Mythologies of the Pahāṛī Tribes

The Pahari people or Pahari-speaking people is a cover term for a number of heterogeneous communities inhabiting in Jammu and Kashmir and also some parts of Pakistan administered Azad Kashmir who speak Pahari languages/dialects. Pahari is also an ambiguous term used to describe a variety of Northern Indo-Aryan languages, most of which are found in the lower Himalayas. They are divided into Eastern Pahari (which includes Nepali), Central Pahari, and Western Pahari, consisting of a number of different languages. The term is also used to refer to the Pahari variant of the Pahari-Pothwari dialect cluster. ST status was granted to Pahari Speaking People' (who speak Pothowari dialects fall under Lahnda Western Punjabi) through an Act passed by Parliment. On 26 July 2023, the bill to add Pahari Ethnic Group along with the Paddari Tribe, Koli and Gadda Brahman in the existing list of scheduled tribes in Jammu and Kashmir was introduced in the Lok Sabha. The bill was taken into consideration on February 6, 2024 and was passed the same day. The bill was further passed from the Rajya Sabha on February 9.The Act of Parliament received the President's Assent on the Constitution (Jammu and Kashmir) Scheduled Tribes Order (Amendment) Act, 2024. A gazette notification in this regard was issued by the Ministry of Law and Justice states on 12th February 2024.

Pahāṛī, people who constitute about three-fifths the population of Nepal and a majority of the population of neighbouring Himalayan India (in Himachal Pradesh and northern Uttar Pradesh). They speak languages belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European family. The people are historically ancient, having been mentioned by the authors Pliny and Herodotus and figuring in India’s epic poem, the Mahabharata. Their numbers were estimated to be about 20,000,000 in the early 21st century. The great majority of the Pahāṛī are Hindus, but their caste structure is less orthodox and less complex than that of the plains to the south. Usually they are divided into the high “clean” or “twice-born” castes (Khasia, or Ka) and the low “unclean” or “polluting” castes (Dom). Most of the high-caste Pahāṛī are farmers. The Dom work in a variety of occupations and may be goldsmiths, leather workers, tailors, musicians, drummers, and sweepers. The Pahāṛī have historically practiced a wide variety of marriage arrangements, including polyandry (several brothers sharing one or more wives), polygyny (several wives sharing a husband), group marriages (with an equal number of husbands and wives), and monogamy. Girls may be married before age 10, though they do not cohabit with their husbands until they are mature. There is a double standard of sexual behaviour for women, who must be faithful to their husbands while living with them; when a married woman goes home to visit her parents, however, she is permitted the liberties of an unmarried girl. The Pahāṛī are an agricultural people, cultivating terraces on the hillsides. Their chief crops are potatoes and rice. Other crops include wheat, barley, onions, tomatoes, tobacco, and various vegetables. Sheep, goats, and cattle are kept. The spinning of wool is done by everyone, while weaving is carried on by members of a lower caste.

Paharis include Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims, and all those people of Kashmiri origin who settled in Rajouri and Poonch districts over a period of time. Paharis also include upper caste Hindus and also the ones who were displaced from Pakistan Occupied Kashmir. In 2014, then-J&K CM Omar Abdullah proposed a 5 per cent reservation for Paharis. However, Governor N N Vohra refused to approve the Bill. In 2019, the Paharis finally got 4 per cent quota in education and jobs when Satyapal Malik was the Govnor N N Vohra refused to approve the Bill. In 2019, the Paharis finally got 4 per cent quota in education and jobs when Satyapal Malik was the Governor. In the same year, Justice (retd) G D Sharma Commission was set up to identify educationally, socally, and economically backward communities. In its report, the commission recomended Scheduled Tribe status for Kolis, Gadda Brahmins, Pahari Ethnic Group, and Paddari Tribe. This report was forwarded to the Tribal Affairs Ministry. In 2022, the Registrar General approved it.

Pahari Tribe of Jammu and Kashmir is as embedded in a mosaic of collective traditionalism and reflected through their common origin, common language, distinctive dress pattern, distinctive food habit, common psychological makeup, similar physical feathers, tradition organization in basic institutions of marriage, family and kinship, lower positions in socio-economic scale and relative isolation from the mainstream society, tantamount to make the Pahari Tribe of Jammu and Kashmir an ethnic Group. Struggle for Recognition of endangered Cultural, ethnic and linguistic identity of the Pahari Tribe started in early 70′ when “All Jammu and Kashmir Pahari Cultural and Welfare Forum was constituted. Pahari Tribe having compact population, major pockets are found among the foothills of the Pir- Panchal range with major concentrations in Poonch, Rajouri, Baramulla and Kupwara. Besides these four major pockets, their habitations are also found in Anantnag, Kulgam, Shopian, Pulwama,Budgam, Ganderbal and Bandipora districts as well. Constitution of All Jammu and Kashmir Pahari Cultural Welfare Forum on 1969-70, Karnah Cultural Club (1973), Establishment of Pahari Section in Jammu and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages (1978), Pahari Programme and News from the then Radio Kashmir Srinagar ( 2nd October 1979), establishment of Pahari Advisory Board vide Order Number GAD-1439 (1989), twice Unanimous Resolutions in J&K Assembly and Council for ST to Paharis. Passing of Reservation act to Pahari Speaking People in 2014. Pahari Reservation Amendment Bill 2018 and granting of 4% reservation in Jammu and Kashmir from 2020, construction of Pahari Hostels are result of Five decades old struggle of Pahari Tribe for Status which is still pending.

The Pahari speaking people literally belongs to hilly mountainous areas of Jammu and Kashmir. Like other ethnic groups, the Pahari speaking people are also socioeconomically and educationally backward and are lying at the bottom of the developmental ladder. To promote and safeguard the socioeconomic interests of this weaker section, number of alleviative measures has been drafted by the government of the state. Besides the alleviative measures, the Pahari speaking people have vehemently propounded the demand for scheduled tribe status as granted to other ethnic groups in 1991. The demand of the Pahari speaking people for scheduled tribe status was greatly endorsed by the ruling political parties of the state. But these Paharis speaking people being a linguistic group from different religions were found not eligible for the inclusion in the scheduled tribe list. Despite being a linguistic group, the demand of the paharis were vehemently advocated by all the political parties and ruling governments of the state from the 1990's onwards. All this conundrum needs to be explored that if the Paharis are not found eligible for the scheduled tribe status then how come their demand are being strongly advocated by the ruling political parties for their inclusion in the scheduled tribe list. This paper is an attempt to evaluate the claims of the Paharis speaking people and explore the political commitments made by the different leaders for the reservation of these Pahari speaking people.