Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, June 16: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) State Spokesperson, Appu Singh, has lambasted the Commissioner Secretary, Rural Development Department and Panchayati Raj, for her alleged neglect of two immensely talented Pashmina artists of Basohli who according to the AAP leader have been denied justice and support despite their invaluable contributions to the UT.
According to Appu Singh, Rajinder Kumar and his wife Rinku Devi are the members of a Self-Help-Group in Mandla Village in Basohli.
The AAP leader said the couple received loans and support from the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) in Kathua owing to their exceptional craftsmanship.
Their remarkable talent also earned them the honour of participating in the regional SARAS fair in 2014. But their dreams were shattered when the devastating floods in Kashmir swept away their entire inventory of the Pashmina shawls, valued Rs 3,51,000, said the AAP leader.
She added that despite relentless appeals to various authorities, including the successive Deputy Commissioners of Kathua, Health Ministers of Jammu and Kashmir, Chief Ministers, and even the Prime Minister, the pleas for assistance from Rajinder Kumar and Rinku Devi went unanswered.
Appu Singh strongly criticized the Commissioner Secretary’s inaction and expressed disappointment in the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) for failing to address the artisans’ grievances.
She called upon the Lieutenant Governor and the Jammu and Kashmir bureaucracy to swiftly intervene, releasing the compensation owed to the artists and providing them with a viable means of livelihood.
Singh emphasized the urgency of the situation and warned that if the authorities continue to neglect their responsibilities, Rajinder Kumar and Rinku Devi may be compelled to seek justice from the High Court of J&K.
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