When fundamentalism forced the 13 Pandit families to abandon everything and flee Baramullah, they might not have thought that they would set foot on the town again.
The turnaround came when the government succeeded in converting many militants into anti-insurgents and this opened a new chapter.
The Pandit families who have now returned to their roots will help their birthplace begin a new, peaceful chapter on September 7.
On September 7, Baramullah will go to the Assembly polls, the first strife-torn constituency in the state to give up the barrels of the gun to the ballot box.
With their entrepreneurial skills, the Pandits had long controlled the local economy and most of the old-timers are happy to see the natives back. In fact, almost all the 13 families were running some businesses in the town and provide a representative profile of the community.
Consider, for example, the story of Nanda. For over 15 long years, he was the proud owner of the only pan shop in the town. With Nanda Pan House reopening shutters, pan-users have started chewing over the prospects of peace.
Shivji is another example. A quack, he fled Baramullah in 1990. Now, he is happy to be back. He might not have got that many hugs throughout his sixty odd years as he received on his return here from the ladies of Baramulla last month, a local said. Not even from his mother or wife, added an elderly Muslim lady.
Baramullah lost its mainstream character and was reduced to a border district headquarter, losing most of its business clout following partition and later during the rise of militancy.
Election Commissioner MS Gill, who recently visited the place to review the poll arrangements for the 15 assembly constituencies remarked in a lighter vein that the people have this time perhaps ignored my presence. All his previous visits were greeted by a hartal call.
However, the change to a new era is not that smooth. Gill's visit was marked by closed shops and there were little signs of normal life. The residents were not protesting against the EC official's visit, but remembering Pakistani President General Zia Ul Haq during his eighth death anniversary.
Situated about 30 km from the Line of Control along the erstwhile Jhelum Valley, the road that connects Srinagar with Rawalpindi, Baramulla was traditionally considered as a Jamait-e-Islami stronghold and accounted for most of the recruits to the militant ranks.
The 13 Pandit families, who returned to their birthplace, are however cautious. They have been staying in specially-established camps inside a temple guarded by the J&K Police and not in their homes.
But, the Pandit shopkeepers have started doing brisk business. Most of us will never have come back even if full normalcy has been restored. Many of us have developed stakes and interests in other parts of the country, said Krishen Lal, a 40-year old shopkeeper.
In 1992, he made a visit to the place and was even shot at by the militants. But this time, he says, the situation is different.
Among the visible signs of a changed Baramullah are the dwindling number of security pickets. Another reassuring sign is the long queue of Kashmiri boys passing through a metal detector into the lawns of Dagger, the only cinema hall in the place. Even during all the long years of insurgency, it has been business as usual at this Army cinema hall.
