What is the Pir Panjal controversy that has rocked Jammu and Kashmir Assembly
Pir Panjal row: BJP leader Sunil Sharma has stirred a hornet's nest by claiming that there is no such region as Pir Panjal in Jammu and Kashmir. Why has it triggered a controversy? Why has it become an emotive issue in J&K?
The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly witnessed pandemonium this week after BJP's Sunil Sharma, also the leader of the opposition, stirred controversy by dismissing the existence of the Pir Panjal region. The issue has snowballed into a full-blown flashpoint between the ruling NC-Congress government and the BJP. It has plunged the assembly session into chaos, triggering dharnas and protests in the Pir Panjal districts of Rajouri and Poonch. What is the controversy? Why has it become an emotive issue in J&K? Stay with us, and we will explain the reasons.
The trigger behind the controversy was an interview thatthe BJP's Sharma gave to a news portal earlier this week. When asked about demands for a National Law University (NLU) in J&K's Pir Panjal region, the BJP leader said he never heard the name "in any dictionary" and that no such area existed. He, instead, claimed the area was known as Chandrabhaga.
The remark was enough to set the cat among the pigeons. MLAs from Rajouri and Poonch, including deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary and Forest Minister Javed Rana, who are from the area, staged protests both inside and outside the assembly. They have demanded an apology from Sharma, who has flatly refused, and instead accused them of attempting to divide J&K on regional lines.
However, a scrutiny has revealed that the J&K government has used the term "Pir Panjal zone" over the years for appointments in official documents.
WHERE IS THE PIR PANJAL REGION?
Now, why has this become so much of an emotive issue in J&K? First, let's understand the geography.
The Pir Panjal region refers to the mountainous belt in south Kashmir. It is close to the Pakistan border along the LoC. It also includes the Chenab valley districts of Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban. For long, the locals in this region have complained of being overlooked by subsequent governments as Jammu and the Kashmir valley got most of the focus and infrastructure projects.
On the other hand, the Pir Panjal region has always faced the brunt of Pakistan's misadventures and cross-border shelling. More recently, during last year's Operation Sindoor, several houses were heavily damaged due to Pakistan's shelling. "In Poonch city alone, 16 people were killed. Those sacrifices have been insulted," Independent MLA Muzaffar Iqbal Khan told the media.
Even J&K political experts have shredded Sharma over his remark. "Border people shield India daily. Do Rajouri-Poonch mothers lie? Martyred jawans don't exist? 14,000+ innocents killed since 1989. Real blood. Real sacrifice," Ashwani S Handa tweeted.
In fact, Sunil Sharma's remark comes on the heels of former J&K chief minister Mehbooba Mufti seeking a separate Pir Panjal administrative division along with the Chenab valley districts. Mufti has stressed that it was the need of the hour as the region, due to its remoteness and hilly terrain, has not seen much development. She also recently flagged the decline in funding for Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University in Pir Panjal.
However, the BJP has firmly opposed the demand.
WHAT IS THE PIR PANJAL CONTROVERSY?
The Pir Panjal issue has boiled over in the J&K Assembly, which witnessed a war of words and chaos over two days. The house turned into a battlefield as slogans of 'Vande Mataram' and 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' by BJP MLAs met with cries of 'Jive Jive Pir Panjal'.
Sharma, however, has doubled down on his remarks, linking them to a silent push by a section of MLAs for a 'Greater Kashmir' region.
"There is no such region (Pir Panjal) in J&K. Attempts are being made to create separate regional identities, which challenge the historical and cultural unity of J&K," he told reporters.
The BJP leader asserted that the region was known as 'Chandrabhaga' in ancient scriptures and Vedic texts. He maintained that J&K was one entity formed through the efforts of Maharaja Hari Singh.
Chandrabhaga is the ancient Sanskrit name of the River Chenab, one of the major rivers flowing through the Pir Panjal range. It is believed that the river gave the region its early civilisational identity. But there is no reference to the whole region being called Chandrabhaga.
On the other hand, Jammu Pradesh Peoples Movement founder Neeraj Singh Dogra claimed the area was referred to as Panchaldev in the Mahabharata. He said the term 'Pir', a Persian word, had no mention in historical texts.
"The Rajatarangini refers to Panchaldev as Panjal, but there is no mention of the word Pir. The Rajatarangini clearly states that Kashmir is surrounded by the Panchaldev mountain range, which protects it from external enemies," Dogra tweeted.
The issue has blown out of proportion in J&K.
J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said that Sharma's remarks "angered an entire region". Several MLAs have asserted they won't allow the Assembly to function unless the BJP leader issues an apology.
The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly witnessed pandemonium this week after BJP's Sunil Sharma, also the leader of the opposition, stirred controversy by dismissing the existence of the Pir Panjal region. The issue has snowballed into a full-blown flashpoint between the ruling NC-Congress government and the BJP. It has plunged the assembly session into chaos, triggering dharnas and protests in the Pir Panjal districts of Rajouri and Poonch. What is the controversy? Why has it become an emotive issue in J&K? Stay with us, and we will explain the reasons.
The trigger behind the controversy was an interview thatthe BJP's Sharma gave to a news portal earlier this week. When asked about demands for a National Law University (NLU) in J&K's Pir Panjal region, the BJP leader said he never heard the name "in any dictionary" and that no such area existed. He, instead, claimed the area was known as Chandrabhaga.
The remark was enough to set the cat among the pigeons. MLAs from Rajouri and Poonch, including deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary and Forest Minister Javed Rana, who are from the area, staged protests both inside and outside the assembly. They have demanded an apology from Sharma, who has flatly refused, and instead accused them of attempting to divide J&K on regional lines.
However, a scrutiny has revealed that the J&K government has used the term "Pir Panjal zone" over the years for appointments in official documents.
WHERE IS THE PIR PANJAL REGION?
Now, why has this become so much of an emotive issue in J&K? First, let's understand the geography.
The Pir Panjal region refers to the mountainous belt in south Kashmir. It is close to the Pakistan border along the LoC. It also includes the Chenab valley districts of Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban. For long, the locals in this region have complained of being overlooked by subsequent governments as Jammu and the Kashmir valley got most of the focus and infrastructure projects.
On the other hand, the Pir Panjal region has always faced the brunt of Pakistan's misadventures and cross-border shelling. More recently, during last year's Operation Sindoor, several houses were heavily damaged due to Pakistan's shelling. "In Poonch city alone, 16 people were killed. Those sacrifices have been insulted," Independent MLA Muzaffar Iqbal Khan told the media.
Even J&K political experts have shredded Sharma over his remark. "Border people shield India daily. Do Rajouri-Poonch mothers lie? Martyred jawans don't exist? 14,000+ innocents killed since 1989. Real blood. Real sacrifice," Ashwani S Handa tweeted.
In fact, Sunil Sharma's remark comes on the heels of former J&K chief minister Mehbooba Mufti seeking a separate Pir Panjal administrative division along with the Chenab valley districts. Mufti has stressed that it was the need of the hour as the region, due to its remoteness and hilly terrain, has not seen much development. She also recently flagged the decline in funding for Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University in Pir Panjal.
However, the BJP has firmly opposed the demand.
WHAT IS THE PIR PANJAL CONTROVERSY?
The Pir Panjal issue has boiled over in the J&K Assembly, which witnessed a war of words and chaos over two days. The house turned into a battlefield as slogans of 'Vande Mataram' and 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' by BJP MLAs met with cries of 'Jive Jive Pir Panjal'.
Sharma, however, has doubled down on his remarks, linking them to a silent push by a section of MLAs for a 'Greater Kashmir' region.
"There is no such region (Pir Panjal) in J&K. Attempts are being made to create separate regional identities, which challenge the historical and cultural unity of J&K," he told reporters.
The BJP leader asserted that the region was known as 'Chandrabhaga' in ancient scriptures and Vedic texts. He maintained that J&K was one entity formed through the efforts of Maharaja Hari Singh.
Chandrabhaga is the ancient Sanskrit name of the River Chenab, one of the major rivers flowing through the Pir Panjal range. It is believed that the river gave the region its early civilisational identity. But there is no reference to the whole region being called Chandrabhaga.
On the other hand, Jammu Pradesh Peoples Movement founder Neeraj Singh Dogra claimed the area was referred to as Panchaldev in the Mahabharata. He said the term 'Pir', a Persian word, had no mention in historical texts.
"The Rajatarangini refers to Panchaldev as Panjal, but there is no mention of the word Pir. The Rajatarangini clearly states that Kashmir is surrounded by the Panchaldev mountain range, which protects it from external enemies," Dogra tweeted.
The issue has blown out of proportion in J&K.
J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said that Sharma's remarks "angered an entire region". Several MLAs have asserted they won't allow the Assembly to function unless the BJP leader issues an apology.