About 2000 Pandits perform pooja in town temple

Srinagar, Jun 16: About 2000 Kashmiri pandits, from within the valley and outside, today performed pooja on the birth anniversary of Bhagwan Gopi Nath in a historic temple on the bank of river Jhelum in the old city, once the hub of militants.

Emotional scenes were witnessed when muslim residents of the Kharyar Habba Kadal area in the old city greeted the Kashmiri Pandits who had come from Jammu and other cities to join the pooja in the temple.

''The Birth anniversary of Bhagwan Gopi Nath provided us an opportunity to visit our roots once again,'' said a group of Pandits who are visiting the valley for the first after their migration in early 1990s.

Makhan Lal, a resident of nearby Banamohalla, said he was delighted to meet his Muslim neighbours and have bath in the river Jhelum once again during his lifetime.

Mr Lal, 74, said he had given up the hope to visit Kashmir once again before his death.

Another elderly Pandit Jagar Nath said those who migrated from here had everything but not peace of mind. ''We always recall our associations with Muslim brethren and the morning and evening rush of people in the old city roads, particularly Habba Kadal,'' he added.

We prayed for early restoration of peace in the Kashmir valley so that Kashmiri Pandits and Muslims who had to migrate for one or the other reason, could return back to their homes,'' he added.

Mr Nath said they felt sad after hearing the death of some youth of the area in the violence. We also miss some elderly men and women of the area who had died during all these 17 years, he added.

Similarly, the Muslims of the area, who had come to greet them on the occasion, also felt sad after they were told about the death of Pandits outside.

Mr Sapru, who remained in the valley when almost entire Pandit community migrated from here, said he and other non-migrant pandits started performing pooja in the temple since 1998. However, this time it was observed in a big way as a large number of Pandits, presently living in different parts of the country, also participated.

UNI