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T V Parasuram in Washington
Congressman and India Caucus founder Sherrod Brown has urged United States Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia Christina Rocca to make "special efforts" to ensure that the issue of Kashmiri Pandits is addressed by both India and Pakistan at their forthcoming summit.
"The plight of the Kashmiri Pandits is unique and most unfortunate," Brown told Rocca. Quoting from the annual 'State Department Report on Human Rights', Brown said the attacks by Muslim militants seeking to end Indian rule in Jammu & Kashmir and continuing political violence had driven out almost 95 per cent of Hindus [Pandits] in the Kashmir valley to seek refuge in camps in Jammu, with relatives in New Delhi and elsewhere over the last few years.
Such turmoil, involving practically the entire community, he said, "has no parallels in the subcontinent".
"The forced exodus was a direct outcome of ethnic cleansing initiated by Taleban-inspired Islamic zealots and armed terrorists bent on driving out other minorities from Kashmir," he pointed out.
Even after being driven out, the Pandits have been targeted in a manner so as to ensure that they "do not attempt to return to their ancestral lands", he added.
Kashmiri Pandits, says Brown, have never resorted to violence in return, even though they have been victimised by the militants. "The fate of this minority community should be the barometer to gauge the sincerity of the two nations in resolving the Kashmir dispute," he remarked.
Unless conditions are created to stimulate the return of Pandits to Kashmir and steps are taken to guarantee their survival and way of life within the Kashmir valley, there can be no satisfactory closure to the Kashmir dispute, he cautioned.
Lauding the Bush administration's efforts to bring the two countries together at the negotiating table, he said: "I would like to convey my appreciation for the efforts made by you and the US government to encourage dialogue between India and Pakistan to settle their differences peacefully."
PTI
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