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| Prof. Dr. Shaheed Sheikh JALAL |
The then Foreign Minister was riding in a small car when he appeared in Sheikh Street, Nambalbal , South Kashmir, without any security or police, along with a man. The elders of this area knew Vajpayee, but the common people and children did not know him that much. The funny thing is that at that time he had Rs 261 in his pocket, while he also had half a kilo of toffees in his pocket, which he distributed among the children of the neighborhood. Vajpayee ji was suffering from heart disease angina at that time, after which he repeatedly met Prof. Dr. Shaheed Sheikh Jalal Sahib in Delhi and inquired about his health. This is what the elders of this neighborhood told me. When Vajpayee was offered Shermal and salty tea from Hima Malini, Vajpayee enjoyed it very much, but in the end, in a way, he told the doctor that Kashmiri tea is gunpowder tea. Salt on salt.
This visit rarely appears in official biographies or state records, yet it lives on in local memory, oral histories, and journalistic references in Kashmir. Beyond the political identity of Vajpayee, this episode opens a window into a time when Kashmir was known not only for conflict or politics, but also for knowledge, medicine, and trust—even among those who otherwise represented power.
Who Was Dr. Sheikh Jalal?
Dr. Sheikh Jalal was among those physicians whose names carried weight in Kashmir during that period. Known locally for his medical insight and healing abilities, he was part of a tradition where medicine combined experience, observation, and inherited knowledge.
While details about his practice are scarce in official archives, oral accounts consistently describe him as a trusted healer, especially for ailments that conventional medicine of the time struggled to resolve.
People from distant regions reportedly sought his treatment, and his reputation rested not on publicity, but on results.
That a national political figure like Vajpayee would seek treatment from Dr. Sheikh Jalal—even quietly—speaks volumes about the credibility Kashmiri physicians once commanded.
Prof. Dr. Sheikh Jalal, was a down-to-earth more of a
human being than a medical practitioner. Money was never his love and had it
been the case he would have become a multi-millionaire during the his 45 year
long active service. One has yet to see a son as dutiful as Prof. Dr Jalal who
preferred to be by the side of his mother, a widow, to earning laurels as a
cardiologist in New Delhi.
Prof. Dr Sheikh JALAL (R.A).
He was DM Cardiology AIIMS, New Delhi
He was Prof. and HOD, Deptt. of Cardiology, SKIMS,
Srinagar
He was Dean SKIMS,Srinagar
He was Director SKIMS, Srinagar
He was Vice president of DNB/NBE, New Delhi
More than 200 papers are to his credit
Prof. Dr Sheikh Jalal had achieved eminence by his caliber as a cardiologist.
And those patients from Jammu and Kashmir who would visit New Delhi or
Chandigarh for treatment to their heart ailments would usually refer those
patients back to Prof. Dr. Sheikh Jalal.
People and politicians in the valley had complete trust in his expertise as a
cardiologist. Had it not been the case Sheikh Abdullah would have not opted for
Dr Sheikh Jalal’s opinion when he (Sheikh) fell ill in August-September 1982. Prof.
Dr. Sheikh Jalal spent a number of weeks in the
house located behind the Nedous Hotel on the Maulana Azad Road in Srinagar
tending to the ailing leader. Though some of the eminent cardiologists from New
Delhi and other parts of the country had visited the Sheikh they prescribed
medicines only after seeking opinion from Prof. Dr. Sheikh
Jalal.
Dr Sheikh Jalal had many
interesting anecdotes to say. One pertained to a senior doctor in the AIIMS. One
eminent surgeon, Dr Atma Prakash, had t aken ill during the middle of a night.
He used to reside within the faculty complex of the AIIMS. Since he had faith
in Dr Sheikh Jalal Atma Prakash called for the young doctor. Dr Sheikh Jalal
administered all medicines that were required to revive his heart. But he died
in the morning. Whe his body was being carried to the cremation ground Dr
Sheikh Jalal was one among a big group of mourners accompanying the body. A
couple of sleuths of an Indian intelligence agency, who also accompanied the
body,were heard by Jalal asking each other “why Atma Prakash had summoned a
muslim when there were other senior doctors available for help ?” They went
even to the extent of smelling some mischief from Prof. Dr Sheikh Jalal. Alas! Prof.
Dr Sheikh Jalal survived that incident but could not save himself from the
bullets. His death is a big loss to his wife, mother and children but a bigger
loss to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. What could have been the reason for killers
to attak Prof. Dr Sheikh Jalal ?
He was highly gullible. He was again philanthropist and sympathetic consultant,
as if panacea of all illness. My eyes feel a tearful rivulet running down when
I recall.
Prof. Dr. S Jalal again a philanthropist, angel like human sympathizer
would relieve his patients of pain with his soft touch. I never went to both of
them, as a patient, and they declared my heart, a lion’s heart, but the
suffering souls were in the Messiha’s hands with them.He placed trust in everybody and would open his heart before
strangers too. His mother would be waiting for her son to get up and have
“namkeen chai”(tea added with salt and milk) and chappati made of maize flour
for his breakfast. Personally I believe that Dr Sheikh Jalal was a symbol of a
man of simple living and high thinking. He did not move out of of Pampore and
settle somewhere in Srinagar when he had the option. He had no love for
comforts and that is why rustic life suited him. But the gunmen thought
otherwise. Peace be to his soul.
Medical visits—especially personal ones—were often kept private, and in Vajpayee’s case, there was likely no political motive behind publicizing such a trip. Local narratives suggest that the visit was purely health-related, without any formal political engagement.
This challenges a modern assumption: that Kashmir was always viewed solely through a security lens. In 1977, Kashmir could still be a place of trust, even for someone representing the Indian state at a high level.
One of the most intriguing aspects of this episode is its near-total absence from official documentation.
Why would such a visit go unrecorded?
Several reasons are plausible:
It was a private medical visit, not an official tour
Media coverage was limited and centralized
Kashmir-related narratives were already selective
Oral history was undervalued compared to written records
Modern historiography often privileges state archives, ignoring local memory. As a result, many human moments—especially those that complicate dominant narratives—fade away.
Yet history is not only what states record; it is also what people remember.
What This Visit Reveals About Kashmir
This forgotten episode reveals a Kashmir that is often missing from mainstream discourse:
A Kashmir known for knowledge and healing, not just unrest
A society where trust crossed political boundaries
A region whose contributions were quietly acknowledged, even by those in power
It also highlights a time when Kashmiri expertise was sought, not sidelined—a sharp contrast to later decades marked by alienation and distrust.
