Ramesh Tamiri is a doctor by profession but he has remained a dedicated student of history, especially history of Kashmir, his entire life. He is a scholar in his own right and a popular commentator on Kashmir affairs. We have decided to serialise his musings, in public interest and for the benefit of posterity.

Nehru and We

I was not intrigued on reading laudatory comments about Nehru by some senior members of our community.

I have been witness to how some of my kith and kin have been denouncing and admiring Nehru at the same time.

How can Nehru be right and wrong at the same time?

Nehru needs an honest assessment, analytical and not emotional.

Was not Communist leader EMS Namboodaripad the first serious politician to expose Nehru’ socialistic pattern of society as camouflaged capitalism?

Applauding Nehru is an emotional reaction. After all, he was ‘racially’ a bhatta. He overshadowed every leader of consequence through ruthless play of inner-party power politics.

Pointing blunders of Nehru is an analytical response. Yes, certain mistakes of Nehru can be condoned in the perspective of what Prof. Ayub rightly calls subaltern realism.

Nehru’s blunders made India and Kashmiri Pandits pay a heavy price.We are still paying.

It is time we get out of Chacha Nehru and Pandit Ji syndrome. Vested interests are using this in subjecting us to social-profiling.

We admire our oldest diaspora of Saprus and Katjus but not certainly Nehrus.

A Hindu resurgence movement will accept Marxist Acharya Narendra Dev and Nirmal Verma but not JL Nehru.

Yes, we reject a new genre of dirty politics, which I call bio-politics. It indulges in crafting fake ancestries and scandalising politicians for alleged sexual promiscuity.