Chorus grows for protecting land, job rights of locals

Dinesh Manhotra

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Tribune News Service

Jammu, November 24

The demand of protecting job and land rights of ‘permanent’ residents of J&K has gained momentum after the erstwhile state of J&K was bifurcated into two Union Territories (UTs).

While the main Opposition parties of Jammu province, Congress and Panthers Party, have already started a campaign to mobilise people in support of this demand, local BJP leaders are hesitating to publically support the issue to maintain ‘discipline’ in the party.

“There must be constitutional safeguards to protect the rights of residents of J&K,” spokesman of J&K Congress Ravinder Sharma said but hastened to add that the Congress had been demanding restoration of statehood. “We will come out with a roadmap to protect interests of the residents of J&K and Ladakh,” he said and regretted that after getting a huge mandate of the people of Jammu, the BJP leadership had maintained a criminal silence on this issue.

Interestingly, the BJP was the first to raise the demand of protecting land and job rights of the people of J&K but now, all leaders have maintained a ‘guarded silence’ on this demand. “The party high command has to take a decision on the issue. Without the consent of the high command, will not support this demand,” a senior leader told The Tribune, wishing anonymity, but made a candid admission that the majority population in Jammu was demanding protection of land and job rights.

While endorsing the demand, the Dogra Sadar Sabha said, “As regards the transfer of land, we welcomed the domicile arrangement but recommended that domicile for residential purposes must be given after 30 years as in case of Himachal Pradesh.”

The sabha also suggested that transfer of land for industrial and commercial purposes must be made after proper scrutiny regarding the capability, capacity, expertise, local employment potential and pollution criterion.

“The Centre has to take into consideration sentiments of the Dogras and leaders of Jammu while preparing the final roadmap for the UT of J&K. We demand a domicile and Article 371 on the pattern of Himachal Pradesh to save the identity of Dogras,” chairman of Team Jammu, Zorawar Singh Jamwal, said.