WASHINGTON: The Kashmiri Pandit community here has strongly condemned the recent targeted killings of civilians in the Valley by the militants and urged the Indian government to take steps to ensure the safety of the minorities there.
The community organised a two-day event at the popular National Mall where participants said that targeted killings have been especially gruesome, and the home-grown terrorist insurgency remains dependent on resources and inspiration from Pakistan.
"The killings of the minorities by the Pakistan-based terrorist in the Kashmir Valley needs to be stopped, said Dr. Shakun Malik, a Kashmiri Pandit activist from Washington DC area. Indian Govt must take steps to ensure the safety of local minorities of Kashmir valley who remain targets for the future," she said.
Eleven civilians, including two teachers, a pharmacy owner and five non-local labourers, have been killed by militants in separate attacks in the valley this month.
In a press release, the community said that the murder of Makhan Lal Bindroo has "brought back the tragic memories of the 1990s, when more than half a million indigenous Kashmiris were forced leave their lives in the Kashmir valley.
Bindroo, a prominent Kashmiri Pandit and owner of Srinagar's most famous pharmacy, was shot dead at his shop earlier this month.
Organised on the grounds of the National Mall here, the event coincided with October 22 as on this day in 1947, Pakistan invaded the Jammu and Kashmir as part of 'Operation Gulmarg', aimed at conquering Jammu and Kashmir on the basis that the region has a Muslim majority.
"Pakistan continues its proxy war with India via border infiltration in Kashmir," the release added.