Punjab and Haryana High Court directs inclusion of Kashmiri Pandits in draw for plots

Saurabh Malik

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Chandigarh, April 5

More than 30 years after Kashmiri Pandits (KPs) fled their “home and hearth” in 1989-90, following “violence unleashed against the community by the fundamentalist terrorists”, the Punjab and Haryana High Court today issued directions for the inclusion of all genuinely displaced persons in a draw of lots for the allocation of plots to be held on Wednesday.

Though the order passed by the Bench of Justice Amol Rattan Singh and Justice Lalit Batra is yet to be uploaded on the High Court’s official website, counsel Padamkant Dwivedi said the Bench ordered the inclusion of all genuine Kashmiri Pandits displaced from J&K, who had purchased plots but not given possession. The direction was subject to the decision of the writ petition.

The direction came on a petition filed against the State of Haryana and other respondents by Ramesh Razdan and other petitioners through Dwivedi. The case will now come up for further hearing on May 10. In a related petition, Moti Lal Kharoo and other Kashmiri Pandits had told the court that they bought 200 to 300 square yards at Bahadurgarh from their hard-earned savings. Kharoo’s case was that the plot was acquired and released on request. But the possession was not delivered back even after 30 years, compelling him and others to move the High Court. In all, 14 writ petitions were filed.

The Bench was told that the necessary formalities had been completed. But their case was placed under “nazaresaani” or “objections” for want of mutation in HSVP’s favour. It drafted a list of 188 plot-holders. Still, they were not handed over the plots purchased by them.