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| Ahuluwalia's commitment generates new hope among Sikhs, PoK refugees | | | Early Times Report
JAMMU, Oct 7: The recent announcement made by former leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha S S Ahuluwalia while addressing a BJP Sikh Sammelan here that the Party will take up the problems of members of Sikh community and PoK refugees at appropriate forums at national level including grant of admissions to wards of refugees in professional colleges of BJP ruled states has generated a ray of hope among the community as well as the refugees.
The members of the Sikh community are hopeful that the initiative will go a long way in redressing the long pending demands of the refugees and Sikh community who are running from pillar to post for justice ever since their displacement from PoK in 1947.
Talking to reporters here today BJP senior leader S. Varinderjeet Singh, alongwith BJP State Executive Members S. Rajinder Singh and H.S.Pummy and youth leader S. Gurdyal Singh Bali said the refugees in general and members of the community in aprticual;r are hopeful that the Party will take up the issue forcefully to seek the justice for these deprived and neglected people.
Varinderjeet Singh said that PoK Sikhs are now seeing a ray of hope after Mr. Ahluwalia made an announcement in this regard at "Sikh Sammelan " organized by the Party here few days ago.
He said that different yardsticks are being adopted for the people who migrated in 1947 from PoK and other refugees and migrants, which is a glaring example of discrimination towards PoK refugees.
He, while highlighting the grievances of Sikhs in particular, said that these displaced persons from PoK have not been accorded refugee status, their permanent settlement has not be done till date, money of these people lying in J&K Bank branches in PoK areas has not been released to them, there is no reservation for their children in technical and professional colleges, despite repeated representations at the highest levels they have not been treated at par with other refugees and migrants, 24 seats in J&K Assembly for PoK have not been defreezed for the refugees, Sikhs being in minority here are neither given benefits of minority community nor Minority Commission has been set up here, Punjabi language has not been introduced in schools, Anand Marriage Act has not been implemented in Jammu and Kashmir and there is no provision of helping Sikhs to undertake pilgrimages to their religious places situated in PoK.
Not only this, the Sikhs living in Kashmir are facing lot of problems in getting state subjects as the Government has been putting unnecessary hurdles on one pretext or the other. He said that after Chattisingh Pura and Mehzoor Nagar carnage of Sikhs, the Government employees in Central as well as state departments were assured of their postings near to their homes in view of threats to their families but with the passing of time no one fulfilled this promise.
As the Sikhs were getting repeated threats, they moved to nearby towns and cities for safety of lives but did not leave valley despite heavy odds. Now, when any of them applies for state subject certificate, the revenue officials show them as not living in Valley, which is just a conspiracy to deprive them of the said certificate.
Mr Singh said that the Sikhs living in J&K in total are having resentment as reports of Ansari Commission and Shah Commission, constituted for inquiring into 1989 riots and Chattisingh Pura carnage respectively have not been made public so far. There is also anger among the Sikhs as the benefits of Healing Touch and Surrendered Militant Policy have been enjoyed by a particular community only. |
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