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Threatening Posters against Kashmiri Pandits: A history from 1965 to 2026

Kashmir Rechords
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Threatening Posters against Kashmiri Pandits: A history from 1965 to 2026
(Kashmir Rechords Exclusive)

The latest threats against Kashmiri Pandit employees in Kashmir are not a new phenomenon. For the young Pandit employees recruited under the Prime Minister’s Package, who have lived under threats for years, the latest warning carries a frightening historical echo. Some of their generation have already been killed in the post-Article 370 era—notably government employee Rahul Bhat, shot dead inside his office in Chadoora in May 2022.

Their parents and relatives know this fear all too well. They had witnessed the same sequence in 1989-90—threats, warning letters, posters, targeted killings and intimidation—before thousands of Kashmiri Pandit families were forced to abandon their homes and migrate from the Valley.

But the history of this threat culture goes back even further.

The warning was there before 1990

Archival and historical accounts in possession of Kashmir Rechords indicate that the use of threatening posters, underground propaganda and warning communications was already visible during the turbulent years following 1965. The Al-Fateh phase subsequently gave such underground activity a more organised character. Former police officer A.M. Watali’s account records the use of Jehad posters and the arrest of an Al-Fateh activist in October 1965 for putting them up. Other historical material on Al-Fateh records the circulation of “Red Kashmir” posters directed at government officials, politicians and influential individuals in the mid-1960s.

Even D. P. Dhar, then one of the most prominent political figures of Jammu and Kashmir and the State’s Home Minister, was not spared threatening and abusive communications. The episode is significant because it demonstrates that intimidation through written warnings was not born with the insurgency of 1989.

Jammu andKashmir's then Home Minister, D P Dhar also received a threatening letter.
When D.P Dhar and his family were threatened!

The modus operandi was simple: write it, type it, cyclostyle it or print it—and put it where people would see it. Posters were pasted on walls and electricity poles; letters were delivered to homes and offices; names were circulated and warnings issued.

The purpose was psychological.Make the person feel watched. Make the family afraid. Make the community believe that the threat could become a bullet.

Archival threatening poster from the 1960s Al-Fateh era in Kashmir
Threatening posters circulated in Kashmir during 1965-66
A specimen of Threatening Posters in circulation in Kashmir during 1965-66

1989-90: When the warning became violence

By 1989-90, the old method of 1965 acquired a far more lethal dimension. Threatening letters and posters operated alongside assassinations, militant slogans and targeted killings. The objective was no longer simply to frighten an individual. It was to create an atmosphere in which an entire community and nationalist individuals began questioning whether they could safely remain in Kashmir.

The mass migration of Kashmiri Pandits cannot, therefore, be understood only through the number of people killed. The cumulative effect of threats, killings and intimidation created a climate of fear that ultimately pushed the community out of its ancestral homeland.

Threatening posters and letters in 1990
A specimen of threatening letter and posters circulated in Kashmir during 1990

Article 370 changed. The threat did not disappear

The abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 fundamentally changed Jammu and Kashmir’s Constitutional and administrative structure. But the threat culture did not vanish.

In the post-Article 370 period, Kashmiri Pandit employees again became targets. Threat posters and warnings have continued to surface. In 2023, non-locals and Kashmiri Pandits were again threatened.

Post Article 370 Abrogation. Threat to minorities continued....

Again in February 2026, purported terror posters triggered fresh concern among Kashmiri Pandits, with community representatives demanding stronger preventive security measures. Even local journalists too faced these threats, before and after Article 370 abrogation. In November 2022, five Kashmiri journalists had to quit their job as dozens of Kashmiri journalists were branded as “Army Agents’’ by “The Resistance Front’’  (TRF) and LeT.

In 2022, local journalists were threatened...branding them Army Agents.
Times of India, November 2022

And now, in August 2026, a purported letter attributed to the United Liberation Council (ULC), linked in reports to Lashkar-e-Taiba, has named six Kashmiri Pandit government employees and claimed to possess details including their phone numbers and information about their families. Authorities have responded with heightened security and precautionary measures, including asking affected employees to work from safer locations or remain away from their workplaces temporarily.

Only the medium has changed

This is perhaps the most disturbing continuity.

In 1965, the threat could be handwritten. In the Al-Fateh era, it could be cyclostyled or printed.In 1989-90, it appeared on walls and electricity poles and arrived as letters and warnings. Today, it comes through digital posters, social media, online communications and mobile phones.

The poster has changed, the technology has changed, but the weapon remains the same—fear.”

The technology has changed. The message has not.

It remains a message of identification, intimidation and displacement: you have been noticed, you are being watched, and you are not safe.

For the young Pandit employees working in Kashmir today, therefore, the latest threat is not merely a new incident. It is an echo of what their parents and grandparents experienced even before 1990.

The paper has disappeared. The poster has gone digital. But the weapon remains the same: fear.

And the history of Kashmir shows that when threats are allowed to become normal, the distance between a warning and a killing can become frighteningly short.

Editor’s Note

Those interested in knowing more about some of the Al-Fateh episodes, including the history of its sleeper cells, the locations where threatening posters were prepared, typed or reproduced, and the individuals and networks involved in their production and circulation, may contact Kashmir Rechords for archival and research assistance.

Write to us at: support@kashmir-rechords.com | kashmirrechords@gmail.com

When ‘JKLF’ Put ‘Independent Kashmir’ on a Postage Stamp

Kashmir Rechords
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When ‘JKLF’ Put ‘Independent Kashmir’ on a Postage Stamp
(Kashmir Rechords Exclusive)

SRINAGAR: At the beginning of the armed insurgency in 1989–90, the outlawed Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) sought to project itself as the force that would create an ‘Independent Kashmir’.

The symbolism was extraordinary. Militants reportedly forced people in parts of the Valley to set their watches to Pakistan Standard Time—a powerful psychological assertion that Kashmir was slipping out of India’s control. The practice was also recorded in contemporary official material and raised in Parliament in August 1990.

At the same time, the ‘JKLF’ reportedly looked towards Radio Kashmir  Srinagar as a crucial instrument of the emerging struggle. Control of the powerful broadcasting station would have meant control of the microphone through which an alternative political authority could potentially announce itself to millions. But their designs were scuttled.

For a while, the Valley appeared to be witnessing the making of a new political order: Pakistan time on the watches, ‘Azadi’ in the streets and an ‘Independent Kashmir’ as the proclaimed destination.

But Pakistan’s growing support for pro-Pakistan militant organisations, particularly Hizbul Mujahideen, complicated the JKLF’s project. The insurgency increasingly became a contest not only against the Indian State but also over what Kashmir itself was supposed to become—independent or part of Pakistan.

It was amid this contest for political space that the ‘JKLF’ produced one of its most unusual propaganda symbols.

A country on paper

In August 1990, the JKLF, under its Acting ‘Commander-in-Chief’ Javed Ahmad Mir, reportedly brought out a postal-style stamp representing ‘Independent Kashmir’.

The episode was prominently reported in August  23, 1990 issue of Kashmir Times, which also carried a photograph of the stamp.

JKLF propaganda postal stamp report in Kashmir Times August 23 1990

The design was striking: a child, accompanied by the words “FREE INDEPENDENT KASHMIR”, along with the Urdu inscription “Khud-Mukhtaar Kashmir”—self-governing or independent Kashmir.

The symbolism was unmistakable. The child represented the future; the stamp represented the ‘State the JKLF’ claimed it was fighting to create.

But this was not a recognised postage. It was a political/propaganda representation of a state that did not exist.

Yet newspapers gave the symbol a much larger public life. By reproducing the stamp, the press effectively amplified a militant publicity exercise, giving an imagined state the visual trappings of sovereignty.

Irony of the ‘Azadi’ dream

The irony was that while ‘JKLF’ was printing an ‘Independent Kashmir’ on paper and asking people to follow Pakistan time, the Valley was rapidly descending into violence.

Killings, kidnappings, threats and militant diktats spread. Kashmiri Pandits were driven into exile, while ordinary Kashmiris—Muslim and Hindu alike—were caught in a conflict whose human cost would last for decades.

A clock could be changed. A Radio Station could be targeted. A stamp could be printed. But an ‘Independent Kashmir’ could not be created through symbols

The stamp, therefore, survives as more than a philatelic curiosity. It is an archival snapshot of how the ‘JKLF’ attempted to manufacture the imagery of Statehood before possessing the institutions of a state.

The stamp promised a country. History delivered a conflict.

Lesson for Kashmir’s youth

For the youth of Kashmir, the episode remains a sobering lesson in how political emotions can be harnessed to sell impossible dreams. Pakistan and ‘JKLF’ projected competing visions—one of Kashmir’s socalled merger with Pakistan, the other of an ‘Independent Kashmir’—while thousands of young people were drawn into a conflict whose promises could never overcome the political, military and geopolitical realities surrounding Jammu and Kashmir. The dream of defeating a country of India’s scale and establishing a new State through militancy proved unattainable, while its pursuit brought violence, displacement, lost opportunities and generations of uncertainty. The lesson of history is that Kashmiris paid an enormous price for dreams that armed movements could promise, but could never deliver.

The Missing Link of the Atharva Veda: How Kashmir Preserved a Lost Vedic Tradition

Kashmir Rechords
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The Missing Link of the Atharva Veda: How Kashmir Preserved a Lost Vedic Tradition

By: Dr. Rajesh Bhat*

When veteran journalist and historian B.P. Sharma wrote The Missing Link of Atharva Veda: Saga of its Discovery in the Kashmir Times on September 1, 1988, he was not merely recounting the story of an ancient manuscript. He was documenting one of the greatest scholarly discoveries associated with Kashmir—one that fundamentally altered modern understanding of Vedic literature.

Nearly four decades later, B P Sharma’s account can now be corroborated in remarkable detail through the digitised edition of The Kashmirian Atharva-Veda (School of the Pāippalādas), published in 1901 by the Johns Hopkins Press under the editorship of Maurice Bloomfield and Richard Garbe, reproduced directly from the original birch-bark manuscript preserved at the University Library of Tübingen, Germany. The 1,088-page publication, now available through Google Books, stands as one of the most important documentary records of Kashmir’s contribution to world scholarship.

The Lost Branch of the Fourth Veda

For centuries, scholars recognised two principal recensions (Śākhās) of the Atharva Veda:

  • the Śaunakīya, which remained in circulation; and
  • the Paippalāda, long believed to have disappeared.

European Indologists knew of the Paippalāda recension only through scattered references in ancient commentaries. No complete manuscript was available, making it one of the greatest unresolved questions in Vedic philology.

Revisit B.P. Sharma's 1988 Kashmir Times article on the Paippalada Atharva Veda manuscript and Kashmir's pivotal role in preserving India's Vedic heritage.
B P Sharma’s detailed article on “The Missing Link of Atharva Veda: Saga of its Discovery”, published in Kashmir Times in September 1988.

B.P. Sharma, fondly remembered as ‘Walking Encyclopaedia of J&K’’, accurately described it as the “missing link” in Atharva Vedic studies—a description entirely consistent with the historical record preserved in Bloomfield and Garbe’s monumental publication.

Baron von Hügel’s Observation that Changed Vedic Studies

The story begins in 1833, when Austrian-German traveller Baron Charles von Hügel visited Kashmir. During his travels he recorded an intriguing statement made by Kashmiri Pandits—that they followed what they pronounced as the “Alterman Veda,” rather than the Atharvan tradition known elsewhere in India.

Although seemingly anecdotal, this observation caught the attention of the eminent German Sanskrit scholar Professor Rudolf von Roth, who suspected that Kashmir might still preserve an otherwise lost recension of the Atharva Veda.

 B P Sharma’s article recounts this episode, and the introductory chapters of The Kashmirian AtharvaVeda confirm that von Hügel’s observation became one of the earliest clues leading scholars towards Kashmir’s manuscript tradition.

Kashmirian Atharva Veda , 1901

Maharaja Ranbir Singh’s Search for the Manuscript

The most significant contribution, however, came from Maharaja Ranbir Singh (1857–1885). According to Sharma, Sir William Muir, then Lieutenant-Governor of the North-Western Provinces, appealed to the Maharaja to search his vast collection of Sanskrit manuscripts for evidence of the missing recension.

The request was hardly accidental. Maharaja Ranbir Singh had established one of the richest manuscript collections in Northern India, acquiring thousands of Sanskrit, Śāradā and Persian manuscripts from scholars across Kashmir and adjoining Himalayan regions.

Bhojpatha image

The search proved successful. Among these collections lay a complete Śāradā-script birch-bark manuscript of the Paippalāda recension.Bloomfield and Garbe acknowledge in their publication that the manuscript originated in Kashmir and reached European scholarship through the enlightened patronage of Maharaja Ranbir Singh.

The Devanagari Transcript

One of the most important details mentioned by  B P Sharma is that the Maharaja did not immediately despatch the fragile birch-bark manuscript abroad.Instead, scholars first prepared a Devanagari transcript, which was sent to Professor Rudolf von Roth for examination.Only afterwards was the original manuscript forwarded.

This careful process reflects the scholarly seriousness with which the Dogra court treated the manuscript and its preservation.

Written on Kashmir’s Famous Bhojpatra

The manuscript itself represents the finest tradition of Kashmiri manuscript culture.

As B P Sharma in his article describes, and as confirmed in the 1901 publication, the manuscript consists of approximately 275 birch-bark folios, written on both sides in the Śāradā script using indigenous black ink. The bark was obtained from the Himalayan Betula utilis (Bhojpatra) tree, whose thin inner bark had served as Kashmir’s principal writing material for centuries before the widespread adoption of paper.

Its survival is itself extraordinary. Birch bark is highly susceptible to humidity and mechanical damage, making the preservation of a complete Vedic recension exceptionally rare.

Birch-bark manuscript folio of the Paippalada Atharva Veda written in Sharada script.

Rudolf von Roth’s Historic Recognition

Professor Rudolf von Roth quickly realised that the manuscript represented one of the greatest discoveries in Sanskrit studies. His publications announced to the academic world that the supposedly lost Paippalāda Śākhā had survived in Kashmir.

The discovery challenged long-held assumptions regarding the textual history of the Atharva Veda and opened entirely new avenues of comparative Vedic research.

Aurel Stein’s Tribute to Kashmir

Another remarkable episode highlighted by B P  Sharma concerns Sir Marc Aurel Stein, whose archaeological work transformed the study of Kashmir’s past.

Stein not only appreciated the manuscript’s textual importance but also wrote to Raja Amar Singh, urging the Jammu and Kashmir administration to support its publication and to honour Maharaja Ranbir Singh’s contribution to Sanskrit scholarship.

Aurel Stein's letter to Raja Amar Singh, urging the Jammu and Kashmir administration to support its publication and to honour Maharaja Ranbir Singh's contribution to Sanskrit scholarship
Sir Aurel Stein’s letter to Raja Amar Singh

Stein reportedly described the manuscript as indispensable for the restoration of the Atharva Veda, crediting  Maharaja Ranbir Singh’s patronage for making the discovery possible.

This correspondence illustrates how nineteenth-century European scholarship acknowledged Kashmir’s own role in preserving India’s classical heritage.

Johns Hopkins, Tübingen Preserve Kashmir’s Legacy

In 1898, Maurice Bloomfield, Richard Garbe and the Universities of Johns Hopkins and Tübingen initiated an ambitious project to reproduce the manuscript by chromophotography, then one of the most advanced methods of documentary reproduction.The resulting publication appeared in 1901 under the title The Kashmirian Atharva Veda.

Rather than merely printing the Sanskrit text, the editors reproduced photographic plates of the original birch-bark folios, enabling scholars worldwide to study the manuscript exactly as preserved in Kashmir. The work remains one of the earliest large-scale photographic reproductions of an Indian manuscript.

Why the Discovery Changed Indology

The publication had profound implications.

For the first time, scholars could compare the Paippalāda and Śaunakīya recensions of the Atharva Veda in detail. Differences in arrangement, wording and preservation revealed that the Kashmir manuscript preserved an independent textual tradition rather than merely a variant copy.

Maurice Bloomfield later incorporated these findings into his broader studies of the Atharva Veda, acknowledging the Kashmir manuscript as indispensable for reconstructing the textual history of the fourth Veda.

B.P. Sharma’s Enduring Contribution

B.P. Sharma deserves recognition not only for narrating this remarkable story but for introducing it to a wider readership in Jammu and Kashmir at a time when manuscript heritage rarely featured in public discourse.

His article anticipated many of today’s efforts to reclaim Kashmir’s intellectual history. Rather than presenting the discovery merely as an episode in European Indology, Sharma correctly placed Kashmir, its Pandit scholars and Maharaja Ranbir Singh at the centre of the narrative.

Today, with The Kashmirian Atharva-Veda freely accessible in digital form through Google Books, readers can verify virtually every major episode recounted in Sharma’s article—from Baron von Hügel’s observations and Rudolf von Roth’s scholarship to Aurel Stein’s correspondence and the pioneering 1901 chromophotographic edition.

The rediscovery of the Paippalāda Atharva Veda was not merely the recovery of an ancient manuscript; it was the restoration of an entire branch of India’s Vedic tradition. The journey of the manuscript—from the manuscript repositories of Srinagar to Tübingen, and from there to one of the most celebrated publications in Oriental studies—stands as a testament to Kashmir’s role as one of the great custodians of India’s civilisational heritage.

Read together, B.P. Sharma’s 1988 Kashmir Times article and Bloomfield and Garbe’s 1901 scholarly edition present a compelling narrative: that the preservation of one of the world’s oldest sacred texts owed as much to the custodianship of Kashmiri scholars and the enlightened patronage of Maharaja Ranbir Singh as it did to the painstaking efforts of European Indologists. Their combined testimony firmly establishes Kashmir not only as a land of spiritual traditions but also as a vital centre in the global history of manuscript preservation and Vedic scholarship.

*Dr. Rajesh Bhat is an eminent journalist, media researcher, and former senior Officer with Prasar Bharati. Holding a Ph.D. in media and strategic studies , he has authored several books—including Radio Kashmir: In Times of Peace & War—and regularly documents the cultural, historical and archival heritage of Jammu and Kashmir.

1984 Archives debunk the 1987 Kashmir Myth

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1984 Archives debunk the 1987 Kashmir Myth
(Kashmir Rechords Report)

The archival newspaper clipping dated May 30–31, 1984 challenges one of the most frequently repeated narratives about the origins of the Kashmir conflict. A common perception is that Kashmir’s troubles began with the 1987 Assembly elections, followed by the rise of militancy and, ultimately, the forced exodus of the Kashmiri Pandit community in 1990. However, archival evidence indicates that communal targeting and violence against the minority community predated 1987.

The report explicitly mentions that Kashmiri Pandit temples were attacked and that attempts were made to set them on fire. It states that the All State Kashmir Pandit Association protested these attacks and referred to assaults on temples and other religious places. The report also records widespread violence across Srinagar, Anantnag, Baramulla and other areas, curfews, police firing, destruction of property, and attacks on public transport. These developments occurred three years before the 1987 elections.

Archival newspaper report titled Srinagar violence toll rises to 3 showing May 1984 coverage.
Circa May 1984: When Temples in Kashmir were attacked!

This archival evidence should not be interpreted as proving a single cause for the later insurgency, but it does demonstrate that communal intimidation and attacks on Kashmiri Pandit religious sites were already taking place in 1984. The subsequent 1986 Anantnag riots, during which numerous temples and Hindu properties were attacked, further deepened the sense of insecurity among the minority community. Yet, despite these repeated incidents, Kashmiri Pandits largely remained in the Valley, hoping that the situation would improve.

The crisis reached its tragic culmination only in 1990, when escalating militancy, targeted killings, intimidation, and threats triggered the mass exodus of the Kashmiri Pandit community from their ancestral homeland.

In other words, the archival record suggests a more complex chronology than the simplified narrative that everything began in 1987. The sequence reflected in contemporary reports is:

  • 1984: Attacks on Kashmiri Pandit temples and growing communal violence, as documented in contemporary newspapers.
  • 1986: The Anantnag riots and widespread attacks on temples and minority properties.
  • 1987: A disputed election, followed by a rapid escalation of armed militancy.
  • 1990: The mass exodus of Kashmiri Pandits.

These archival records underscore that the vulnerability of the Kashmiri Pandit community was evident years before the 1990 exodus, and that understanding the conflict requires examining the full historical sequence rather than reducing it to a single turning point.

Kashmir’s Minorities & Global Conflicts: A Historical Analysis

Kashmir Rechords
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Kashmir’s Minorities & Global Conflicts: A Historical Analysis
By:Dr. Rajesh Bhat*

History is often remembered through wars fought on one’s own soil. Yet Kashmir witnessed another phenomenon—equally tragic but far less documented. For decades, international political and religious events repeatedly ignited protests in the Valley, even when those events had no direct connection with Jammu and Kashmir. The emotional response was immediate; the consequences were local.

An extensive examination of contemporary newspaper archives by Kashmir Rechords reveals a striking historical pattern. From the execution of Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in 1979 to the desecration of Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque in 1986, from the American bombing of Libya to the Salman Rushdie controversy in 1989, Kashmir repeatedly became a theatre where distant events played out violently. In many cases, it was the Valley’s minorities—Kashmiri Pandits and Christians in particular—who paid the price for conflicts and controversies in which they had no role.

1979: Kashmir Reacts to Pakistan’s Internal Crisis

The first major example emerged in March-April 1979, when Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto exhausted his legal remedies after the Supreme Court of Pakistan upheld his death sentence.Even before Bhutto’s execution, Kashmir witnessed protests.

1979 newspaper clipping reporting Hartal in Srinagar following Bhutto review petition rejection.

An archival report dated March 25, 1979 records a hartal in Srinagar following the rejection of Bhutto’s review petition. Protesters took to the streets against General Zia-ul-Haq‘s military regime despite the fact that the controversy concerned Pakistan’s internal judicial process.The situation worsened after Bhutto was executed on 4 April 1979.

A newspaper dated 6 April 1979 carried the alarming headline:

“Four More Killed By Police Firing In Kashmir – Violent Demonstrations Against Execution of Bhutto.”

Killings in Kashmir following execution of Bhutto

According to the report, police firing across Kashmir raised the death toll to seven persons within two days. Massive demonstrations paralysed Srinagar, Shopian, Sopore, Anantnag and several other towns.

The archives describe:violent clashes with police;attacks on government buildings;road blockades;extensive stone-pelting;attempts to storm public offices;widespread shutdowns.

Most significantly, the report records that shops and business establishments belonging to sections of the Muslim community perceived to support General Zia or the Jamaat-e-Islami were attacked and looted. Their only perceived offence was ideological association with Pakistan’s ruling establishment.The Valley had erupted—not over a local issue—but over Pakistan’s domestic politics. Even Christian Community of Kashmir was targetted , forcing Sheikh Abdullah to say that while Pakistan took an ugly decision, why are we burning houses and Churches here?

Sheikh Abdullah cautions against attacks on Christians of Kashmir

1986: Jerusalem Burns, Kashmir Shuts Down

Seven years later, another international event triggered a similar reaction.Reports of the desecration of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem in February 1986 produced one of the largest protest movements witnessed in Kashmir during that decade.

Archival newspapers carried headlines including:

  • “Hartal, Demonstrations in Kashmir Towns.”
  • “Valley-wide Protest Against Desecration of Al-Aqsa Mosque.”
DEsecration of Al-Aksa and Kashmir
Wide-spread protest in Kashmir ober desecration of Al-Aqsa mosque

Entire towns observed shutdowns. Demonstrations spread through Srinagar, Baramulla, Sopore, Kupwara, Pulwama, Shopian, Anantnag and Handwara.

Crowds shouted slogans against Israel and the United States while clashes with police left several personnel injured.

For many Kashmiris, Al-Aqsa represented not merely a mosque but an emotional symbol of the Islamic world.Yet the repercussions did not stop with protest marches.

An Already Explosive Atmosphere

The Al-Aqsa demonstrations unfolded against the backdrop of mounting communal tension inside Kashmir.

Within days, the Valley witnessed the Anantnag riots of February 1986, during which numerous temples, houses and commercial establishments belonging to Kashmiri Pandits were attacked.

Although historians attribute those riots to a combination of political, communal and local factors, the archival timeline demonstrates how international religious developments further inflamed an already combustible atmosphere.Once again, the victims were local.

Libya Bombed, Christians in Kashmir Guarded

Barely two months later, another international conflict reverberated through Kashmir. Following the United States’ bombing of Libya in April 1986, newspapers reported that security across Kashmir had been substantially tightened.

The report specifically stated that police protection had been reinforced around:churches,Christian missionary institutions and educational establishments run by missionaries.

Christians of Kashmir provided security

The administration feared that anger directed against the United States could spill over onto local Christian institutions.

The irony could hardly have been greater. Kashmir’s Christians had absolutely no connection with Washington’s foreign policy.

Yet they required police protection because events unfolding in North Africa were expected to provoke unrest in Kashmir.

The newspaper itself recalled that similar precautionary measures had earlier been necessary during the Al-Aqsa protests.

1988: Mourning General Zia

History then produced another paradox.When General Zia-ul-Haq, the very military ruler blamed by protesters for Bhutto’s execution, died in an air crash on August 17, 1988, parts of Kashmir again witnessed mourning processions and demonstrations.

The same Valley that had erupted against him nine years earlier now observed public grief over his death.

The episode illustrated how political developments across the border continued to evoke powerful emotional responses inside Kashmir, often resulting in law-and-order challenges requiring heavy deployment of security forces.

1989: Salman Rushdie and Local Backlash

The publication of Salman Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses triggered protests across much of the Muslim world.Kashmir was no exception.

During demonstrations in February 1989, two ancient temples belonging to the Kashmiri Pandit community—one at Fateh Kadal and another at Ganpatyar in Srinagar—were attacked.Neither the temples nor the Kashmiri Pandit community had any connection with the author or the publication.

Nevertheless, local minorities once again became targets during protests over an international controversy.

A Disturbing Historical Pattern

Viewed together, these archival reports reveal an unmistakable pattern.

Whenever a major political or religious event occurred abroad:Pakistan executed Bhutto or Jerusalem witnessed controversy over Al-Aqsa 0r America bombed Libya or Salman Rushdie published a controversial novel, Kashmir often responded with: shutdowns,demonstrations,violent confrontations,attacks on public property,heightened communal tension and the deployment of additional security around minority places of worship.

The emotional geography of Kashmir frequently extended far beyond its physical borders. Unfortunately, the consequences often fell upon neighbours who had nothing whatsoever to do with those distant events.

Pattern Has Not Entirely Disappeared

The archives also resonate with more recent developments.Following the escalation of tensions involving Iran, sections of Kashmir again organised demonstrations expressing solidarity with the country. Public reports documented campaigns collecting humanitarian assistance, including cash as well as donations of gold and silver, intended for relief efforts associated with Iran.

Expressions of solidarity with international causes have long formed part of Kashmir’s political culture. The historical record, however, also serves as a reminder of the dangers of allowing distant conflicts to translate into local intimidation or communal polarisation.

The Forgotten Lesson of the Archives

The newspaper clippings preserved by Kashmir Rechords tell a story that extends beyond individual protests.

They document a recurring historical phenomenon in which international events repeatedly shaped Kashmir’s internal social and political climate. They also reveal a sobering truth: the burden of those distant conflicts was often borne by innocent local communities.

Whether it was Kashmiri Pandits whose temples came under attack after the Rushdie controversy, Christians whose churches required police protection after the bombing of Libya, or ordinary citizens caught in violence following Bhutto’s execution, the archives show that international passions frequently translated into local insecurity.

Understanding this history does not diminish the right of people to express solidarity with causes beyond their borders. Rather, it highlights the importance of ensuring that such expressions never become a pretext for violence against fellow citizens who bear no responsibility for events unfolding thousands of kilometres away.

As these forgotten newspaper reports remind us, history’s most enduring lesson is that when global conflicts are imported into local society, it is often the innocent who pay the highest price.

About the Author

Dr. Rajesh Bhat is a veteran journalist, broadcaster, author, media archivist and independent researcher with over three decades of experience in Journalism and Public Broadcasting. He holds a Ph.D. in Journalism and Mass Communication and began his career in print journalism, serving with the Kashmir Times before joining Daily Excelsior as a Special Correspondent, where he headed the newspaper’s Kashmir Desk during the peak years of militancy in the Valley. During the same period, he also contributed extensively on art, cultureand heritage to The Tribune.

He later transitioned to electronic media, serving in Prasar Bharati in various broadcasting capacities. Dr. Bhat is the co-founder of the Kashmir Rechords Foundation, a registered non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the archival, cultural and socio-political history of Jammu and Kashmir. His research draws extensively on contemporary newspaper archives, official records and other primary historical sources to document forgotten narratives and present evidence-based accounts of Kashmir’s past.

When Salman Rushdie Visited Kashmir

Kashmir Rechords
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When Salman Rushdie Visited Kashmir
(Kashmir Rechords Exclusive)

Today, the name Salman Rushdie evokes memories of one of the most controversial episodes in modern literary history. For many, it is inseparable from The Satanic Verses, worldwide protests, a fatwa, and decades of security threats that followed.

Yet few remember that years before the controversy engulfed his life, Rushdie was welcomed in Kashmir as an internationally acclaimed novelist, interviewed by Radio Kashmir Srinagar, and greeted warmly by students at one of the Valley’s most prestigious colleges.

That forgotten chapter, preserved today through rare photographs and newspaper archives, tells the story not only of Salman Rushdie but also of a Kashmir that was intellectually vibrant, culturally confident and deeply connected with the world of ideas.

A Booker Prize Winner in Kashmir

It was May 1983.Salman Rushdie had already achieved international fame after winning the Booker Prize for his landmark novel Midnight’s Children, a work widely regarded as one of the finest novels written in English in the twentieth century. The novel had brought India and its complex history to the forefront of world literature, making Rushdie one of the most celebrated writers of his generation.

During his visit to Kashmir that year, Rushdie was interviewed at Radio Kashmir Srinagar, where he spoke about Midnight’s Children, literature and contemporary writing.

Among the rare archival treasures preserved by Kashmir Rechords is a remarkable photograph showing Rushdie seated before the microphones inside the studios of Radio Kashmir. It is more than a photograph—it is visual testimony to an era when Kashmir welcomed some of the world’s leading literary voices into its premier broadcasting institution.

Salman Rushdie being interviewed at Radio Kashmir Srinagar, May 1983.
Salman Rushdie in the Studios of Radio Kashmir, Srinagar ( May 1983), talking about his book ‘Midnight’s Children’

Rushdie’s visit extended beyond the radio station.

He also visited the historic Sri Pratap (SP) College, Srinagar, where he interacted with students and members of the faculty. His visit generated considerable enthusiasm among young readers, and the college later published photographs of the interaction in its annual magazine. Those images remain an enduring reminder of a Kashmir where internationally acclaimed writers could freely engage with students and scholars.

When Rushdie sat before the Radio Kashmir microphones in 1983, he wasn’t a figure of global political storm—he was celebrated as a master storyteller reconnecting world literature with South Asian history

The Valley that Rushdie encountered in 1983 was known not merely for its breathtaking beauty but also for its thriving literary culture. Radio Kashmir regularly hosted distinguished writers, poets, musicians and intellectuals, while colleges and universities served as centres of lively academic and cultural exchange.

Few could have imagined that within a few years everything would change.

A Book That Shook the World

On 26 September 1988, Rushdie’s novel The Satanic Verses was published in the United Kingdom.

Almost immediately, sections of the Muslim community across the world objected to passages they considered offensive to Islam. Demonstrations began in several countries, and the controversy rapidly crossed national boundaries.

Concerned about possible disturbances, the Government of India became the first government in the world to prohibit the import of the book on 5 October 1988, citing concerns over public order.

At that stage, however, Kashmir’s response was not entirely one of condemnation.

In Defence of Salman Rushdie: An article that was published in Kashmir Times on October 16, 1988.

Kashmir’s Intellectual Response

Among the archival holdings of Kashmir Rechords is the Sunday, October 16, 1988 edition of the Kashmir Times, carrying a remarkable article by eminent Kashmiri writer G. M. Zahid titled “In Defence of Salman Rushdie.”

Published at a time when the controversy was still unfolding, Zahid’s article offered a thoughtful defence of Rushdie and reflected Kashmir’s long tradition of intellectual debate. It demonstrated that even amid growing international criticism, there remained voices in the Valley that believed literature should be debated through ideas rather than emotion.

Today, that newspaper clipping has become an important historical document. It reminds us that Kashmir’s literary community did not react uniformly and that public opinion was still evolving.

From Literary Debate to Public Agitation

The controversy, however, soon moved far beyond literature.

As protests intensified across several Muslim-majority countries, the issue acquired powerful religious and political dimensions. Public demonstrations grew larger, emotions became stronger and governments across the world found themselves confronted with an increasingly volatile situation.

The turning point came in February 1989, when Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa calling for Rushdie’s death. The controversy instantly became a global crisis.Its impact was felt in Kashmir as well.

In February 1989, the Valley witnessed widespread strikes, hartals and demonstrations against Salman Rushdie and The Satanic Verses. Thousands participated in protests across Srinagar and elsewhere.

Protests in Kashmir against Salman Rushdie.
Another Hartal in Kashmir ( February 13, 1989) against publication of Salman Rushdie’s controversial book ‘Satanic Verses’

The demonstrations turned violent. During clashes with the authorities, one civilian lost his life and many others were injured, marking one of the most significant public agitations in Kashmir over an international issue. Newspapers of the time carried dramatic reports of shutdowns, processions, public anger and escalating law-and-order concerns.The transformation was extraordinary.

Within less than six years, the same author who had discussed literature inside Radio Kashmir Srinagar and interacted with students at SP College had become the focus of mass protests in the very Valley that had once welcomed him.

A Kashmir That Changed Forever

The Rushdie episode coincided with one of the most turbulent periods in Kashmir’s modern history.Only months later, the Valley descended into armed insurgency. The institutions that had once celebrated literature, culture and open dialogue found themselves operating under the shadow of violence and uncertainty. International writers no longer travelled freely to Kashmir. Public discourse changed, and the atmosphere that had encouraged intellectual engagement steadily disappeared.

The rare photograph of  Salman Rushdie at Radio Kashmir Srinagar, the pages of the SP College annual magazine documenting his visit, the Kashmir Times article “In Defence of Salman Rushdie” and the newspaper reports chronicling the February 1989 protests together tell a compelling story of a society in transition.

These archives are not simply about Salman Rushdie.They are about Kashmir itself.

They remind us that before conflict came to dominate headlines, Kashmir was a place where celebrated writers were welcomed, books were discussed on public radio, students engaged with world literature and newspapers accommodated differing viewpoints—even on the most contentious issues.

For Kashmir Rechords, preserving these forgotten fragments is an effort to recover a chapter of history that deserves to be remembered in all its complexity. Together, they capture the remarkable journey of one celebrated author—and the equally remarkable transformation of a Valley whose intellectual landscape changed forever within the span of a few short years.

The Forgotten Royal Elephants of Jammu

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The Forgotten Royal Elephants of Jammu

(Kashmir Rechords Exclusive)

There was a time when the heart of Jammu echoed not with the voices of vegetable vendors or the bustle of shoppers, but with the thunderous footsteps of royal elephants.

Today, thousands pass through the bustling Sabzi Mandi near Parade Chowk without realizing that the same ground once housed the magnificent Hathithan—the Royal Elephant Stable of the Dogra Maharajas. What survives today is merely a marketplace; what has disappeared is an extraordinary chapter of Jammu’s forgotten heritage.

Urdu Book That Preserved a Vanishing Legacy

In January 1971, The Excelsior reported the publication of an unusual Urdu book titled `History of Elephants in Jammu & Kashmir‘, written by Abdul Latif, whose family had served the Dogra rulers for generations. Kashmir Rechords is reproducing the preserved relevant newsclippings for the benefit of esteemed readers.

According to the contents of the newsitem, Latif was not merely narrating history. He was preserving memories inherited from his father and grandfather—both senior Mahouts (elephant keepers) attached to the royal establishment. His work therefore carries the rare authenticity of an eyewitness tradition handed down within the royal stables themselves.

Archival clipping of the 1971 Excelsior report detailing Abdul Latif's book on the History of Elephants in Jammu & Kashmi
From Hathithan to Sabzi Mandi: The forgotten story of Jammu’s Royal Elephant Stable preserved in Abdul Latif’s rare Urdu book published in 1971.

When Maharaja Gulab Singh Brought Three Royal Elephants

The story begins in 1846, when Maharaja Gulab Singh established the princely State of Jammu and Kashmir.

According to Abdul Latif, the Maharaja brought three elephants into Jammu shortly after founding the State. These majestic animals were housed at Hathithan, strategically located barely a kilometre from the royal Mubarak Mandi Palace.

As successive rulers expanded the royal establishment, the elephant population steadily increased.

By the time Maharaja Ranbir Singh ascended the throne, the number had risen to nearly twenty elephants, reflecting both the prestige and ceremonial grandeur of the Dogra court.

Hathithan: The Stable That Became a Marketplace

Few places in Jammu have undergone such a remarkable transformation. Hathithan was once a sprawling elephant camp where the royal animals lived, trained and prepared for ceremonial occasions. Massive banyan trees provided shade, while experienced Mahouts looked after the prized animals. Today the same site is one of Jammu’s busiest vegetable markets.

According to noted journalist Shiv Chander Sharma, remnants of the original Hathi Khana—including side gates of the old enclosure—still survive, though they are largely overlooked by people who visit the area only to buy vegetables.

Book on History of Elephants in Jammu and Kashmir.
Drawing upon Abdul Latif’s rare Urdu work published in 1971, this article revives a forgotten chapter of Jammu’s royal heritage.

Rama: The Elephant That Solved His Own Murder Mystery

Among the most fascinating stories narrated by Abdul Latif is that of an elephant named Rama. In 1870, Rama suddenly killed his Mahout.The incident naturally enraged Maharaja Ranbir Singh, who personally visited the elephant to understand the cause behind the unexpected violence.

What followed sounds almost unbelievable! Instead of attacking the ruler, Rama quietly used his trunk to gather dust from the ground and divide it into two separate heaps.

The Maharaja interpreted this unusual gesture after listening to the Mahouts’ explanation.

The elephant, they believed, was indicating that his keeper had been stealing a portion of the animal’s daily ration.

Rather than acting out of blind rage, Rama’s violence was seen as the tragic consequence of prolonged neglect and mistreatment.

Whether literally true or embellished through oral tradition, the story reflects the remarkable intelligence long attributed to elephants and the close emotional bond between these animals and their keepers.

Jamuna Dass: The Gentle Giant of the Dogra Court

If Rama became famous for his fury, Jamuna Dass became legendary for his dignity. During the reign of Maharaja Pratap Singh (1885–1925), Jamuna Dass was regarded as the senior-most royal elephant.

Abdul Latif in his book describes him as majestic, calm and exceptionally graceful. His imposing appearance itself enhanced the splendour of royal ceremonies. Later another elephant, Ganga Dass, joined the royal stable, but Jamuna Dass remained the pride of the establishment.

The Elephant Chosen by a Maharaja

Perhaps no elephant in Jammu’s history enjoyed greater honour than Jamuna Dass. Whenever Maharaja Hari Singh celebrated his marriages, it was Jamuna Dass who was selected to carry the ruler in royal processions.

The elephant thus became an inseparable part of some of the most important ceremonial occasions of the Dogra dynasty.

The Last Royal Procession

History often ends quietly. The last great appearance of Jammu’s royal elephants came in March 1926, when Maharaja Hari Singh formally ascended the throne.

For the occasion, Jamuna Dass was transformed into a living symbol of royalty. His body was adorned with colourful powders, gold ornaments, and an elaborate howdah mounted on his back.

It was a spectacle that represented not merely the accession of a ruler, but the culmination of an entire royal tradition that had flourished for nearly eighty years. Soon afterwards, changing times gradually ended the ceremonial importance of elephants in the princely State.

More Female Elephants Than Males

An interesting detail recorded by Abdul Latif in his book reveals that the royal stables generally maintained only two male elephants, whereas the number of female elephants was rarely below fifteen.

This suggests that the elephant establishment was carefully managed, possibly with breeding, temperament and ceremonial requirements in mind—details that deserve deeper historical investigation.

A Heritage Buried Beneath Everyday Life

Today, the average visitor to Parade Chowk, Jammu is unlikely to imagine that beneath the crowded vegetable market once stood one of the most important royal elephant establishments in northern India.

The banyan tree, the forgotten gates, the memories preserved by Mahouts, and Abdul Latif’s remarkable Urdu book and the newspaper cuttings of January 1971 together remind us that history often survives not in monuments, but in overlooked corners of our cities.

Jammu’s Hathithan is one such place—a forgotten royal stable hidden in plain sight.

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When Diabetes Claimed Maharaja Ranbir Singh

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When Diabetes Claimed Maharaja Ranbir Singh
(Kashmir Rechords Exclusive)

One of the most persistent misconceptions of our time is that diabetes is purely a modern lifestyle disorder—a consequence of fast food, stress, and urbanization. While modern living has certainly accelerated its rise, history presents a far more compelling narrative: long before insulin, diabetologists, and glucose monitors existed, diabetes (ذیابیطس) was already recognized as one of the most feared conditions across the Indian subcontinent.

An extraordinary archival discovery preserved by Kashmir Rechords now takes this medical history back to nineteenth-century Jammu and Kashmir, revealing that even one of the region’s most powerful monarchs could not escape the disease.

1885 Urdu Journal records death of Maharaja Ranbir Singh

Among the rare archival holdings of Kashmir Rechords is the October 1885 issue of the celebrated Urdu socio-literary journal Mir’at-ul-Hind (Mirror of India), edited since 1875 by the eminent Kashmiri Pandit scholar Pandit Kishan Narayan of Lucknow, who also established the renowned Matba Bahar-e-Kashmir.

The front page of Miratul Hind, 1885
An 1885 Urdu Archive from Kashmir’s Past

Published barely weeks after the demise of Maharaja Ranbir Singh (1830–1885), the second Dogra ruler of the Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir, the journal carries an emotional obituary mourning the passing of the Maharaja.

What makes this obituary historically remarkable is its explicit reference to the cause of death. The editor records that Maharaja Ranbir Singh died of ذیابیطس (Diabetes).

Unlike many later historical accounts that merely mention the Maharaja’s “prolonged illness” without identifying a medical condition, this contemporary Urdu publication specifically names diabetes.

As a primary source published immediately after the Maharaja’s death, Mir’at-ul-Hind represents an important piece of documentary evidence that demonstrates not only that diabetes was known in nineteenth-century India but that it was recognised by its Urdu name—ذیابیطس.

The sad demise of Maharaja Ranbir Singh die to diabetes, circa September 1885
When History Diagnosed Diabetes: The 1885 Urdu Record of Maharaja Ranbir Singh’s Death

A Disease that claimed even a powerful Monarch

Maharaja Ranbir Singh was one of the most influential rulers of nineteenth-century India.Ascending the throne in 1856 after Maharaja Gulab Singh, he governed one of the largest princely states in the subcontinent, comprising Jammu, Kashmir, Ladakh, Gilgit and Baltistan.

His reign witnessed sweeping administrative and judicial reforms, the introduction of the Ranbir Penal Code, promotion of Sanskrit and Persian learning, preservation of priceless manuscripts and the strengthening of institutions that continued to shape Jammu and Kashmir for generations. Yet, despite commanding one of the most powerful kingdoms of his time and having access to the finest physicians available, the Maharaja could not escape a disease for which nineteenth-century medicine had no effective cure.

Forgotten medical history hidden in newspaper Advertisements

The Kashmir Rechords archives reveal another fascinating chapter in the medical history of the Indian subcontinent.

Rare newspaper and magazine advertisements published between 1930 and 1945 openly promoted medicines, tonics and specialised treatments for ذیابیطس (Diabetes).

These advertisements appeared decades before diabetes awareness campaigns became commonplace and clearly demonstrate that diabetes was already a recognised medical condition requiring specialised treatment.

Even more remarkably, several advertisements referred to Grade I, Grade II and Grade III diabetes, indicating that physicians and pharmaceutical companies had already begun categorising the disease according to its severity.

Awareness about Diabetes, published in 1930
Diabetes is Dangerous—-An information about its three grades and precautionary measures, published in 1930

Among the most prominent medicines advertised was “Diamelin,” promoted as a remedy for the principal symptoms of diabetes.

The medicine was marketed through leading pharmacies in Delhi, Lahore, Karachi, Calcutta and Madras, illustrating the extensive commercial network for diabetic treatment across pre-Independence India.

The advertisements also offered a free booklet explaining diabetes, enabling patients to understand the disease and its symptoms—an early form of public health awareness decades before organised diabetes education programmes emerged.

Medicines available for diabetes in 1930.
Diamelin—The medicine for Diabetes which was available in major cities of pre-partition India.

Today, these advertisements are far more than commercial notices.They are historical documents.They reveal that diabetes was sufficiently widespread to sustain a dedicated pharmaceutical market and that public awareness about the disease existed much earlier than commonly believed.

Archives correct popular myths

The October 1885 issue of Mir’at-ul-Hind and the numerous diabetes advertisements preserved by Kashmir Rechords tell a compelling story. Together, they demonstrate that ذیابیطس (Diabetes) was a recognised disease in nineteenth and early twentieth-century India.

They establish that medicines were being manufactured, advertised and distributed for diabetic patients decades before modern endocrinology evolved into a specialised branch of medicine.

More importantly, they challenge the widespread belief that diabetes is exclusively a disease of modern lifestyles. Modern living may have accelerated its prevalence, particularly Type 2 diabetes, but history makes one fact abundantly clear: Diabetes did not arrive with the modern age. It existed generations earlier. It was recognised by physicians .It was feared by families. It was treated by pharmacies.

And, as recorded in a contemporary Urdu journal preserved by Kashmir Rechords, it claimed even one of the most distinguished rulers of nineteenth-century Jammu and Kashmir.

Sometimes history is rewritten not through grand discoveries, but through fragile newspapers, forgotten Urdu journals and fading advertisements that quietly survive the passage of time. Archives do not merely preserve history. They restore it.

Editor’s Note

The reference to diabetes (ذیابیطس) as the cause of Maharaja Ranbir Singh’s death is based on the October 1885 issue of Mir’at-ul-Hind, a contemporary Urdu periodical edited by Pandit Kishan Narayan. While many later historical works refer only to the Maharaja’s “prolonged illness,” this contemporary publication specifically identifies diabetes as the cause of death. Readers are encouraged to view this rare archival source alongside other historical records as part of the continuing effort to reconstruct the medical history of nineteenth-century Jammu and Kashmir.

THE ‘JKLF’ FILES: 1984

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THE ‘JKLF’ FILES: 1984
(An Exclusive Kashmir Rechords’ Archival Investigation)

Based on rare newspaper archives, Parliamentary records and contemporaneous reports.

History has an extraordinary way of resurfacing.Sometimes it emerges from forgotten government files. Sometimes from fading photographs. And sometimes, from yellowing newspaper pages that continue to ask uncomfortable questions long after the headlines have disappeared.

One such forgotten chapter lies buried in the archives of 1984, when Jammu & Kashmir witnessed one of the most sensational political controversies of its time—a controversy centred on the alleged links between the then Chief Minister Dr. Farooq Abdullah and leaders of the Kashmir Liberation Front (KLF), the organisation that later came to be widely known as the Jammu & Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) and was eventually banned in India under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

What transformed those allegations into a national political storm was not an intelligence report, nor a judicial inquiry.It was the persistence of a newspaper.

For nearly five months, Kashmir Times, the then most read and trusted newspaper, pursued the story with uncommon determination. Beginning with a categorical denial by Dr. Farooq Abdullah that he had ever met Amanullah Khan, one of the principal leaders of the ‘Kashmir Liberation Front’, the newspaper responded with a succession of reports, rare photographs, published captions, and documentary references that it said contradicted the Chief Minister’s public stand.

Farooq Abdullah, reportedly seen with `JKLF' leader Ammanullah Khan
Kashmir Times archive clipping regarding Farooq Abdullah controversy

Every denial was followed by another publication. Every explanation invited another question. Every photograph intensified the controversy.

Within weeks, what had begun as a newspaper investigation had travelled beyond the editorial pages of Jammu to the floor of the Indian Parliament, where members sought answers from the Union Government regarding the reports then circulating in the public domain.

More than four decades later, many of those very newspaper pages and photographs continue to survive in archives, private collections and research repositories.

For the first time, Kashmir Rechords reconstructs this extraordinary episode through the original reports that shaped one of the defining political controversies of 1984.

The Denial

The controversy began with an unequivocal public denial.

According to contemporaneous newspaper reports, Chief Minister Dr. Farooq Abdullah denied having ever met Amanullah Khan, described in the reports as the leader of the ‘Kashmir Liberation Front’.

Ordinarily, such a denial might have ended the matter.Instead, it became the beginning of one of the most remarkable investigative campaigns undertaken by a regional newspaper.

Rather than accepting the denial at face value, Kashmir Times turned to documentary material which it said had already appeared in newspapers published from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

Kashmir Times March 1984 archive clipping regarding Farooq Abdullah controversy
Kashmir Times, March 28, 1984.

The Photograph That Changed the Story

The newspaper’s first major report reproduced a photograph which, according to Kashmir Times, had originally appeared in the April 1982 issue of the Urdu newspaper Qaid, reportedly published from Muzaffarabad, Pakistan Occupied Kashmir.The accompanying report stated that the Urdu caption identified the image as “a memorable photograph” of Amanullah Khan, described as Editor of Voice of Kashmir.

A response from Kashmir Times to the denial of Farooq Abdullah

More significantly, the report asserted that the photograph showed Dr. Farooq Abdullah wearing a garland carrying the badge of the Kashmir Liberation Front.The newspaper argued that the photograph directly challenged the Chief Minister’s denial that he had ever met Amanullah Khan. For Kashmir Times, the story had only begun.

One Photograph Became Many

Far from retreating after publishing the first image, Kashmir Times continued its investigation. In subsequent editions, the newspaper reproduced additional photographs which it claimed had also appeared in publications from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

One report claimed that the photographs established what it described as Dr. Farooq Abdullah’s links with the ‘Kashmir Liberation Front’. The accompanying caption made even more serious assertions.

According to the report, one of the photographs showed Dr. Abdullah taking an oath of allegiance to the “struggle for independence of Kashmir” before leaders of the Kashmir Liberation Front during a visit to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The report identified those present as including Amanullah Khan and G.M. Mir, identified as Editor of Qaid, which the report described as a supporter of the ‘Liberation Front’.

These were extraordinary claims, prominently published by the newspaper and presented as evidence that, according to Kashmir Times, contradicted the Chief Minister’s public denials.

The Controversy Deepens

As the reports multiplied, so did the political controversy.

Kashmir Times published another strongly worded report under the headline “A Lie Has No Legs,” arguing that the Chief Minister’s explanations regarding the photographs and his visit had changed over time.

Kashmir Times, March 29, 1984.

The newspaper juxtaposed those explanations with the documentary material it had reproduced, contending that the contradictions themselves had become a matter of public concern.

The controversy was no longer confined to newspaper columns.It had become a national political issue.

From the Newsroom to Parliament

On 24 February 1984, the alleged Farooq Abdullah–KLF connection reached the Rajya Sabha.

Members questioned the Union Government regarding reports of Dr. Abdullah’s alleged contacts with leaders of the Kashmir Liberation Front during his stay in the United Kingdom.

A PTI report, carried by newspapers, regarding Farooq Abdullah’s alleged links with `JKLF’… February 24, 1984.

What had begun as a newspaper investigation had now entered the official proceedings of India’s Parliament.The issue was no longer merely political speculation.It had become a matter of national debate.

The Centre Enters the Picture

The controversy intensified further in June 1984.Reports quoting Central Government sources claimed that New Delhi possessed “definite evidence” relating to alleged links between Dr. Farooq Abdullah and extremist or pro-Pakistan elements.

Whether those claims were ultimately substantiated remains part of the larger historical debate. What is beyond dispute is that they reflected the rapidly deteriorating relationship between the Centre and the National Conference government in the months preceding the dramatic political developments of July 1984.

A Newspaper That Refused to Retreat

As pressure mounted, Dr. Farooq Abdullah accused Kashmir Times of conducting a campaign against him.The newspaper stood by its reports.

Maintaining that it was reproducing documentary material already available in published sources, it continued to publish further reports, photographs and questions relating to the controversy.

The confrontation became more than a dispute over photographs. It evolved into a defining contest between political authority and investigative journalism.

A Forgotten Chapter Revisited

Forty years later, the controversy has largely disappeared from public memory. The newspaper pages have yellowed. Many of the photographs survive only in fragile archives. Yet they continue to exist. They remain part of the documentary record of one of the most fiercely contested political episodes in the history of Jammu & Kashmir.

Whether one agrees with the conclusions drawn at the time or not, the reports, photographs, Parliamentary proceedings and official responses together form an important archival trail that deserves careful historical examination.

That is precisely what this Kashmir Rechords investigation sets out to do.

The Investigation Continues…

This is only the opening chapter of a comprehensive archival investigation.The complete dossier includes:

  • The original Kashmir Times reports published between February and June 1984.
  • Rare photographs reproduced during the controversy.
  • The complete chronology of the alleged Farooq Abdullah–KLF/JKLF controversy.
  • The original Qaid references and published captions.
  • The Rajya Sabha proceedings and Parliamentary questions.
  • The Centre’s “definite evidence” claim in context.
  • The political fallout that culminated in the events of July 1984.
  • High-resolution reproductions of rare newspaper pages with detailed historical analysis.

Support History. Preserve Archives

Investigations like these require months of locating forgotten newspapers, preserving fragile archives, verifying sources and reconstructing historical events from original documents.

Kashmir Rechords Foundation is committed to preserving this documentary heritage for future generations.If you value serious archival research—grounded in original sources rather than AI-generated narratives—and wish to support investigations that uncover forgotten histories, please consider making a contribution.Your support helps preserve history that might otherwise be lost forever. Contributors will receive access to the complete archival investigation, including all chapters, rare photographs and high-resolution newspaper reproductions.

If you found this investigation valuable, please consider making a contribution. Every contribution, no matter how small, helps preserve history for future generations. You may use our QR Code for the smallest contribution, you would like to make:

EDITORIAL DISCLAIMER

This investigation is an archival reconstruction based on contemporaneous newspaper reports, published photographs, Parliamentary proceedings and other historical records available in the public domain.

Kashmir Rechords reproduces and analyses these materials solely for historical, journalistic, educational and research purposes.

The reports, captions, photographs, statements and allegations discussed herein are presented as they were reported or published at the relevant time in 1984 and should be understood in their historical context. Their inclusion in this investigation should not be construed as an endorsement, verification or independent confirmation of every allegation or claim contained in those contemporaneous sources.This report seeks to document and preserve an important chapter of Jammu & Kashmir’s political history rather than to pronounce upon legal liability or historical guilt.

Copyright Notice

© Kashmir Rechords Foundation

All original research, compilation, chronology, annotations, editorial analysis, layouts and presentation are the intellectual property of Kashmir Rechords Foundation. Original newspaper pages remain subject to the rights, if any, of their respective publishers and are reproduced, as preserved, only for purposes of historical documentation, research, commentary and public interest in accordance with applicable law.

Unauthorized commercial reproduction of Kashmir Rechords’ original research, annotations, compilations and editorial work is prohibited without prior written permission.

‘Batta Loot’: When Kashmir’s Hindus became hidden victims on July 13, 1931

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‘Batta Loot’: When Kashmir’s Hindus became hidden victims on July 13, 1931
(Kashmir Rechords Research Desk)

For generations, July 13, 1931 has been commemorated in Kashmir largely through a single narrative—that of those killed outside the Central Jail in Srinagar. Yet, hidden beneath political slogans and official commemorations lies another story, one preserved in contemporary documents, official correspondence and one remarkable book published within months of the disturbances.

That story belongs to the Kashmiri Pandits and other Hindu minorities who became victims of one of the first large-scale communal attacks in twentieth-century Kashmir.

Among Kashmiri Pandits, the day came to be remembered not merely as the day of jail firing, but as ” Batta Loot”—the day when Pandit homes, shops, temples and livelihoods were systematically looted and destroyed.The expression itself is significant.

In Kashmiri, “Batta” means Kashmiri Pandit, while “Loot” literally means plunder. Thus, ‘Batta Loot‘ became the community’s own remembrance of a day marked by violence, fear and dispossession rather than martyrdom.

This forgotten chapter finds detailed documentation in G.S. Raghavan’s 1931 book Warning of Kashmir, a work that was not only circulated officially by the Jammu & Kashmir Government but was also distributed among various departments for record and reference. Official correspondence dated January, 25 1932 and May 6,1932, now preserved in archival records, shows that the Government itself considered the publication important enough to circulate among departments.

Archival government correspondence page from 1932 regarding the official circulation of the book Warning of Kashmir
Archival government correspondence page from 1932 regarding the official circulation of the book Warning of Kashmir

A Crisis Months in the Making

The disturbances of July 1931 did not emerge overnight.Throughout early 1931, communal tensions had steadily risen. Political grievances increasingly acquired a religious character, and inflammatory speeches began mobilising large crowds.

According to Raghavan, one figure assumed unusual prominence during this period—Abdul Qadeer, a cook attached to a European military officer visiting Kashmir from Peshawar.

Rather than being a native political leader of Kashmir, Qadeer became known through speeches which, according to contemporary accounts, openly challenged the authority of the Dogra State and invoked religious sentiment to mobilise crowds.

His arrest under Sections 124-A (sedition) and 153-A (promoting communal hatred) of the Indian Penal Code became the immediate trigger for subsequent events.

Front cover of the 1932 edition of the book Warning of Kashmir by G.S. Raghavan

July 13, 1931: The Jail Turns into a Flashpoint

Raghavan in his 1932 edition of the book mentions that on  July 13, 1931, thousands assembled outside the Central Jail in Srinagar where Abdul Qadeer’s trial was being held.

According to  his Warning of Kashmir, the gathering rapidly transformed into a violent assault. The crowd attempted to force entry into the prison. Police personnel were attacked with stones. Telephone lines were cut. Attempts were made to overpower the jail guards.

Warnings issued by the District Magistrate failed. Only after repeated attempts to disperse the gathering did police resort to firing. The official firing resulted in casualties among the protesters.

For decades, public memory largely stopped at this point.

Srinagar-central-jail-incident-1931.

Kashmir’s Hindu Localities Under Attack

One of the most striking aspects of Warning of Kashmir is its detailed description of what happened after the firing. Instead of dispersing, sections of the crowd moved into Srinagar’s commercial and residential Hindu localities.

Raghavan records that Maharaj Gunj, one of the Valley’s principal commercial centres dominated by Hindu traders, became a primary target.The violence spread from Bohri Kadal to Alikadal, continuing through Safakadal, Ganpatyar, and Nawakadal.

These were not isolated incidents. According to the contemporary account, the Hindu-owned shops were systematically looted. Books of account were burnt. Merchants were assaulted. Property worth lakhs of rupees was destroyed. Streets remained littered with looted goods and entire commercial establishments were devastated.

The author notes that not a single Muslim property owner reportedly approached the authorities with complaints of being looted, whereas Hindu commercial losses were extensive.This observation forms one of the strongest contemporary indicators that the violence assumed a distinctly communal character.

History need not choose one victim over another… a complete understanding of July 1931 requires acknowledging both the jail firing and the communal violence that followed.

Why Kashmiri Pandits Remember It as ‘Batta Loot’

Within the Pandit community, the events acquired an entirely different name.Batta Loot, the phrase did not emerge from political literature.It emerged from lived memory. Families remembered not speeches outside the jail, but flames engulfing their neighbourhoods.They remembered commercial establishments reduced to ashes.They remembered women and children hiding indoors.They remembered centuries-old businesses disappearing within hours.

For Kashmiri Pandits, July 13 became synonymous with organised plunder. The memory passed orally through generations long before it found renewed attention in archival research only recently.

Archival text snippet describing the atrocities and property damage in Vicharnag locality

Vicharnag: A Parallel Tragedy

While much attention centred upon Srinagar city, another horrific episode unfolded in Vicharnag, about six miles away.

According to  noted author Raghavan, some  organised groups entered the locality and committed widespread atrocities. The houses were looted, property destroyed, buildings burnt and  residents were assaulted. Military intervention eventually dispersed the attackers, but only after significant damage had already occurred.

This demonstrates that the disturbances extended well beyond spontaneous rioting and affected multiple Hindu settlements across the Valley.

The economic consequences proved devastating. Unlike ordinary theft, the burning of account books destroyed commercial memory itself—debts, credits and business relationships accumulated over decades vanished overnight.For many traders, rebuilding became nearly impossible.

Political Agitation and External Mobilisation

Raghavan further argues that the disturbances quickly became part of a wider political campaign.

Within days, All India Kashmir Muslim  Committee emerged to mobilise opinion across British India .Public meetings were organised. Resolutions were passed. “Kashmir Day” was observed elsewhere.

While political mobilisation expanded nationally, the suffering of the Hindu victims inside Kashmir gradually disappeared from wider discussion.

The narrative shifted almost entirely towards those killed in the jail firing, leaving the subsequent communal violence largely undocumented in public memory.

Officially Circulated Book Later Forgotten

One remarkable aspect of this history is that Warning of Kashmir was never a clandestine publication. Official correspondence reproduced in surviving archives shows that copies were supplied to the Development Department, departments acknowledged receipt. Additional copies were formally requested as Government considered the book useful enough for official circulation.

The preface itself states that the author’s purpose was not polemics but “an unadorned statement of truth” based upon available evidence and official records.

Yet after Independence and the changing political landscape, the work gradually disappeared from mainstream historical discourse.

Preface text from G.S. Raghavan's book

Recovering a Forgotten Memory

Recognising the suffering of Kashmiri Pandits on July 13, 1931 does not diminish the deaths that occurred outside the Central Jail.

History need not choose one victim over another.However, a complete understanding of July 1931 requires acknowledging both the jail firing and the communal violence that followed.

The tragedy of  ‘Batta Loot‘ reminds us that ordinary civilians—shopkeepers, traders, families and neighbourhoods—paid an immense price during those disturbances. Ignoring that experience leaves the historical record incomplete.

The events of July 13, 1931 altered Kashmir’s political history, but they also scarred its social fabric.For Kashmiri Pandits, it became  Batta Loot—a day remembered not for political symbolism but for the organised destruction of homes, businesses and lives.

Nearly a century later, rare official correspondence and G.S. Raghavan’s Warning of Kashmir invite historians to revisit this neglected chapter with scholarly objectivity rather than inherited political narratives.

History achieves its greatest value not when it reinforces established myths, but when it restores forgotten truths. Only by acknowledging the full scope of human suffering can the story of July 13, 1931 be understood in its complete historical context.

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‘Please Come at Once’: Rare 1946 letters reveal Kashmiri Hindus’ urgent appeals to Sardar Patel

Kashmir Rechords
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‘Please Come at Once’: Rare 1946 letters reveal Kashmiri Hindus’ urgent appeals to Sardar Patel
(Kashmir Rechords Exclusive Research Report)

Two rare handwritten letters preserved in the National Archives of India have brought to light a largely forgotten chapter in the political history of pre-Independence Kashmir. Written on 29 and 30 May 1946, at the height of Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah’s Quit Kashmir Movement, the letters reveal the growing apprehensions of sections of the Kashmiri Hindu community and their desperate appeals to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel for guidance and intervention.

Penned just a day apart by two separate organisations in Srinagar, the documents demonstrate that concern over the political developments in Kashmir was not confined to a handful of individuals but was shared by organised sections of Kashmiri Hindu society. One appeal came from the All Kashmir Hindu Students Federation Sharika Bhawan, Shital Nath Srinagar, while the other was submitted by the Hindu Youths Association, Purshyar, Srinagar.

Together, these documents, assessed by Kashmir Rechords,  offer an invaluable primary source for understanding how sections of the minority community viewed the rapidly unfolding events in Kashmir months before India’s Independence and Partition.

Urgent Appeal from Kashmiri Students

The first letter, dated 29 May 1946, was written on the official letterhead of the All Kashmir Hindu Students Federation, functioning from Sharika Bhawan, Shital Nath, Srinagar. Bearing the motto “Discipline – Struggle – Independence,” the letter was signed by Lachmi Narayan Dhar, President of the Federation.

Please come at once. Matter is very serious” — All Kashmir Hindu Students Federation, May 29, 1946

Addressed to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, as “ Dear Sardar Saheb’’, the brief communication paints a grim picture of the prevailing atmosphere in Kashmir.

The student leader describes the agitation in Kashmir as having assumed alarming proportions and alleges that the situation was being misrepresented by sections of the nationalist press. He warns that the Hindu community had come under threat and implores Patel to intervene personally.

The concluding sentence captures the urgency of the moment:-‘Please come at once. Matter is very serious‘

The appeal reflects the confidence that young Kashmiri Hindus placed in Patel’s leadership during one of the most volatile periods in the State’s political history.

‘We Are Not Foolish’

The very next day, on 30 May 1946, another communication reached Patel.

This far more detailed memorandum was submitted by the Secretary, Hindu Youths Association, Purshyar, Srinagar.

Unlike the students’ appeal, the memorandum attempts to explain the political thinking of the Kashmiri Hindu community. It emphatically states that the community was not opposed to representative government.

In one of its most striking observations, the writers declare that they were “not foolish” and were living in the twentieth century, fully aware of democratic ideals and political progress. Their concern, they explain, was not democracy itself but the absence of safeguards for a vulnerable minority in a communally sensitive environment.

The memorandum, therefore, asks Patel to suggest the “right course of action” for Kashmiri Hindus  and other minorities at a time when the State’s political future appeared increasingly uncertain.

A portion of the handwritten letter from the All Kashmir Hindu Students Federation to Sardar Patel, dated May 29, 1946.

The Shadow of 1931

A recurring theme in the memorandum is the memory of the communal disturbances of 1931.

The writers remind Patel that the minority community had suffered during those events and assert that the wounds had not yet healed. They argue that those experiences could not simply be ignored while discussing constitutional reforms or representative government.

For the authors, the events of 1931 remained a living political reality rather than a closed chapter of history.

This reference is particularly significant because it demonstrates how deeply those events continued to influence the political outlook of Kashmiri Hindus fifteen years later.

Strong Reservations About Sheikh Abdullah

The memorandum also contains unusually candid remarks about Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, then leading the Quit Kashmir Movement against Maharaja Hari Singh’s government.

The writers describe Abdullah as a “colour changing man,” expressing distrust of what they perceived as his shifting political positions. They warn Patel that slogans of revolution and popular mobilisation should not obscure the legitimate concerns of minorities.

Whether historians agree with these assessments or not, the document provides a rare insight into how sections of Kashmiri Hindus perceived Sheikh Abdullah at a crucial moment in Kashmir’s political evolution.

A portion of the handwritten letter from Hindu Youths Association, Srinagar to Sardar Patel, dated May 30,1946.

A Reference to Jawaharlal Nehru

Equally noteworthy is  May 30, 1946 memorandum’s reference to Jawaharlal Nehru.

The writers caution Patel about what they describe as the “hasty type of judgments of Jawahar.”

Although the memorandum does not elaborate, the remark appears to reflect the differing perceptions within sections of Kashmiri Hindu society regarding Nehru’s support for Sheikh Abdullah during the Quit Kashmir agitation.

Why Patel?

Both organisations chose to write not to the British authorities or the Maharaja’s administration but directly to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

This choice itself is revealing.

It suggests that these organisations regarded Patel as a leader capable of understanding their anxieties and offering impartial advice during a period of political uncertainty.  This also mean that the student leaders’ might have also been in touch with Sardar Patel earlier also.Their appeals were not merely complaints; they were requests for guidance from a national leader in whom they reposed considerable trust.

The Silence of History

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of these documents is what they do not reveal.

The archival material presently available in the National Archives of India does not indicate what action, if any, Sardar Patel took after receiving these appeals. Nor does it reveal whether he visited Kashmir in response to the repeated requests or communicated his views to the organisations concerned.

Windows into a Forgotten Moment

These letters are neither retrospective memoirs nor political commentaries written years after the event. They are contemporary communications, written in real time by individuals living through one of the most consequential periods in Kashmir’s modern history.

Their significance lies not in establishing the correctness of any political position but in  presenting  the contemporary perceptions, fears and aspirations of a section of Kashmiri society at a pivotal historical moment.

As primary sources, they enrich our understanding of the political climate surrounding the Quit Kashmir Movement and remind us that the debate over Kashmir’s future involved multiple voices, many of which have remained unheard in mainstream historical narratives.

Nearly eight decades later, these fragile handwritten appeals continue to speak across time—not because they settle historical debates, but because they illuminate the concerns of those who feared that their voices might otherwise be lost to history.

Editor’s Note

The documents reproduced in this article are preserved in the National Archives of India. The views expressed in these letters are those of their authors and are presented here as historical primary source material. Kashmir Rechords reproduces archival documents to facilitate research and encourage a fuller understanding of Jammu and Kashmir’s complex historical record.

Beyond Girija Tickoo and Sarla Bhat: The forgotten women victims of militancy in Kashmir

Kashmir Rechords
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Beyond Girija Tickoo and Sarla Bhat: The forgotten women victims of militancy in Kashmir
(Kashmir Rechords Exclusive Report)

Whenever the subject of women who fell victim to militancy in Kashmir is discussed, two names invariably dominate the public discourse—Girija Tickoo and Sarla Bhat. Their horrifying murders have become enduring symbols of the brutality that accompanied the early years of insurgency. Renewed public attention following cinematic portrayals and recent legal developments, including the filing of a chargesheet against Yasin Malik in the Sarla Bhat murder case, has once again brought these tragedies into national focus.

Their stories unquestionably deserve to be remembered, documented and retold.Yet, the history of Kashmir’s conflict is far larger than two names.

Behind these widely known narratives lies a long and painful list of women—both Kashmiri Pandits and Kashmiri Muslims—whose lives were brutally cut short by militant violence but whose stories have gradually faded from public memory. Many never became national headlines. Many survived only in fading newspaper reports preserved in archives. Others continue to exist solely in the memories of grieving families.

An honest chronicle of Kashmir’s troubled past must strive to restore every innocent victim to history, irrespective of religion, region or political persuasion. Justice begins with remembrance. Whether it is Prana Ganjoo, Pitti Kaul, Afroza, Rukhsana, or numerous others whose names rarely find mention in public discourse, every innocent life deserves equal dignity in history.

When staying back became a Death Sentence

For the Kashmiri Pandit community, the winter of 1989–90 marked the beginning of one of the darkest chapters in its modern history.

Targeted killings, threats, intimidation and fear forced hundreds of thousands of Kashmiri Pandits to leave the Valley between late 1989 and the early months of 1990, abandoning homes, businesses, temples, educational institutions and ancestral properties built over generations.

Not every family, however, chose to leave. Some believed the violence would eventually subside. Others simply could not imagine abandoning the land where their ancestors had lived for centuries. Many elderly residents lacked the means or the will to migrate. Some trusted their friends and neighbours.

For several of them, that decision proved fatal.

Prof Ganjoo and Mrs Ganjoo story in Kashmir Times
Daily Excelsior news making mention of Ganjoo couple killing

Tragic end of  Ganjoo Couple

Among those who chose to remain were Professor K.L. Ganjoo, serving in Government Agricultural College, Wadoora Sopore and his wife Prana (Prerna) Ganjoo of Sopore.

Despite the deteriorating security situation and the mass migration taking place around them, the couple stayed back in their homeland.Their faith was repaid with unimaginable brutality.

On 6 May 1990, according to contemporary newspaper reports preserved in the archives of Kashmir Rechords, the bodies of Professor Ganjoo and his wife, kidnapped two days ago,  were recovered from the banks of the River Jhelum near a temple that today itself stands neglected and desecrated. As was often the case during those turbulent months, combing operations and house-to-house searches followed, but yielded no meaningful results.Justice never arrived.

Dolly: A  teenager whose story was forgotten

The same day witnessed another tragedy. The body of Dolly, a 16-year-old girl, bearing bullet injuries, was recovered from Karan Nagar in Srinagar.

16 year old victim, Dolly
A teenager who was also not spared by militants

Like so many other killings from that period, her death disappeared into obscurity. No known investigation reached its logical conclusion, and the case never entered the national consciousness.Her name remains largely absent from discussions on Kashmir’s violent past.

Pitti Kaul: Even age offered no protection

The murder of Pitti Kaul, an elderly Kashmiri Pandit woman, stands as another reminder of the indiscriminate nature of militant violence. She too had chosen to remain in Kashmir after much of her community had migrated.

On  November 7,  1990, militants entered her home at Mandir Bagh Srinagar  and shot her dead. Her age offered no protection. Her attachment to her ancestral home ultimately cost her life.

Today, outside a handful of archival references and family memories, her story remains virtually forgotten.

10th Day kriya of Pitti Kaul

Other forgotten women lost to violence

The archival record also documents the killing of another Mrs. Ganjoo from Bana Mohalla, Srinagar, whose body was recovered with multiple bullet injuries during 1990.

Similarly, local newspapers carried the photograph of Mrs. Roopawati of Pulwama, another  Kashmiri Pandit woman reportedly killed in cold blood during the insurgency. These names seldom appear in contemporary discussions, despite once occupying newspaper columns that chronicled Kashmir’s daily descent into violence.Their stories deserve careful historical documentation before they disappear altogether.

Victims of terrorism
Victims of Terrorism

Beyond Sarla Bhat and Girija Tickoo

The murder of Sarla Bhat, a young nurse abducted and killed in April 1990, demonstrated that even humanitarian service offered no protection against militant violence.

Likewise, the gruesome killing of Girija Tickoo has rightly become one of the most widely remembered atrocities committed against Kashmiri Pandit women.

Both cases occupy an important place in the historical record. However, their prominence should not unintentionally overshadow the many other women whose names seldom find space in history books, judicial discourse or public memory.

Sarla-Bhat-and-Girija-Tickoo.

Collectively, these forgotten stories reveal a grim reality: for many who remained in Kashmir during those turbulent months, daily life became an existence lived under constant fear, where simply staying in one’s ancestral home could prove fatal.

Kashmiri Muslim women were also victims of Militancy

Militant violence in Kashmir was not confined to one community alone. Over the years, many innocent Kashmiri Muslim women were also murdered by militant groups. Their alleged offences varied—from being accused of informing security forces, refusing to obey militant diktats, continuing their professional duties, participating in democratic institutions, belonging to political families, or simply becoming victims of targeted attacks.

Among the documented cases is Naseema Bano, who was reportedly killed after militants accused her of acting as a police informer.

Shameema Akhtar was murdered because she continued teaching despite militant warnings and diktats.

Asiya Jan, associated with grassroots democratic institutions following the revival of Panchayati Raj, was among several women targeted by militants.

Woman victim of militancy

Over the years, numerous women related to Special Police Officers (SPOs), Village Defence Committee members, political workers and surrendered militants also lost their lives or sustained grievous injuries in targeted attacks.

These women, too, deserve remembrance within any comprehensive account of Kashmir’s conflict.

Recovering Forgotten Histories

During the preparation of this archival series, Kashmir Rechords made repeated efforts to contact the families of both Kashmiri Pandit and Kashmiri Muslim women who lost their lives to militant violence.

Many families, understandably, preferred silence. Others could not be traced after decades of displacement and upheaval.

Consequently, this article has been prepared primarily from contemporary newspaper archives preserved by Kashmir Rechords, supplemented by  some material available in the public domain.

Several rare photographs accompanying this series have remained unpublished for decades.

Justice Begins with Memory

Public memory often remembers only those tragedies that receive sustained media attention, judicial intervention or cinematic representation.

Countless others remain confined to fading newspaper cuttings, forgotten police files, family albums and private grief.

History should not become selective. The worth of an innocent human life cannot be measured by the volume of media coverage it receives or the political attention it attracts.Every documented victim deserves to be remembered with equal dignity.

The purpose of documenting these forgotten stories is neither to create a hierarchy of suffering nor to diminish the pain of any community.Rather, it is to ensure that the historical record reflects the full human cost of militancy in Kashmir. To remember them is not just an act of looking back; it is a refusal to let violence have the final word on who they were.

When Yasin Malik was declared ‘Dead’ twice in April 1990!

Kashmir Rechords
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When Yasin Malik was declared ‘Dead’ twice in April 1990!
(Kashmir Rechords Exclusive)

Few episodes from Kashmir’s turbulent past are as astonishing as this one. Twice in April 1990, newspapers declared Yasin Malik dead. Four months later, he was arrested alive!

Thirty-six years later, as the public demands the harshest punishment for Yasin Malik’s role in terrorist violence and the Special Investigation Team (SIT) has filed over 700-page chargesheet in the murder of Sarla Bhat, this extraordinary contradiction hidden in Jammu Kashmir’s newspaper archives deserves renewed attention.

Among the thousands of newspapers painstakingly preserved by Kashmir Rechords Foundation lies one of the most intriguing mysteries of the early militancy era.

Declared Dead—Not Once, But Twice

The first report appeared in the 9 April 1990 edition of The Kashmir Times.

Kashmir Times April 9 1990 front page report claiming Yasin Malik killed

Quoting official security sources, the newspaper reported that security forces had killed the so-called “Commander-in-Chief” of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), Yasin Malik, and another militant during an operation in Srinagar. Several other militants were also reported to have been arrested. Simultaneously, almost identical news was carried by another leading J&K newspaper–Daily Excelsior on the same day!

Daily Excelsior News Dateline April 9, 1990, killing Yasin Malik first time and repeating the same on August 18, 1990.

Nine days later, on April 18, 1990, history appeared to repeat itself.

Both Daily Excelsior and The Kashmir Times once again carried front-page reports, again quoting official security sources, claiming that Yasin Malik had been killed. The reports stated that several senior JKLF commanders had either been arrested or eliminated during security operations, and Yasin Malik’s name once again figured among those reported dead.Not once.But twice.

Yasin Malik claimed killed in 1990, on April 17.
Yasin Malik reported dead Daily Excelsior April 1990

The reports carried all the hallmarks of authenticity. They relied on official briefings issued at a time when militancy was rapidly engulfing the Valley and newspapers depended heavily on information released by the security establishment.

When Newspapers Declared Yasin Malik dead---second time
When Yasin Malik was `killed' on April 17, 1990

The August Plot Twist: Arrested Alive

Barely four months later came a stunning reversal.

On 7 August 1990, the same newspapers carried another prominent front-page story announcing what was described as a “major breakthrough.”

This time, Yasin Malik and dreaded JKLF Deputy Commander-in-Chief Hamid Sheikh were reported to have been arrested alive during security operations in Srinagar. Their photographs accompanied the reports.

The contradiction was impossible to ignore.

How did a man who had been officially reported dead twice in April 1990 suddenly reappear alive in August, 1990? The question has remained unanswered for more than three decades.

Kashmir Times August 1990 Yasin Malik arrest headline

Sarla Bhat’s murder received barely a passing mention

The irony becomes even more striking when these editions are read alongside another tragedy unfolding at the same time.

On April, 18 1990, while newspapers prominently carried the story of Yasin Malik’s alleged death for the second time, Sarla Bhat, a young Kashmiri Pandit nurse, was abducted and brutally murdered by terrorists on the same day.

The irony is tragic: the very week official briefings vacillated on whether Yasin Malik was dead or alive, nurse Sarla Bhat was silenced forever.

When newspapers reported the incident in their 20 April 1990 editions, her murder occupied only a few lines, without the outrage, sustained attention or prominence that such a horrific crime deserved. Like countless other targeted killings during those violent months, her murder quickly disappeared from the headlines.

Sarla Bhat murder newspaper report 1990
Few lines for Sarla Bhat murder

Justice, however, did not.It merely took thirty-six years to begin moving again.

Recently, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) filed a chargesheet running into more than 700 pages, alleging that Sarla Bhat was murdered on the directions of Yasin Malik—the very man who had been declared dead twice in newspaper reports earlier that same month before later being arrested alive.

The sequence of events makes the archival record all the more compelling.

Forgotten Sarla Bhat murder

Media Failure or Intelligence Tactics? Who Got It Wrong

The preserved newspaper clippings do not, by themselves, indict the newspapers. Both Daily Excelsior and The Kashmir Times clearly attributed the reports to official security sources.

That raises several important questions. Was it an intelligence failure? Was it part of a psychological warfare strategy intended to create confusion within militant ranks by spreading reports of a senior commander’s death?

Or was it simply a consequence of the chaos that defined Kashmir in the spring of 1990, when rumours, intelligence inputs and official briefings often outpaced independent verification?

There is another possibility that cannot be ignored. The media of that era functioned under convenient compromise or extraordinary pressure, operating amid curfews, censorship concerns, targeted killings and collapsing communication systems. Much of what appeared in print originated from official briefings, leaving little room for independent verification. Whether journalists were merely reproducing official information or whether competing narratives were being shaped through selective leaks remains a subject worthy of deeper historical research.

Whatever the explanation, the preserved editions of Daily Excelsior and The Kashmir Times, now part of the archival holdings of Kashmir Rechords Foundation, remind us why newspapers are more than yesterday’s news.They are historical evidence. They preserve not only events but also contradictions, unanswered questions and narratives that demand fresh scrutiny decades later.

Sometimes history is not rewritten by new discoveries. Sometimes, it is rediscovered in old newspapers.

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