been driven out by tyrants repeatedly in the
course of history of monarchies and fiefdoms in
the valley and who have been subjected to genocide
of unparalleled magnitude in a free and democratic
India. These people happen mostly to be Hindus.
These were the people who staked themselves at the
altar of secularism in Kashmir. They reaped the
bitter fruits of being nationalists and secular.
They are now unwelcome in their own land of which
they are the original inhabitants. They will not
be able to live in security, safety and dignity in
the altered milieu in the valley which has now
become completely Islamized and which has no place
for other communities. If they are allowed to
disperse and disintegrate it will be a total
negation of the secular democratic ideals of
India. Any attempt to deny them their rightful
share in their place of habitation will have far
reaching consequences for the rest of the country
and will unleash uncontrollable forces of
religious bigotry elsewhere in other States and
may lead to exodus of minorities from there. So
these displaced Kashmiris from the valley are
seeking an honourable settlement in the valley and
will welcome all those who contribute to the
tenets of secularism, democracy and equality
before law. We are not seeking a division of
Kashmir into Muslim Kashmir and Hindu Kashmir
because an Islamic Kashmir is already a fait
accompli. What we are asking is our rightful share
from it to convert it into a secular democratic
homeland with full accession to India and without
fetters of Article 370.
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