Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, June 2: Kashmiri Pandit Sabha has said that PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti’s submission to Lt Governor Manoj Sinha to prepare a roadmap for return and rehabilitation of the displaced Kashmiri Pandits seems to be the result of some kind of political compulsion rather than any genuine concern about the community.
In a meeting held today in the Kashmiri Pandit Sabha Jammu under the chairmanship of its President K K Khosa, the executive committee deliberated upon the memorandum submitted by Mehbooba Mufti to the Lt Governor Manoj Sinha. The members observed that it has been more than 35 years since the Kashmiri Pandits had to flee from the valley and during these three decades the PDP got opportunities to rule the state twice but their Governments never showed any interest in formulating and initiating any such policy.
The members recalled that when the Government of India had initiated a proposal for establishing colonies for the displaced Kashmiri Pandit community for their settlement in the three erstwhile districts of Kashmir, Mehbooba Mufti had opposed this proposal tooth and nail without giving any alternative in this regard.
The members also recalled that the Sabha has been raising the demand for formation of a policy which would cover each and every aspect of the return and rehabilitation process which is necessary for its implementation. However, the members expressed their appreciation over the proposals detailed in the memorandum especially about consultation with the community leadership and also the indirect appreciation by the former CM of the fact that many displaced community members have either sold off their properties or have lost their possession to the land mafias or due to distress sales etc.
The members unanimously appealed the GoI and the UT Government led by Manoj Sinha to initiate steps to formulate a robust return and rehabilitation policy for the Kashmiri Pandits in consultation with the community leadership at the earliest.
Those who attended the meeting included Deepak Dhar, Ashwani Koul, G J Kampasi, Rajinder Tiku, Subash Dhar, Dr Usha Tickoo, Dr Sujata Sathoo, V K Bakshi, V K Mukhi, Satish Khoda, Bharat Bushan Gosaini, S K Kaul and Nimi Braroo.
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