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Fort Bend Hindus hold vigil for Kashmir terror attack victims
Carrying Indian and American flags, they held banners calling for global action against radical Islamist violence.
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Staff Reporter
- Tue, 29, Apr 2025
- 14:22 EDT
- 121
Vigil picture at Sugar Land memorial park on April 26 / Vijay Pallod
More than 300 members of the Hindu community in Fort Bend County gathered at Sugar Land Memorial Park on Saturday, April 26, to mourn the victims of a recent terror attack in Kashmir.
Wearing white to symbolize mourning, attendees carried Indian and American flags and held banners calling for global action against radical Islamist violence.
Also Read: Indian community holds vigil for Kashmir victims in New Jersey
The attack, which took place on April 22 in Pahalgam, targeted and claimed the lives of mainly Hindu tourists. The Resistance Front (TRF), linked to the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed responsibility for the attack.
From left-HGH President Rachna shah, Amit Raina (3rd from left) / Vijay Pallod“Jihadi terror is global—it was on the streets of London and in Paris during the Charlie Hebdo shootings,” said journalist and emcee Sunanda Vashisht. “It is in Bangladesh, England, Sweden — it is everywhere. This radical Islamist ideology is everyone's enemy.”
Yajat Bhargav, 22, representing Hindus of Greater Houston, declared, “Global Hindu solidarity is no longer an option—it is our dharmic duty.”
Paro Sarkar from HinduACTion said, “We have been reeling from these relentless attacks on Hindus by radical Islamists, only to be hit again with another tragedy... The timing of this atrocity during the visit of Vice President JD Vance comes alarmingly close on the heels of Pakistan chief Asif Muniz’s incendiary speech and anti-Hindu remarks in Islamabad.”
Amit Raina, a Fort Bend resident and member of the Global Kashmiri Pandit Diaspora, said, “Ours is the most peaceful community in the world, the kind of torture, genocide and ethnic cleansing which we had to go through—the Pahalgam massacre is nothing new for my community.”
Referring to past terrorist attacks, he said, “Look at 26/11 in Mumbai, or 9/11, or 7/7 in London, the central evil force behind all these attacks is the same, and that is a radical Islamic Jihad—the mentality, ideology, mindset which is not inclusive, and which doesn't want others to live their way.”
Raina further appealed, “We must educate them and make them aware of these ground realities… make sure that everybody understands that we are getting killed and targeted because of our faith. Appeasement is not peace.”
As the vigil drew to a close, Vashisht reminded the crowd, “We are not going to go back to watching Netflix, are we? Life is not the same. We are going to do few things.” Bhargav added, “The massacre reminds us that to live openly as Hindus is still in many parts of the world a crime punishable by death. Hatred, if left unchecked, metastasizes. Appeasement is not peace. Silence is not safety.”
The crowd closed the event with chants of “Don’t Deny, Don’t Hide — Stop Hindu Genocide.” Organizers distributed flyers and advocacy toolkits, urging attendees to educate others, contact lawmakers, and stand united.
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