Memorial Presented by the Sanatan
Dharam Youngmen's Association on behalf of Kashmiri Pandits to His Highness The
Maharaja Bahadur of Jammu and Kashmir on 24th October, 1931.
May it please Your Highness,
We, representatives of Kashmiri Pandits, beg to
submit below our community's demands for Your Highness' consideration. Our
community's loyalty to Your Highness' house is well-tried. Our devotion to
Your Highness' person and throne needs no reiteration. Our hopes have been
centred in Your Highness ever since Your Highness' assumption of the office of
Senior Member of the late State Council. Your Highness' liberalism and
solicitude for the people have found expression in several reforms which must
for ever enshrine Your Highness in our hearts. Encouraged by all this, and
with a view to assisting Your Highness' Government, we venture to avail the
opportunity which has been so graciously granted to us for placing our demands
before Your Highness:
1. Recent events have unmistakably proved the machinery of the administration
in the State to be unsound and totally unfit for purposes of modern government.
The Srinagar Riots Enquiry Committee has not gone into the matter at any length
but even its findings corroborate our statement. Nepotism and jobbery are
still at work in the selection of men for higher posts in the State. If in
the time of his late Highness, outsiders were given responsible posts to the
exclusion of local men, the tendency in more recent years has been to put men
(local in many cases) irrespective of merit or qualifications in charge of such
posts. We stand by the principle of preference for
"State-subjects" and do not desire any change in the definition of the
term. But we are opposed to a system under which the posts of a Governor
of a Province and the Inspector-General of Police can be given to mediocre men
wanting, as has been found by the Riots Enquiry Committee, in executive
efficiency. Merely communal or even national considerations should not
weigh in selecting men for posts of the highest responsibility. We would
not exclude even Englishmen and Lent officers from such posts, should
circumstances make their appointment necessary. For obvious reasons, we
must rule out such Englishmen and Lent officers as have been directly connected
with the Government during the last ten years. The appointment of really
capable men at the helm will obviate the necessity of making too frequent
changes in the administration and improve its general tone. But more than
that the policy of drift will give way to purposeful government. The
irresolute methods of administration should end. The Government has of
late become top-heavy, and indiscriminate expenditure has contributed to the
unsatisfactory state of our finances. This combined with laxity in the
control of audit and accounts, makes the Government grope after make-shifts.
Recent orders of penny-wise and pound-foolish retrenchments, which have mainly
affected our community, should be withdrawn. Retrenchment should, in the
first instance, aim at stepping wasteful expenditure and begin with highly paid
services.
2. The Goverrunent should make adequate arrangements for the protection of
law-abiding citizens, their homes and their places of worship against unprovoked
attacks, loot, arson and incendiarism. No well-wisher of the Government
can contemplate with equanimity the utter bankruptcy to which the administration
of law and order in the State was reduced recently. We are not for a rule
by ordinance, such as became necessary last month simply because the ordinary
law was not set in motion. But the Government should never fail to
discharge the primary functions of government. In the Muffasils the
position of our community is perilous, and special measures of protection are
necessary. The Government should deal with the situation with sympathy and
understanding and make it possible for us to breathe freely. Fire-arms
should be granted to those Kashmiri Pandits who can reasonably apprehend danger
to their life and property.
3. The wrong suffered by our community in the recent riots need not be
mentioned here. But Vichamags should be made impossible for all time.
Your Highness' illustrious grandfather, Maharaja Ranbir Singh, granted three
lakhs of rupees as compensation to the Shias, who were looted in his time by the
Sunnis. Your Highness has already been gracious enough to declare that the
question of granting compensation to Hindu sufferers of recent riots is engaging
Your Highness' attention. This grant of relief is, therefore, not one of
our demands today. But we cannot help observing that these sufferers have
not so far received that attention from the authorities that their case
deserved. We take this opportunity of informing Your Highness that there
is a wide-spread impression in our community, that we are doomed to suffering
because we may not make such noise as must compel attention. If law and
order are to be vindicated, it is the Kashmiri Pandits who must suffer Lathi
charges, if retrenchments are to be made, it is the Kashmiri Pandits who must be
victimised before others, if a favourite is to be pitchforked into high office,
it must be over the head of some Kashmiri Pandit. It is again Kashmiri
Pandit officers who can be turned out from service with impunity without reason.
And a Kashmiri Pandit official's worth may be recognised on all hands, and yet
he may be condemned to an inglorious career taking orders from those whom he
should command. No one can say that we as a community suffer from the
disease of impatience. One can easily imagine what would have followed if
any other community's place of worship had been set on fire, as our temples have
been set on fire, even after the airmesty. We do hope that Your Highness'
Government will demonstrate in practice that whatever might have been the case
so far, no discrimination against us will be allowed in future in any sphere
whatsoever.
4. Consistent with our culture and the tradition of our community both here
and outside the State, we cannot look on things through communal glasses.
It was the proud boast of the great Pandit Moti Lal Nehru that his mind could
not run in communal channels. This sums up, we believe, the position of
the average Kashmir Pandit on communal matters. Long before the Musalmans
of Kashmir had become politically conscious, it was Kashmiri Pandits who fought
for modernity in the administration. It was they who first raised the cry
of Kashmir for Kashmiris. It was they who first demanded a legislature, a
free press and a free platform. They cannot today go back on their
nationalism, and repudiate these and other essentials of good government.
Recently they have not been so vocal on political reform, but the reason is that
the Musalmans have presented their claims avowedly on communal grounds and for
communal ends. Kashmiri Pandits are as anxious as any other community for
the introduction of constitutional government, but they are equally anxious that
the body politic should not be corrupted by the canker of communalism.
Even that greatest votary of liberty, Mahatma Gandhi, was once so upset with the
communalism of the Indian Press as to say, that if he had the power of an
autocrat, he would proscribe all papers in India with the exception of his own
"Young India". In India today one provincial Legislature and
several Municipalities have become arenas for communal fire-brands, a state of
affairs which is by no means enviable. We should rather do without a free
press and a free platform and the right of representation than make our country
a hot-bed of communal warfare. Recently events in Kashmir are a tragic
demonstration of the evils of communalism. Free press and platform or no
press and platform, the Government can at no time deal too strongly with those
who preach hatred among different classes of people. We are opposed to
giving statutory recognition to the vicious principle of communal
representation. The constitution of a legislature in accordance with the
stage of our political evolution, its powers and functions, the franchise and
other matters are things of detail which cannot be decided without a regular and
open enquiry. We reserve to ourselves the right of making concrete
proposals on all such matters at the proper time.
5. One matter which has driven our community to the verge of despair is our
economic position. It was proved by our spokesmen before the Riots Enquiry
Committee, that about a thousand of our educated men - Matriculates,
Undergraduates, B.A's., B.Sc.'s., M.A.'s., M.Sc.'s., I.F.S.'s. and L.L.B.'s -
are without service. The number of such youngmen in all other communities
put together cannot be more than 200. In recent years about a hundred
Kashmiri Pandit educated men have settled outside the State, including such
distant places as Italy and England. The Government has in the past on
numerous occasions passed over the claims of our qualified men, and given
preference to men of indifferent worth from other communities. The Riots
Enquiry Committee has observed that qualified men from among Mohammedans are not
available, although, paradoxically enough, it states that they have a
'legitimate grievance" in that they are not represented in service in large
numbers. The truth, however, is that Kashmiri Pandits have the grievance
that their Graduates must give way before Matriculates of other communities.
The Committee again states that Muslims were never excluded from service because
they were Muslims. It could be correctly said that Muslims have been taken
in,
service because they are Muslims, and it was in the humour of despair that many
Kashmiri Pandit young men expressed their preparedness some time ago to embrace
Islam when applications for certain posts were invited from Muslims alone.
The glaring truth is that Kashmiri Pandits are being excluded from service
because they are Kashmiri Pandits.
We have said above that the most responsible offices in the State should be
given to the best available men, not excluding Englishmen and Lent officers, but
we cannot help observing that Kashmiri Pand'ts have not even been considered for
those high posts which have been recently or are even now in the hands of
State-Subjects belonging to different other communities in the State. Even
Sir Albion Bannerjee, whose oft-quoted statement has been exploited so
successfully to our detriment, could not help remarking that Kashmiri Pandits
are a "depressed class". It will be admitted by all that a
community, whose political importance in the past history of Kashmir is
unquestionable, and which has given to India her best politicians, is not
receiving its due in its own home. Our fault is that without any special
facilities we received higher education, beating the other communities in the
race. Although our population is small, 60 to 75 per cent of those in the
State who have received or are receiving higher education belong to our
community. With this inherent sin of being Kashmiri Pandits, we cannot
expect to get even petty clerkships, which we are told, must be conferred not on
grounds of efficiency but on grounds of communalism. Without other
resources to draw upon, Kashmiri Pandits have been left wondering how to keep
body and soul together, During recent years, this vicious policy of making
appointments on conununal grounds, has operated against our interests alone.
And unless a miracle happens in this age - notorious for its absence of
miracles-there is absolutely no hope for our younger generation, which believes
in the dignity of labour, to earn honest livelihood in the State. We do
not want to tire Your Highness by giving examples, but the appendices IV, IV
(a), V and V (a) of the Statement presented to the Riots Enquiry Committee, a
copy of which is herewith submitted, which could be supplemented by similar
statements relating to other non Muslim communities, will speak for themselves.
We, however, wish to point out the case of a Kashmiri Pandit First Class First
M.A. in English who was refused the post of a lecturer in English in the Prince
of Wales college, which was conferred on a Second Class Mohammedan M.A. in
Philosophy, a thing which would not be possible in any college outside Kashmir.
The same gentleman was on a previous occasion passed over to make room for a
Third Class Mohanunaden M.A. in English. Several others of our First Class
M.A.'s have been treated in a similar manner. Such things must be stopped
at once. Our community will feel reassured by Your Highness' issuing
orders that all such preferences must become a thing of the past. We also
pray to Your Highness to be pleased to publicly announce that our community will
not any more be placed under any disability in the matter of employment, in the
State. We respectfully beg to submit that in such matters quibbling
formulas do not at all serve any useful purpose. We do not claim any
special rights. We do not ask for preference in any matter on the ground
that we are a minority. We want fair field and no favour in the matter of
grant of service.
6. There can be no reason for the exclusion of Kashmiri Pandits from the
Army. Even at present, Kashmiri Pandits hold high military ranks in
British India and several States. We do not want to refer to old times,
but the history of Kashmir during the times of the Afghans and the Sikhs
furnishes examples of epic courage displayed by scions of Kashmiri Pandits held
high command and distinguished themselves in various battles against the
Afghans. In several battles in the State, Kashmiri Pandits fought and
scored victories. Skardu and Muzaffarabad were once conquered by a
Kashmiri Pandit, Ganesh Pandit Dar. They played an important part in the
conquest of the frontiers and their consolidation. How Kashmiri Pandits
helped not only in the creation but also in the building of the State needs no
detailed description. But for the supreme sacrifice and courage of Pandit
Birbal Dar and Mirza Pandit Dar, the history of Kashmir might have been
differently written. It is therefore not at all unreasonable to expect
that the doors of military service will be thrown open to our community in the
very near future.
7. The problem of providing employment for the unemployed is greater than
that of removing the disability which has been put on our community. The
question of mass unemployment can be solved by the State and the State alone.
It is the duty of the State to provide a living wage for every adult male
willing to work. More than, the best interests of the State lie in this
that educated men are not given cause for disaffection against the
administration. It is notorious that discontented B.A.'s feed
revolutionary forces. When we say this, Your
Highness, we are pointing out a danger which we shudder to contemplate and which
all well wishers of the State should be anxious to avert. It is not for us
to suggest a scheme for the relief of unemployment, but a country with the
natural wealth and physical advantages of Kashmir, must provide employment not
for one thousand but for thousands of educated men.
The Government has not so far shown a real appreciation of the problem.
Both the sympathy and efficiency so necessary for the solution of this problem
have been wanting. This calls for change. As many Kashmiri Pandit families
as possible should be encouraged to take to agriculture by liberal grants of
land. All the existing restrictions in the sale, mortgage and transfer of
agricultural land in favour of Kashmiri Pandits should be removed. Special
scholarships have been granted to all the communities other than Kashmiri
Pandits for general education. On the same principle special facilities
should be provided for Kashmiri Pandits to encourage them in the fields of
agriculture, industry, arts and craftsmanship. The only community in the
State which is not classed as backward is our community, obviously because we
are the most educated and our occupation has mainly been, owing to circumstances
which are the creation of history, Government service. For these reasons,
however, we are economically worse off than other communities. We also
claim to be a "backward community" so far as really productive
professions are concerned. To give us encouragement in such spheres,
special facilities are necessary. But even these measures will not
mitigate unemployment in our community to any appreciable extent. The
removal of the present disabilities under which our educated men have been put
is essential, but even that will not remove the difficulty. A brisk
industrial programme without further loss of time is urgently needed.
8. In the end we beg to submit that for a settlement of the constitutional
issues arising from the demands submitted by different communities, a joint Free
Conference of officials and non-official representatives of the communities is
necessary. All communities should be given equal opportunity to present
their case. We regret to have to submit that during the past, important
decisions detrimental to our interests, have been taken by the Government behind
our back. The Conference, we are proposing, will examine the outstanding
issues in all aspects and also take into account all pertinent matters including
the future of Indian States in general as finally evolved at the Round Table
conference, the peculiar strategic position of the State, and the existing state
of affairs obtaining in different States, and the existing state of affairs
obtaining in different States.
To sum up, our community's demands are:
(a) The machinery of administration in the State should be remodelled to
serve the purposes of modern government. Jobbery and nepotism should be
ended. Positions of the highest responsibility should be ended.
Positions of the highest responsibility should be given to men of tried worth,
Indians or Englishmen. The efficiency of administration should be
maintained at the highest standard. A resolute Government is our first
demand.
(b) Proper arrangement should be made for the protection of law abiding
citizens, their property, their homes and their places of worship against
attacks, loot, arson and incendiarism. Kashmiri Pandits should be provided
with fire-arms, where necessary. Special arrangements should be made for the
protection of Kashmiri Pandits in the Muffasils.
(c) We are for the principle of a fair field for all and favour for any.
All discrimination against our community should be stopped. The practice
of passing over the claims of highly qualified Kashmiri Pandits and giving
preferences to men of indifferent merit belonging to other communities should
become a thing of the past. The recommendation for giving preference to
Mohammedan Matriculates over Hindu Graduates should be repudiated. As all
other communities have been given special facilities to induce them to take to
literary pursuits, our community should be provided with similar facilities for
agriculture, commerce and industry.
(d) The problem of educated unemployment should be seriously tackled not only
in the interests of our community but also in the interests of the State.
Recent orders of penny-wise and poundfoolish retrenchment which have mainly
affected our community, should be withdrawn. Retrenchment should, in the
first instance, aim at stopping wasteful expenditure and begin with highly paid
services. As many Kashmiri Pandit families as possible should be
encouraged to take to agriculture. All restrictions on the sale, mortgage
and transfer of agriculture land in favour of Kashmiri Pandits should be
removed. A brisk industrial programme should be launched forth at once.
(e) Communalism should not be introduced in the body politic in any form.
No statutory recognition should be given to communal majorities and minorities.
(f) The Military Department should be thrown open to Kashmiri Pandits.
(g) Subject to the above conditions, our community is for the establishment
of a system of government on constitutional lines. We are for a
legislature which is free from all taint of communalism. We, however,
reserve to ourselves the right of making concrete proposals on constitutional
reform at the proper time. We are for free press and free platform, but
licence must be mercilessly put down. In our opinion the Government can at
no time deal too strongly with those who preach hatred between different classes
of Your Highness' subjects.
(h) To deal with all constitutional issues arising from the demands of
various communities and to recommend a scheme of reforms, a joint Free
Conference should be instituted which will take into account the future of
Indian States in general, the peculiar strategic position of Kashmir, and the
existing condition of affairs in different Indian States. Equal
opportunity should be provided to all communities to present their points of
view.
We beg to remain,
| Srinagar, |
Your Highness' |
| 24th Oct., 1931. |
Most loyal and obedient subjects
1. Pt. JIA LAL KILAM, B.A., L.L.B.
Vakil High Court & Municipal Commissioner.
2. Pt. JANARDHAN TENG, M.A., L.L.B. Vakil High Court.
3. Pt. PREM NATH BAZAZ, B.A.
President, Sanatan Dharm Youngmen's Assocn.
4. Pt. KASHYAP BANDHU, Vidhya Vachaspati.
5. Pt. DAMODHAR BHAT, B.A.
Secretary, Sanatan Dharm Youngmen's Assocn. |
|
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