Kashmiri Pandit organisations today criticised the Jammu and Kashmir Tourism Department for naming the famous Hari Parbat hill as 'Koh-e-Maran' in their advertisement on Kashmir Fort festival.
"At a time when BJP government at the Center is discussing about their sincerity on resettling the exiled Kashmiri Pandits, its own government in Jammu and Kashmir is working to undermine its efforts by such acts (the naming of Hari Prabat as Koh-e-Maran)," Roots in Kashmir (RIK) spokesperson Anoop Bhat said.
He condemned the recent advertisement of J-K Tourism in newspapers in which it referred to Hari Parbat as Koh-e-Maran which triggered the controversy.
Displaced Kashmiri Pandits organisations, including Panun Kashmir, All State Kashmiri Pandit Conference (ASKPC), had yesterday condemned the incident and demanded a probe into it.
"The hill of Hari Parbat has not only cultural and historical significance, it also is the abode of Goddess Sharika, the presiding deity of Kashmiri Pandits. Even there have been attempts to rename Shankaracharya Temple with an Arabic name," Anoop alleged.
The Kashmiri Pandit Sabha (KPS) also criticised the incident.
"This further increases the mistrust that has developed between the two communities and which needs to be addressed for creating a conducive and peaceful atmosphere in the Valley so that people from all communities can live together," KPS President K K Khosa said.
