How many Kashmiri Pandits are left?

Some emigrated to other countries entirely. By 2011, only an estimated 2,700-3,400 Pandits remained in the Kashmir Valley. According to Indian government, more than 60,000 families are registered as Kashmiri migrants including some Sikh and Muslim families.

How many Kashmiri Pandits drive out of Kashmir?

20\% of Pandits left the Kashmir valley between 1947 and 1950, fearing uncertainty and decline in the wake of land reforms of 1950. Many scholars estimate 100,000 to have left in the 1990s; some sources estimate the number to be 150,000, 190,000, and even 300,000.

Will Kashmir’s Hindu Pandits return?

30 years after they were forced to flee, the return of Hindu Pandits to the Kashmir Valley remains a distant dream. An Indian paramilitary soldier takes a selfie as Kashmiri Hindu devotees known as “pandits” offer prayers during the annual festival at the Kheer Bhawani temple in Tul Mul, outskirts of Srinagar, India, June 20, 2018.

Why did the Kashmiri Pandit Exodus start?

It was on that day 30 years ago that the Pandit exodus from the Kashmir Valley began. Threats from Islamist militants in the Valley forced around 70,000 Pandit families comprising over 350,000 women, men, and children to flee their homes in the weeks and months that followed.

Who are the Kashmiri Brahmins?

Kashmiri Pandits or Kashmiri Brahmins are Hindus. A highly literate community, they were disproportionately represented in the Kashmir bureaucracy as well as in the teaching, legal, and medical professions, prompting resentment among other communities in the Valley, especially Muslims, who comprise over 95 percent of the population.

Will Article 370 be revoked in Jammu and Kashmir?

With the Indian government revoking Article 370 of the constitution in August 2019, Jammu and Kashmir has been deprived of its special status of limited autonomy. Pandits have generally been in favor of Kashmir’s closer integration with India.