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Pashtuns of Kashmir and thePathans in Kashmir (also calledKashmiri Pathans/Kashmiri Afghan) includePashtun people that may still followPashtunwali and speakPashto as their mother-tongue who have settled in the region ofKashmir (Indian Administered J&K andPakistani Administered J&K). There are also exist large communities of people throughout the region Kashmir who claimPashtun ancestry from migration centuries ago. The exact numbers of the Pashtun communities of Kashmir are not known.[1][2]
Many Pashtuns in the Indian administeredJammu and Kashmir have adoptedKashmiriyat and use theKashmiri language as their second language, and the Pashtuns settled in areas of theJammu division have adopted other local languages as a second language. ManyPashtunwali customs, aspects ofPashtun culture and thePashto language are still practiced among the communities, though the culture and language is facing a decline among the younger generations, due tocultural assimilation.[1][2]
In the Pakistani administeredAzad Jammu and Kashmir, there exist several Pashtun communities belonging to tribes such as theYusufzai andAfridi, having migrated to the region over the past centuries. They have adopted the localPahari andHindko languages, but significant numbers of them still retain thePashto language. There also exists theSudhan tribe, concentrated in thePoonch Division, which claim Pashtun descent and allegedly belong to theSaddozai tribe,oral tradition stating that they settled in the region some centuries ago. They do not speakPashto, instead speaking a dialect of the localPahari language.[3]
There are a large number of Pashto-speaking Pashtuns in the Indian state ofJammu and Kashmir. Although their exact numbers are hard to determine, it is at least in excess of 100,000 for it is known that in 1954 over 100,000 nomadic Pukhtuns living in Kashmir Valley were granted Indian citizenship. Today jirgas are frequently held. Those settled and living in the Kashmir Valley speak Pashto, and are found chiefly in the southwest of the valley, where Pashtun colonies have from time to time been founded. The most interesting are the Kukikhel Afridis of Dramghaihama, who retain all the old customs and speak Pashto. They wear colorful dress and carry swords and shields. The Afridis and the Machipurians, who belong to theYusufzai tribe, are liable to military service, in return for which they hold certain villages free of revenue. There are a few families in the capital city ofSrinagar which claim their origins to Yusufzai andAchakzai tribes. The Pashtuns chiefly came in under theAfghan rule, but many were brought byMaharaja Gulab Singh under theDogra rule for service on the frontier and are now found mainly in south-west region ofJammu. There is also a good number of nomadic kochiPashtuns clan living in north and south state ofJammu and Kashmir. InJammu they usually reside inPoonch District andJammu District who also speakDogri (aPunjabi dialect) along withPashto. While in districts ofBandipora District, andBaramulla District in the north while districts ofGanderbal District of southernKashmir. Pashto is also spoken in two villages, Dhakki and Changnar (Chaknot), located on the Line of Control inKupwara district of northern state ofJammu and Kashmir. In response to demand by the Pashtun community living in the state, Kashir TV has recently launched a series of Pushto-language programs.
Some solitary families ofSadozai,Achakzai Pashtuns are well known in Srinagar whose roots go toKabul andKandahar. Many Pashto-speakingAfghans/Pashtuns are also notably found inIndian Army andJammu and Kashmir Police as well.Very few people know thatAfghan President,Najibullah Ahmadzai has himself studied atSt. Joseph's School (Baramulla) .
A further small, scattered Pashtun population still exists in some major cities of India with large Muslim populations, with the majority of Pashto-speaking individuals residing in theIndian State ofWest Bengal andAssam. There is large Pashtun people and they belong to Ghilzai, Yousufzai, Kharoti, Afridi, Shinwari, Durrani Tribes, who also have adopted local languages of the respective areas they live in, as their second language. These Pathans, numbering around 14,161, have retained the use of the Pashto language and are still able to speak and understand it. Along with the pashto speaking Pathans, there are also groups of those who have completely mixed with the local cultures and some belong to high cultural strata. In July 1954 (shortly after thepartition), some 100,000 Pashtun tribesmen living inJammu and Kashmir who previously did not hold nationality effectively becameIndian citizens.[4] According toThe Hindu, the ceremony was presided by thePrime Minister of Jammu and KashmirBakshi Ghulam Mohammad at the village of Gutlibagh nearSrinagar, during which citizenship certificates were presented in batches. The prime minister paid a tribute to the Pashtun community for its "role in the country'sliberation struggle" and also to Pashtun nationalist leaders such asBacha Khan. Leaders of the Pashtun community pledged their loyalty to their adopted homeland.[4]
Sudhans from Poonch considered themselves to beSudho Zai Pathans (Pukhtoons), which explained why thePashtun tribesmen from NWFP province lost no time coming to help Jammu and Kashmir's Muslims in 1947..