Muslim Neighbours

where Khan grew up and still lives there in his mid-sixties. The locality was an example of communal harmony and brotherhood for decades. It was a place where Bhajans and hymns in temples and sermons and Azaans in Masjids would rent the air.

However, in the early nineties, the soothing music of devotional songs was replaced by gunshots as terror activities picked up.

January 19 marks the day of the exodus of the Kashmiri Pandit community from the region, driven out of their homeland following the outbreak of terrorism in the Valley.

“We used to live together, eat together. In fact, we still are living here with our Pandit brothers. There’s no difference. We are living happily. On one side of this lane, there’s a temple and on the other side, there’s a mosque. We are all humans. Anyone who hurts a person hurts the entire humanity,” says Khan.

Recalling the proverbial good old times, he says that the KPs and Muslims shared a strong bond of love and respect for each other.

“In earlier times, we would be carefree. We used to visit temples on festivals. They used to come to greet us. We really miss them,” he adds.

The exodus day is a significant day that commemorates the forced displacement of the Kashmiri Pandit community from the Kashmir Valley. It serves as a reminder of the hardships and challenges faced by the community during that time.

Among a handful of KPs living in Srinagar is Sunil who stayed back on the reassurance of his Muslim neighbours. He refuses to give in to terror threats.

“I have been living here since my birth. We did not leave our motherland or migrate