Mumbai, June 4: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday expressed concern about the "targeted killings of Hindus and Kashmiri Pandits" in the Kashmir Valley. Kashmiri Pandits were fleeing the Valley, Thackeray, who also heads the Shiv Sena, said in a statement here.

"Kashmiri Pandits were shown the dream of `ghar vapasi' (resettlement in the Valley), but they are being targeted and killed. The exodus of Pandits is shocking," he said. The chief minister assured the Pandit community that "Maharashtra is firmly behind them." Anantnag Encounter: Hizbul Mujahideen Terrorist Commander Nisar Khanday Killed By Security Forces in Jammu and Kashmir, Was Active Since 2018.

In 1995, when the Shiv Sena-BJP coalition came to power in Maharashtra, Sena founder Bal Thackeray ensured a quota in educational institutes in the state for the children of Kashmiri Pandits, he noted. "Our government is in touch with Kashmiri Pandit leaders and will do everything it can for their protection," Thackeray further said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)