If you are not comfortable that is ok. I was only curious what could be the reason and what was the time period as a fellow with similar back ground.
My forefathers decided to leave Sindh when the Hindu kingdoms fell and lost the patronage of the new Islamic rulers who decided to replace the administrators.
But this was over 1000 years ago. Now coming to Sheikh Abdullah's family they converted to Islam in 1722.
The most important source of Sheikh Abdullah's early life is his official autobiography Atish e Chinar.[5] He was born in Soura, a village on the outskirts of Srinagar, eleven days after the death of his father Sheikh Mohammed Ibrahim. His father was a middle class manufacturer and trader of Kashmiri shawls. He was a descendent of a Kashmiri pandit named Ragho Ram Kaul who converted to Islam in 1722 A.D. as per "Atish e Chinar
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheikh_Abdullah#Early_life
Who was ruling Kashmir in 1722 ? Can't be Dogras
Dogra dynasty was a dynasty of Hindu Rajputs who ruled Jammu & Kashmir from 1846 to 1947. They traced their ancestry to the Ikshvaku (Solar) Dynasty of Northern India (the same clan in which Lord Rama was born; he, therefore, is the 'kuldevta' (family deity) of the Dogras).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dogra#The_Royal_House_of_Jammu_and_Kashmir_.28Dogra_dynasty.29
Can't be Aurangzeb as he died in 1707
Abul Muzaffar Muhi-ud-Din Muhammad Aurangzeb (3 November 1618 – 3 March 1707),[1] commonly known as Aurangzeb Alamgir and by his imperial title Alamgir ("world conqueror" or "universe conqueror") and simply referred to as Aurangzeb was the sixth Mughal Emperor and ruled over most of the Indian subcontinent during some parts of his reign. His reign lasted for 49 years from 1658 until his death in 1707.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurangzeb
It could not have been Sikh empire either as they seemed to have made foray into Kashmir only in 1825.
Hari Singh Nalwa was Commander-in-Chief of the Sikh Khalsa Army from 1825 to 1837.[23] He is known for his role in the conquests of Kasur, Sialkot, Multan, Kashmir, Attock and Peshawar.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikh_Empire#Geography
So the conversion took place during the weakest period of the Mughal empire when it was collapsing.
Muslim monarchs ruled Kashmir, including the Mughals, who ruled from 1586 until 1751, and the Afghan Durrani Empire, which ruled from 1751 until 1820.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kashmir
This is the reason why it is so puzzling to me and I always wondered what may have been the reason.
Since the issue is related to conversion of Brahmins, the social dimension could be easily ruled out. So the reasons could be
1) Economic benefits
2) Security benefits