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| Opposition in Kashmir to Ladakh politically motivated | | More powers to hill councils | | Early Times Report
JAMMU, Oct 3: On September 26, the State Administrative Council (SAC) under Governor Satya Pal Malik took a major decision aimed at making autonomous hill councils in Ladakh's Leh and Kargil districts more powerful. That day, it approved landmark draft Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (Amendment) Bill, 2018. The objective behind the Bill was to make autonomous hill development councils in Leh and Kargil powerful and enable them to exercise administrative and financial powers. The basic objective was to create a regime that would ensure their unhindered functioning and enable them to address the concerns, requirements and aspirations of the people living in the remote areas of the Ladakh region.
The amendments to the Act will give more powers to the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Leh and Kargil. So much so, they will have the power to levy and collect local taxes and fee within the jurisdiction of the council just like local bodies. Besides, the amendment would enable the councils to not only exercise more control over the functioning of various departments in the districts but also exercise more administrative control over the staff. But more than that, "all such properties, such as public buildings, public roads, etc. constructed out of the council fund," shall belong to the councils.
As was expected, vested interests in Kashmir have opposed the decision and described it as a deliberate move to divide the state, create a state within a state and hurt the interests of Kashmir.
The so-called Kashmir Centre for Social and Development Studies (KCSDS) has been in the forefront. "There should be no doubt that the intention behind this move is to make another state within the state. The seeds for division of the state were sown by the Union Government in October 1993 by taking a decision regarding formation of Hill Council for Ladakh, which was deceitfully implemented by the then Governor in 1995, when the state was under Governor's rule," its members have said while denouncing the SAC.
"The proposed changes are aimed at making the LAHDC a fully independent authority with even powers to levy taxes. How can the government empower a unit of the state exclusively to the detriment of the other units? Ladakh is administratively a part of Kashmir and any such decision of empowering it cannot be taken like this. The action is a direct assault on the political and economic rights of the Kashmiris and is a step forward towards the design of dividing the state," they further said.
It bears recalling that in 1995 as well, Kashmiri leaders had condemned the Union Government for setting up autonomous hill development councils in Leh and Kargil districts. Late Mufti Sayeed had said that the creation of such councils will "hurt the psyche of people of Kashmir". |
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