Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Apr 8: The celebrations will continue to fade during Navratra festival also as the bullion traders asserted to carry on with their indefinite strike, which entered 38th day today to its logical end.
Over 25,000 jewellery shops in Jammu and Kashmir are closed since March 2 against Union Ministry’s budgetary proposal of imposing excise duty on production and manufacturing of gold ornaments.
Carrying play cards, jewellers, swarnkars, karigars and artisans gathered at Jain Bazar and held protest. The resentment against the Union Government was clearly visible on the faces of protesters, but still they remained adamant on their decision of protesting in peaceful manner.
Addressing the protesters at Jain Bazar, Raman Suri, Chairman, Sarafa Association and Swarnkar Sangh Joint Action Committee Jammu Province said, “We have been protesting for the past 38 days against the Union Government’s decision of imposing one per cent excise duty on non-silver jewellers, but the Union Ministry and the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley are still unresponsive towards the issues of the bullion traders, which is brewing jewellers to turn their peaceful protest into violent style”.
“During Navratra festival, we will continue our protest, but via sit in mode. No rally will be taken out as we don’t want people to suffer”, Raman Suri asserted.
Suri stated that some events will be organized during the protest in Navratra days, which will be an eye-opener for the Union Ministry.
He added that due to anti-jewellers decision of the Union Finance Minister, the jewellers in the past celebrated the festival of colours Holi as Black Holi and now even spoiled the Holy Navratras, which are the most auspicious festival of the Hindus.
“These Navratras are the deadline for the Union Finance Minister. If excise duty is not rolled back before Ram Navmi, then India will see such a protest that has never occurred in its history before”, Suri warned.
While speaking, Vijay Kumar Verma, General Secretary Sarafa Association Jammu said, “We have full faith in the Union Ministry that it will consider our issues immediately and give its decision in our favour”.
Raj Kumar Babbar, All India Vice President Swarnkar Sangh and President Swarnkar Sangh, Jammu Province took a meeting of Jammu Province Swarnkars and said that, 90 per cent of the karigars and artisans, who had migrated from Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal to Jammu for work had gone back as they could not afford basic amenities due to the ongoing strike”.
Parjan Kumar Jain, President Sarafa Association Jammu, Kulbhushan Anand, President Swarnkar Sangh Jammu District, Surinder Jain, Treasure Sarafa Association Jammu and executive members of Sarafa association Ajay Talla, Rakesh Mahajan, Sanjay Jain, CL Khajuria, CL Puri, Vijay Saraf and Darshan Dhalla asked the Union Finance Minister to roll back its decision as the rage among the protestors is increasing day-by-day.
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