Displaced Kashmiri Hindus celebrate Jhelum Rivers birthday

It was a birthday with a difference.

Verinag (Jammu and Kashmir), Sept. 26 : It was a birthday with a difference.

Kashmiri Hindus gathered at the source of the river to celebrate the birthday of the River Jhelum on Tuesday.

Kashmiri Hindus consider the River Jhelum, referred to as Vitasta in ancient times, as an incarnation of the Goddess Parvati, the consort of Lord Shiva.

The celebration dates back to epic times, but was discontinued after militancy broke out in the Kashmir Valley in 1989.

Santoosh, a Kashmiri Hindu, said: "I can't believe after 18 years, I have come to my birthplace and celebrating the birthday of our mother, also known as Jhelum. This is the source of the Jhelum. Hindus and Muslims used to celebrate the birthday together."

Muslims living in the river's vicinity, also visited the spot and met up with their separated friends.

"We wish and also request the Jammu and Kashmir Government to let these Pandits live here only. Today, those conditions are not there in which our Pandit brothers ran away. Now, it is different," said Ghulam Nabi.

Over 250,000 Hindus or Kashmiri Pandits migrated to more secure places across India when militancy raised its ugly head in the Kashmir Vally in the last 1980s and the 1990s.

It was the largest mass movement of people since the partition of the Indian subcontinent in 1947.

Violence has declined in Kashmir since India and Pakistan, who claim the region in full and have fought two wars over it, launched a cautious peace process in 2004.

The State Government and moderate Kashmiri separatists have been urging Pandits to return for years, but the Hindus have been deterred by a series of attacks on those who have stayed behind.

ANI