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| WPRs issue: 'It's time to act, not to delay' | | |
Early Times Report
Jammu, June 24: It was before the accession of J&K with India that thousands of Hindus (mostly Dalits) migrated from the then West Pakistan to Jammu province to save their lives, culture and dignity. They were given asylum by the then Dogra Maharaja, Hari Singh. They were then assured by the authorities that they would be properly rehabilitated as respectable Indian citizens. Had the Congress and Prime Minister Nehru not transferred political power from Jammu to Kashmir in October 1947 or had the power remained in the hands of Jammu, these refugees would have got all the citizenship rights in the state and they would have become full-fledged citizens of the state. But it was not to be.
Ever since then, the refugee leadership has been moving heaven and earth to obtain justice, but with no result. The reason is that the Kashmiri leaders, Kashmiri separatists and Kashmiri civil society members have been opposing their demand seeking citizenship rights, saying the grant of citizenship rights to them would not only dilute the state's special status but also change the demography of the state despite the fact that these refugees have been putting up at various places in Jammu since 1947. The nature of the opposition in Kashmir could be determined from the fact that the Kashmiri leadership, separatist leadership and Kashmiri civil society have been opposing even the proposal of setting up of colonies for Kashmiri Hindus and ex-soldiers belonging to the state in Kashmir.
Paradoxically, even the Supreme Court of India, the highest court of justice, has raised its hands, saying although it endorses its demand, yet it cannot direct the Government of India and the J&K Government to grant citizenship rights to these hapless and abandoned refugees. In 1987, the Supreme Court while disposing off the writ petition said it couldn't dispense justice to them because of the state's peculiar status. The judgment had naturally shocked the petitioner and the group of refugees he represented.
However, of all the parties which seemingly sided with these refugees was the Jan Sangh/BJP. It always supported their demand before 2014 or before it formed its own government at the centre and became part of the ruling coalition in the state. Its attitude underwent a change after that and the result was that it started behaving like all other parties in J&K had behaved after the transfer of political power from Jammu to Kashmir. It resorted to policy of lip service and it, in fact, consistently hoodwinked them by making false promises.
Ironically, the other day, they were again given an assurance that the Government of India was heading towards resolution of their issues and was firmly committed to working out comprehensive settlement, which would be acceptable to refugees from Pakistan. The assurance was given by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh in Delhi.
"The package for the West Pakistani refugees will be worked out very shortly after taking their representatives into confidence," a report in this regard said, adding that "Rajnath Singh has issued directions for working out comprehensive package for West Pakistani refugees after taking their representatives and other stake holders into the confidence so that the package is worked out to their satisfaction".
It was not the first occasion when such so-called directions were issued. Such directions were issued in the past umpteen times but nothing concrete emerged: only assurance, assurance and again assurance. It is time to act ant to delay. The refugees need rights nit lip service. |
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