A poignant docu-memoir on the Sikhs of Kashmir | Joydip Ghosal

BOOK REVIEW

Those Who Stayed, The Sikhs of Kashmir
by Bupinder Singh Bali

Manjul Publishing House Pvt Ltd
2024, 308 pages
ISBN-10 ? : ? 9355436297
ISBN-13 ? : ? 978-9355436290

Those Who Stayed, The Sikhs of Kashmir by Bupinder Singh Bali is a poignant narrative on the Sikhs of Kashmir. In this deeply personal saga, he interweaved their past, present and future which stared at deep abyss of uncertainty. In mainstream media and literature, these people were often neglected and they remained in oblivion. The author attempted to offer a deeply human perspective on the community through this book. The ordeal of this community remained undocumented. They faced scourge of terrorism, persecution, and brutalities. Despite that, they chose to stay in the homeland. They fought with the dilemma of whether to leave or not to leave. That dilemma stayed with the readers of the book also. Khushwant Singh, the author and former State Information Commissioner rightly said that no one knew their condition except those residing there. The minority narrative in Kashmir centred around the mass migration of Kashmiri Pandits. That had found a place in movies and popular literature. But the misery and predicament of Kashmiri Sikhs had been swept under the carpet. The author undertook this daunting task to bring into public domain the account of Sikhs.

Bupinder Singh Bali is a native of Kashmir. He belongs to micro- minority Sikh community. He is associated with UNIverse journal and Masters Review. He was shortlisted as a finalist in the Times of India’s Write India Stories. He was also long-listed for the World Nomads International Travel Writing Scholarship 2020. Several of his works have been published in The Week, The Delacorte Review, The Antihumanist.

In this docu- memoir he adeptly amalgamated documented and oral histories. Through survivor testimonies, reportage, personal anecdotes the author brought to the fore how these micro-minority had been confronting existential threats in a strife-torn region.

According to the author those who were born in 1970s and 1980s had a completely different perspective of the situation. Their lives were spent in strikes and curfews. Their souls bore an everlasting trauma. That pain remained etched in their hearts. The 1990s kids were born when plumes of hatred, militancy already engulfed Kashmir. At every nook and corner, one would witness army. For those kids the talks of peace resembled like scenes out of utopian novels.

This book also provided us detailed insights into the early history of Sikhs of Kashmir, circa 1490 to the present. According to Kulbir Singh Badal’s thesis titled ‘ State, Society and Economy in Subha-i–Kashmir under Sarkar-i- Khalsa’ Kashmir was inhabited by Sikhs since the 1490s.It was at that time Guru Nanak visited Kashmir for the first time. Guru Arjan Devji also sent Sikh missionaries to preach the tenets of the religion. Guru Hargobindji and Guru Har Rai Ji visited Kashmir to meet the followers. Guru Gobind Singh sent a Sikh missionary to preach the religion. During the time of Afghan rule Sant Rocha Singh supervised all missionary activities. When Sikh rule was established Sant Mela Singh was entrusted with the job of in charge at the behest of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. During the time of Maharaja Ranjit Singh large number of Sikhs migrated to Kashmir.

The author cited the book The Sikh Rule in Kashmir by Kashmir historian Abdul Rashid Kandey to delve deeper into the intricacies of Sikh history. In this book, it was shown that during the governorship of Hari Singh Nalwa, many Kashmiri Pandit families adopted Sikh faith. Another prominent historian Mohi-ud–Din Fauq in his book Tawarikh-i-Aqwam-I– Poonch showed that during the time of Sarkar–i-Khalsa Nihangs and Bhai Mela Singh propagated the Sikh faith.

In this book, we came across the stark reality that the insecurity among the minorities crept in so hideously that they started bringing their religion into everything they do. The otherness Kashmiri Sikhs faced was more of a consequence of living as a micro-minority. The Chithisinghpora incident, Push Kriri killings, Nehjoor Nagar incidents left deep scars on the psyche of the community.

In an interview, the author said that Kashmiri Sikhs had lost their identity and through this book, he wanted to reclaim a part of it. This vivid narrative offers a significant perspective into a discourse of Kashmir.