SRINAGAR: Kashmir Pandit Sangarsh Samiti president Sanjay Tickoo was shifted by the police to a safer place in the wake of the killings of three civilians, including a fellow Kashmiri Pandit, last week.
It is for the first time in 30 years of militancy that Tickoo, 53, was moved to a safe location on threat perception. The KPSS president, who is among the few Kashmir Pandits not to leave the Kashmir Valley even after at the height of the militancy in 1990s, was shifted to safer place after the assassination of prominent Kashmir Pandit businessman Makhan Lal Bindroo on October 5, sources said.
Tickoo asserted that the majority community was still in silent mode. “They should come forward and lend support to the minority community. It will instill confidence among the minority community and create a sense of security among them.” The recent targeted killings have led to fear and uncertainty among the Pandits, he added.
After the killing of Bindroo, a Sikh principal, a Hindu teacher and a street vendor from Bihar by militants last week, many Pandits families and those who had taken up jobs under the PM’s job package have left the Valley. The KPSS president welcomed announcements by some mosques which urged the majority community to stand with the minorities.
“It is a welcome sign but these announcements should be made from mosques across the Valley. I have appealed to the masjid committees that after Friday prayers, they should give some time to stress upon the value and importance of the Kashmiri society with respect to social and moral security of the minorities living in the Valley.” According to him, the messages from mosques would generate a hope of understanding and community bonding and allow the minorities to come out of fear in the Valley.