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‘No threat to Dogras’ — Kashmir Hindu teacher killed was scared but ‘told to resume duty’

Hindus accuse the J&K govt of turning a deaf ear to their requests for leaves and urgent transfers to safer areas; Kulgam chief education officer says 'never denied leaves'

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Anantnag, Shopian, Pulwama: Eighteen days before her death, Rajni Bala, the teacher from Jammu and Kashmir’s Dogra community who was shot by militants on 31 May, had written to the chief education officer of Kulgam district, seeking an urgent transfer from her post and, in the meantime, leave till the situation improved in the Valley.

The 36-year-old from Samba district was posted in a government high school in Kulgam’s Gopalpora village. Her husband, Raj Kumar, also from Samba, was posted in another government school within Kulgam. In her letter to the chief education officer, Bala had mentioned “fear and insecurity” as reasons for her transfer and leave request.

Raj Kumar has blamed the administration for turning a “deaf ear” to their requests and delaying her transfer. After a long phase of alleged inaction on the administration’s part and repeated requests, both Bala and Kumar had received their transfer letters — 31 May was supposed to be their last day in Gopalpora.

Kulgam CEO Mohammad Ashraf Rather has denied Kumar’s allegations. “I never denied them leave,” he told ThePrint.

Bala and Kumar are among the multitude of minority community government employees in the Valley who have been seeking leaves or transfers from their current postings citing security threat as reason.

Kashmir is once again witnessing a fresh spate of killings. In what seem to be ‘targeted attacks’, 18 civilians have been killed so far by militants, including one Kashmiri Pandit government employee Rahul Bhat. Members of various political parties have condemned the killings of Hindu persons, including those employed under the Prime Minister’s rehabilitation package. The families facing the wrath of the militants on the ground say they don’t only feel betrayed by their government but are also facing harassment at their hands.

On 30 May, two Kashmiri Pandits, Vivek Koul and Ashwini Pandita, who were shifted from Srinagar to Kupwara district’s rural development department on 21 May, were served notices by their block development officer. In the letter, the two employees, who had stopped reporting to work after Rahul Bhat’s death, were allegedly warned of “stern action” if they didn’t resume duties immediately.

Speaking to ThePrint, Bala’s husband Raj Kumar, said: “This government and its authorities don’t care for us at all. They just want votes in our names, and then they let us die.”


Also read: Slain school teacher’s husband blames J&K authorities as requests for transfer fell on ‘deaf ears’


In the thick of it

Bala’s death sparked a wave of outrage among Hindus, especially government employees living in the Valley, resulting in protests and demands to be relocated to safer areas outside Kashmir.

Kumar and Bala were among 250-odd Hindus employed by the government in Kulgam district. But Bala was the only one who was posted in a school in one of the most far-flung villages of South Kashmir. Raj Kumar holds the authorities responsible for his wife’s death.

“Rajni and I had been requesting a transfer. After Rahul Bhat was killed on 12 May, we didn’t go to our school for two days and requested Rajni’s headmaster to send her on leave until the situation improved,” Kumar said.

“The headmaster told us that they cannot grant leaves to a person unless permitted by a higher authority. We then wrote a letter to the Chief Education Officer of Kulgam, Mohammad Ashraf Rather, but he too denied our request, saying that there is no security threat to the Dogras, it’s the Kashmiri Pandits [who are in danger], so we don’t need to take leave and must resume duty. So, we obeyed the orders and then we all know what happened. My wife was mercilessly killed by militants inside the premises of the school and nobody could do anything. I feel the authorities are responsible for her death.”

Kulgam CEO Mohammad Ashraf Rather denied refusing Bala’s request for leave. “When Rajni Bala and her husband and other people from the minority association came to meet me, I gave them full liberty to take leave until they felt secure. I told them they can change their timings of going to school or they can go on a leave,” he told ThePrint.

After speaking to Kashmiri Pandit government employees living in the transit camp of Vessu in Anantnag, ThePrint learnt that these employees had been served show cause notices and even their salaries had been held back for months after they stopped stepping out for work due to security threat after the spate of killings last year.

After seven civilians were killed in October 2021, including a Kashmiri Pandit, a Sikh school principal in Srinagar, and two non-local Hindus, fear had gripped the valley, especially non-locals and Kashmiri Pandits. During the same time, a notice, that ThePrint has access to, was served to six Kashmiri Pandits employed with the roads and building (R&B) department in Baramulla district for not reporting to work and their salaries for the month of October were not disbursed.

Later that month, the executive engineer of the R&B department wrote a letter to the superintendent engineer, intimating them of the security reasons due to which the minority community employees couldn’t come to office. Only then were they given their salaries.

In November 2021, office of the district social welfare officer, Anantnag, sent a notice to 26 Kashmiri Pandit employees employed in the department, warning them of strict action if they don’t resume duties.

One of the Kashmiri Pandit employees who was served this letter told ThePrint, on condition of anonymity, that their salaries were stopped for two months and released only after they protested and the targeted killings of Kashmiri Pandits in the valley garnered international coverage.

Later that month, the district information and public relations office withdrew the letter. ThePrint has seen the note of withdrawal.

ThePrint reached Pandurang K. Pole, Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, by phone. The report will be updated with his response.

An earlier version of the report erroneously mentioned that Kumar and Bala were rehabilitated in Kashmir as part of the Prime Minister’s special employment scheme. The error is regretted.

(Edited by Zinnia Ray Chaudhuri)


Also read: 26 Kashmiri Pandits who fled Valley after killings ‘get notice to rejoin work or face action’


 

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