Kashmir has long been more than a political flashpoint. It has been a civilisational meeting ground where religions, languages and cultural practices have interacted for centuries, creating the distinctive ethos known as Kashmiriyat. Rooted in the teachings of Lal Ded and Sheikh Noor-ud-Din Noorani, and nurtured by Sufi and Rishi traditions, this ethos made coexistence not a slogan but a lived social reality. Yet decades of conflict, displacement and polarisation have steadily weakened that inheritance. At this moment, Kashmir needs not only remembrance of its plural past but a durable institution capable of defending it: an Inter-Faith Dialogue Centre.

Such a centre is necessary because communal harmony cannot survive on sentiment alone. It must be organised, educated and renewed across generations. An institution dedicated to inter-faith dialogue would provide Kashmir with a permanent platform for conversation among religious leaders, scholars, educators, youth groups and civil society actors. More importantly, it would convert the idea of pluralism into daily practice through dialogue, research, cultural exchange and public engagement.

The case for such a centre begins with Kashmir’s own........

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