Demanding the liberation of their native places, refugees from Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) on Friday announced that they would stage a dharna at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on September 22 to highlight their demands before the nation.
A 50-member delegation of PoJK displaced persons of 1947 will leave for New Delhi on September 20 to seek meetings with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on September 21, followed by a dharna at Jantar Mantar on September 22.
"The delegation will highlight the long-pending rehabilitation issues of the displaced persons and seek their comprehensive settlement," Gurdev Singh, president of the Jammu and Kashmir Sharnarthi Action Committee (JKSAC), said, adding, "The delegation will also meet and apprise national political leaders of the continuing injustice faced by the displaced persons' community in matters related to rehabilitation."
The delegation has also sought the constitution of a sub-cabinet committee headed by a senior Union Cabinet Minister and comprising the concerned minister from the Jammu and Kashmir Government, along with representatives of the Action Committee and other sister organisations.
According to the organisation, the committee should take up the issues with the Central Government and pursue the acceptance and implementation of the recommendations of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs in its 183rd Report, which the JKSAC considers a viable roadmap for the settlement of the displaced persons until PoJK is liberated and their losses are registered.
Gurdev Singh said the organisation had consistently pursued the issues concerning displaced persons through peaceful and democratic means for several decades. He said various initiatives had been undertaken to ensure that the collective voice of the displaced persons reached the appropriate forums of the government.
Gurdev Singh said the recently concluded year-long signature campaign reflected the collective aspirations and concerns of the displaced persons.
He said the signatures had been compiled in the form of a book, which the delegation proposes to submit to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah during the proposed meetings in New Delhi on September 21.
He said the request for the proposed meetings had already been communicated. During the proposed interaction, the delegation would submit a detailed memorandum titled "Hamari Awaaz Suno", highlighting the long-standing concerns of the displaced persons from PoJK in 1947.
Main Demands of PoJK Displaced Persons
- One-time ex-gratia relief of Rs 30 lakh until PoJK is liberated.
- Registration of their claims.
- De-freezing of their constitutional share of Assembly seats.
- Grant of Scheduled Tribe-2 status to PoJK refugees.
- Implementation of the recommendations of the Joint Parliamentary Committee Report.
Singh said the displaced persons had borne the consequences of displacement for nearly eight decades.
"Despite being a significant and widespread community in the Jammu region, displaced persons continue to seek a permanent, dignified and comprehensive settlement of their concerns," Singh said.
He maintained that the displaced persons from PoJK had made an important contribution to the development of Jammu and Kashmir despite losing their ancestral homes, properties, livelihoods and loved ones during displacement.
"The displaced persons do not want charity from the government but seek justice, recognition, equality and a dignified settlement commensurate with the sacrifices made by the first generation and the hardships endured by successive generations," he said.
Gurdev Singh said the displaced persons continued to have faith in the Government of India and hoped that, after more than seven decades, their long-standing grievances would receive a comprehensive and just resolution.
The JKSAC delegation appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to treat the issues of the displaced persons as a matter of national responsibility and humanitarian justice and establish a time-bound institutional mechanism for their final resolution.
PoJK Refugees of 1947
In 1947, about 50,000 families came to Jammu and Kashmir as refugees. Today, their number has increased to over 12 lakh, and they are spread across the country. Their number is estimated to be around 10 lakh in Jammu alone.
There is no official record of the total number of people who were forced to leave their homes and hearths in 1947 from areas under Pakistan's occupation.
The Department-Related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs, in its 183rd Report on the problems faced by refugees and displaced persons of Jammu and Kashmir, tabled in Parliament on December 22, 2014, had recommended the de-freezing of eight 'reserved' Assembly seats.
