Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 20: Pakistan Government had allotted thousands of acres of land in Gilgit in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) to Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), a spy agency of Pakistan, which was responsible for fomenting militancy in Jammu and Kashmir and other countries and Force Command Northern Areas (FCNA) prompting massive protests from the locals in Gilgit and surroundings.
Only yesterday, people, mainly students and youth, had taken out massive protest demonstrations in Jandali area of PoK demanding freedom for PoK from Pakistan while today protests broke out at Gilgit to protest land allotment to ISI and FCNA.
Reports received here said that thousands of acres of land worth billions of rupees was illegally allotted to the ISI and the FCNA by Pakistan Government, which showed that how State owned and non-state owned land is being sold to the Pakistan army at throwaway prices.
“This is not merely a paper of land allotment, but a document exposing the duplex and diabolical nature of the Pakistani establishment,” the locals were quoted as saying by some news agencies.
Highly agitated against the Pakistan Government’s move, the locals said that 20,000 kanals of land has been acquired in a nearby village of Gilgit and this all has been happening at the pretext of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
“A similar situation is prevailing in another village Minaaur too. Although 800-900 kanals of land was already given by our village, still 300 kanals more has been given for the firing range,” locals said, while pointing out that the land has not been occupied by covert tricks, but by blatant hooliganism.
Locals said when CPEC was first announced in the region, then it was declared by ‘Chief Minister’ Hafiz-ur-Rehman that Special Economic Zones would bring employment in the region. However, the Army diktat changed the tone and tenor of the leaders and subsequently all hopes of the people were dashed to the ground.
The Government has allotted land for the China Pakistan Economic Corridor without taking permission of the local people and there is animosity among the people of Gilgit- Baltistan.
Locals further said that various political parties of the region have also expressed their concern, and that the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has initiated a movement under the name Haq Malikaan and has informed the residents that they should be given compensation from the Government for acquiring their land.
Highlighting the fact that Pakistan is assisting Chinese for CPEC, locals said, “The proper fencing of the land acquired by the Pakistan military has been done. In order to appease the Chinese and assist them in completing their dream CPEC project, people were threatened, beaten and were forced to make a compromise with the Pakistan establishment.”
Accusing the Pakistani Government of violating the rules for changing the demography of the region, he added, “The most significant factor is that the law stated that no one outside of Gilgit- Baltistan can purchase or sell the land in the region and Pakistan Government has violated the rule by allotting the land for CPEC projects. Pakistan army and Inter Services Intelligence has been constantly been planning to alter the demography of the region.”
Meanwhile, an alliance of political organisations from Gilgit-Balitistan has expressed concerns over allotment of land in the Northern Areas to non-local people and companies by the Government of Pakistan.
All Parties National Alliance (APNA) described as “violation of the State Subject Rules” the Government’s move to allot land in the region to about 2,000 people and companies.
Chairman of APNA, Mohammad Iqbal Advocate is reported to have said that Gilgit-Baltistan, which the Government called Northern Areas, has been kept deprived of all political, economic and Constitutional rights for the last over 60 years.
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel