Jammu August 08 (KNS): Former Minister and Senior National Conference leader Mr Ajay Kumar Sadhotra today lamented over disempowerment and marginalisation of Jammu and Kashmir by unconstitutional decisions of August 5, 2019, asserting that the people will continue to fight peacefully for getting back their identity and pride.
Addressing workers at MACHLIAN IN JAMMU NORTH Assembly Constituency, under the chairmanship of Thakur Nanak Singh Jamwal, Mr Sadhotra saidthe people are genuinely apprehensive about their bonafide right on the lands and jobs for the youth, as guaranteed to them, for being the permanent residents, which appears to be under the threat now.
The Former Minister squarely blamed the BJP for its insensitive handling of the sensitive part of the Country like Jammu and Kashmir, saying the people have fears about jobs going to outside youth and businesses getting usurped by affluent traders.
These apprehensions had actually led Maharaja Sahab to have a special dispensation of permanent resident laws over nine decades ago. He said the permanent resident laws, known as state subjects, reflected the wisdom of the Maharaja Sahab and his far-sightedness. This law was religion neutral, regional neutral and caste neutral and beneficial for all the state subjects. He gave the background of the enactment of permanent residence laws in 1927, saying that the Maharaja Sahab had sagaciously acted upon the representation of his subjects, Keeping in view the threat of outside domination over the poor people of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh.
It is unfortunate that it has badly hurt the hearts and minds of common man of Jammu and Kashmir that the Jammu and Kashmir Princely State has been reduced to Union Territory.
The people are yet to know what was their fault that their status was low down from State to Union Territory. BJP has created bad history by lowering down status of State to Union Territory, traditionally the Union Territories are upgraded to States.
Mr Sadhotra said that snatching of this law has opened up floodgates for big businesses by way of the so-called investments to decimate small businessmen, industrial units and traders thus leading to economic slavery of the people, especially the Jammuites. Similarly, the jobs exclusively meant for the unemployed educated youth are now feared to be shared under the new concept of Domicile Rules, which is unjust, unfair and arbitrary, he added.
Recalling the promises held out lavishly at the time of the atrocious revocation of special status to Jammu and Kashmir, Mr Sadhotra asked the BJP to spell out what extraordinary development has taken place during the past three years. He said the people of all the regions and the sub-regions are feeling deprived of normal developmental activities with the utility services remaining in shambles in particular.
The administrative inertial and lack of accountability has pushed J&K to morass, he said and called for immediate course correction.(KNS)