By Shakeel Ahmad
Anantnag (Dooru): Born and brought up in the far flung village Chingund of Doru Shahbad of south Kashmir, Sugeena (35) a Kashmiri Pandit girl had not even dreamed of visiting her birth place again in her life time and was happy to see her neighbors and friends again today.
Only luck and posting of her husband whom she got married few years back in New Delhi make her dream to visit Chingund true, which she along with her parents had left in early 90’s.
“Nothing has changed here in this hamlet which even today seems to be den of love which the saint Rasool Mir has gifted Shahabad.” Sugeena accompanied with her friend Shobi Khan told News Agency of Kashmir (NAK) memorizing her childhood when she without any fear used to play with her school friends.
Despite having faced the hot waves during the last twenty years of turmoil in different states, Kashmiri Pandits still have belief that Muslim brothers will bring them back to their roots and once again both the communities will share all platforms particularly weddings and festivals.
Visiting a temple site near by her house in village Chingund, Sugeena burst with tears and said that “she still remembers the couplet usually sung by her father Advocate Badri Nath Pandit, when he shared thoughts about Kashmir: “Shiv chu thal thal rozana, mozan hund tu muslmaan’, means The God is one and he has no difference to make Hindus or Muslims.
For Sheenu (8) and Shryaan (8), the twin of Sugeena there was no difference between the place they were born and their mother’s birth place Chingund, which has a historical background of Hindu Muslim amity.
As soon as the news of arrival of Sugeena spread in the vicinity, people in their hundreds including, women and children throng her parental house and hug her and the twins which also made her husband Deepak Raina emotional. Mr. Raina also belongs to south Kashmir.
The emotional scenes at Dooru and other places in the area was something to be seen and believed, there was love and affection from all sides.
The family of Sugeena intends to pay their respects at Zeerati Amar Kabir, Zeerati Azam Shah Sahib and the grave of poet Rasool Mir at Dooru, besides visiting the Vitasta and world famous spring at Verinag.
“By visiting my homeland I feel I got everything special of my life” she said while going back to Srinagar, adding God willingly I will visit again along with my father and mother.
The neighbors who welcomed the KP girl and her husband were emotional and some were asking her for treat as none among them attended her marriage.
“We feel our village has lost its glory with the absence of our Pandit brethren” said Ghulam Rasool of Chingund adding the village was like a garden having different types of flowers, so were the Pandits among us. (NAK)