A day after a controversy broke out over a tweet by filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri claiming the January 19 event at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh was aimed at celebrating the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits, protesters at the venue have on Sunday called for a meeting in solidarity with Kashmiri Pandits, who were forced to leave the Kashmir valley in 1990 amid rising Islamic Militancy.



This comes after the filmmakers's tweet was countered by the official Twitter handle of the Shaheen Bagh protest on Saturday, wherein the protestors said that the event scheduled on January 19 has no link to the exodus.



To commemorate the exodus, the protesters have invited two prominent Kashmiri Pandits, performance artist Inder Salim and theatre personality MK Raina to speak to the gathering on this occasion.



Talking to India Today, Mk Raina asserted that the decision of Shaheen Bagh protesters to stand by Kashmiri Pandits shows that those agitating at Shaheenbagh are not exclusive in their approach and also understand the pain of others who have undergone similar experiences in the past, be that the Pandits in Kashmir or Sikhs in Punjab.

"Shaheen Bagh is one of the biggest Gandhian Satyagrah post Independence. This kind of sporadic movement is unprecedented in India. This is a movement which will give a new shape to our country. We have been a unique country all the way, and this uniqueness of such huge diversity is threatened by recent turn of events in the country. These protesters are determined to reclaim the idea that was envisioned as India. Their protest is for a democratic and humane India which cannot be undermined by some allegations."

Commenting on Tweets by Vivek Agnihotri, Raina said, "While I do not doubt their intentions but would like to say that people who suffered persecution for being minority can only understand the pain of protesters who are out there to protest in the chilling cold. Unfortunately, I have experienced all this myself. I was in Kashmir at the time of exodus and know what it feels to become stateless. I could see in the eyes of my parents, the desire to go back to their homeland and can very much relate that with the pain of Muslim minorities in India. As far as people like Agnihotri and Anupam Kher are concerned, I would believe that their intention is right but their approach is not."

Inder Salim who will also be speaking at the gathering on Sunday stated the Kashmiris were torn between Indian and Pakistani establishments.



"All clear expressions are inadequate to think of the colossal tragedy that has happened and continues to unfold in Kashmir," he said.



"I have not come across anything as of now about people celebrating the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits. I also believe that the killing of unarmed civilians, both Muslims and Pandits during early nineties made exodus a possibility. Too many tragedies occurred to think of only Pandits from those days. However, engineered hate pushed both communities to the edge. Kashmiri people are torn between Indian and Pakistani state," Inder said.



Commenting on the decision of protesters at Shaheenbagh to stand by Kashmiri Pandits on the day of exodus, he said, "Any solidarity with Kashmiri Pandit's is a positive step which actually has been ignored by the Left and the Centre and has provided BJP an axe."

There is also enthusiasm on the ground among protesters who also resonate the sentiments expressed by Inder Salim and MK Raina, whp were also victims of the Exodus.

Jamia Alumna and film maker Saba Rahman who has been actively taking part in the protests for the past one month believes that these kind of solidarity will strengthen the protest.



"The conflict in Kashmir, however, is chronic and it will be good to remind us how quickly the fabric of Kashmiriyat was torn apart. The tragedy of the exile of Kashmiri Pandits is often shamelessly abused by political parties and those who want to undermine the voices of Kashmiri Muslims. It's time to send out the message that we will not be divided by this hate-filled narrative," Saba said.